‘Two-a-days’: The 2015 Eleva-Strum Cardinals

Season Opener: Aug. 21 vs. Colfax

Eleva-Strum returns a strong group of nearly 30 upperclassmen, and already talk in camp is on the week 3 match-up against Independence-Gilmanton.

The Cardinals get back two of last seasons’ top three rushers in conference. Head coach Chad Hanson believes an experienced backfield is one of the team’s biggest strengths.

“Lots of times, you put a kid in there to be the first tier, and he has never run the ball on varsity,” said Hanson. “Or, he ran the ball only for a little bit in the end of the games. We have two kids that have experience running the ball all game long.”

Also returning are all-conference notables on the offensive line Axton Hynek and Bennet Moen. On the defensive side, lineman Tyler Hazelton and cornerback Matthew Higley also return having earned all-conference honors last season.

The Cardinals defense figures to get plenty of early leads with the notable players who are returning on offense. And again, almost every player we talked to commented on the potential of this year’s ground game.

“We have a lot of speed at our wing-back spots,” said senior fullback Coy Christianson. “Hitting them from the outside, they just get through – you cannot catch them. We have some pretty good, powerful fullbacks. We have so many options running the sweep option, it is comforting feeling entering the season.”

The Cardinals’ year begins Aug. 21 against Colfax.