Coach: Jay Dodd, 12th season with Blaine (60-53)
Home Field: Blaine High School
Last Season: 6-4 (4-3 NWC)
Key Losses: RB/ILB Riley Fritsch; WR/S Anthony Ball; LT/OLB Jared Philips; QB/DB Jalen Kortlever; K/P Kyle Sentkowski; LG/ILB Tucker Jensen; WR/DB/KR Alfonso Dermendziev; OL/DL Austin Kelstrup; RB/DB Garrett Adams; TE/LB Gunnar Arnason.
Top Returnees: OL/DL Porter Schmidt; OL/DL River Markusen; WR/DB Chase Abshere; TE/LB Cruz Rodriguez.
- Porter Schmidt – Guard/Defensive Tackle
The main man on both lines. Schmidt lost about 30 pounds over the summer, but is stronger than ever. Should be dominant throughout the season.
2. River Markusen – Center/Defensive Tackle
An extremely versatile player, and he has knack to be around the ball on defense, including scoring a touchdown against Sehome last season. Another returning starter on both lines.
3. Chase Abshere – Wide Receiver/Safety
He could be this year’s version of Anthony Ball. Not only on offense, but as a ball-hawking safety on defense, and as a punt returner. Only a junior, the future is bright for Abshere.
4. Cruz Rodriguez – Tight End/Outside Linebacker
He has all the tools: size, speed and strength. This could be a huge year for him, and a not-so-fun year for opposing quarterbacks.
Fastest Players: Isaiah Russ, Dalton Mouw, Alex Mercado and Chase Abshere.
Strongest Players: Porter Schmidt, Chase Dubois and Kevin Nolasco.
Smartest Players: Cam Ellis and Max Miller.
Who will be Blaine’s breakout player?
Gavino Rodriguez – Left Guard/Defensive Tackle
Only a sophomore, Cruz’s little brother could “wow” some people this year. He’s had a great off-season, and he’s earned his way onto the field.
2016 RESULTS
Blaine 35, Nooksack Valley 21
Blaine 45, Meridian 35
Sedro Woolley 52, Blaine 20
Blaine 24, Bellingham 17
Blaine 28, Anacortes 21
Lynden 31, Blaine 23
Blaine 44, Lakewood 7
Blaine 48, Sehome 0
Burlington-Edison 17, Blaine 12
Liberty (Issaquah) 27, Blaine 24
2017 SCHEDULE
09/01 – at Nooksack Valley – 7 PM
09/08 – Meridian – 7 PM
09/15 – at Sedro Woolley – 7 PM
09/22 – at Bellingham – 7 PM
09/29 – Anacortes – 7 PM
10/06 – Lynden – 7 PM
10/13 – at Lakewood – 7 PM
10/27 – Burlington-Edison – 7 PM
While looking at the roster of this season’s Blaine football team, I noticed some glaring omissions. Yeah, many players are gone, but it’s more than just that. They lost some tremendous talent to graduation, many of which that are playing at the collegiate level this year. However, this year’s crop of Borderites are ready to take on anyone, especially considering the talent that they had to face every day in practice last year.
“We have a lot of good pieces coming back,” Blaine coach Jay Dodd said, “We have a great senior class, it’s just that many of them didn’t get to play last year. They all understand that this is their chance.”
One of those seniors is left-handed quarterback, Cam Ellis. Coach Dodd has been impressed by his ability to make all of the throws, as well as his grasp of the offense. “Cam was Jalen’s back up last year,” Dodd said. “And he (Cam) signaled in every play during the season. He knows the offense extremely well.” Also, the last time Dodd coached on a team that had a left-handed quarterback it was Kellen Moore, and that turned out pretty well.
With the graduation of Riley Fritsch and Garrett Adams, the running back spot is wide open. Without any players on the current roster that have carried the ball in a varisty game, Blaine will rotate players at running back to see if someone emerges. Senior Kevin Nolasco and junior Jacob Westfall will get the bulk of the carries to start the season.
Junior wide receiver Chase Abshere had a breakout season last year, and will be looked upon as the main target for Ellis. Despite missing multiple games last season due to an injury, Abshere still caught 21 passes for 328 yards (15.6 average) and five touchdowns. He will be joined on the outside by senior speedsters Dalton Mouw and Isaiah Russ, as well as junior Alex Mercado. At 6-foot-3 and 225 pounds, senior Cruz Rodriguez is back at tight end, and he will look to make an even bigger impact this season.
The offensive line (as usual for Blaine) should be the strongest unit of the team. O-Line coach Dave Fakkema always has his guys up front ready to go, and this season will be no exception. It starts with senior guard Porter Schmidt, who hit the weights hard over the summer and could really dominate this year. Senior River Markusen is back at center, and is one of the best centers in the county. Senior Joshua Soto will play left tackle, and the other two spots will be filled by up and coming sophomores, Gavino Rodriguez at left guard and Wyatt Cole at right tackle.
Markusen and Schmidt return to the defensive line, where both players had great success last year. Cole and Gavino Rodgriguez should also see time on the defensive front, along with 260-pound junior, Connor Ellis. Nolasco and fellow senior Chase Dubois have the inside track to play linebacker, but they are being pushed by Westfall and senior Jaden Seitz.
“The Cruzer” is back at outside linebacker, but he could line up at multiple positions on defense based on the offensive personnel. Soto has the size (6-3 215) to play on the other side, while juniors Tanner Beson and Conner Bolick could each see some time on the edge.
Russ and Mouw team up to possibly make the fastest duo at cornerback in the county, and they will be spelled by senior Trenton Denhartog. Abshere will play safety, along with senior Max Miller, who Coach Dodd says is one of the “smartest players on the team”. Mercado will also see time at safety.
Perhaps one of the biggest shoes to fill will be the right foot of Kyle Sentkowski. Mercado is battling with junior Bryce Kamrath to play kicker, while senior Kai Nagle will handle the punting.
It’s a lot of new players for the orange and black, but they are a tight-knit group that is expecting big things. If the offensive line plays as well as expected, this could be another big year for the Borderites.
2017 Roster
| No. | Player | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. | Pos. |
| 2 | Alex Mercado | 5-7 | 145 | Jr. | WR/DB |
| 3 | Kai Nagle | 6-0 | 155 | Sr. | WR/DB |
| 4 | Chase Abshere | 6-1 | 185 | Jr. | WR/DB |
| 5 | Max Miller | 5-11 | 165 | Sr. | WR/DB |
| 6 | Cameron Ellis | 6-1 | 160 | Sr. | QB/DB |
| 8 | Arjun Sihota | 6-2 | 205 | Jr. | QB/LB |
| 9 | Tanner Beson | 6-1 | 185 | Jr. | WR/LB |
| 10 | Bryce Stanovich | 6-3 | 180 | Sr. | WR/DB |
| 11 | Brian Davis | 5-9 | 185 | Jr. | WR/DB |
| 12 | Ethan Deming | 6-0 | 150 | Jr. | WR/DB |
| 13 | Dalton Mouw | 6-0 | 170 | Sr. | WR/DB |
| 14 | Bryce Kamrath | 6-0 | 160 | Jr. | K |
| 15 | Robert Parker | 5-8 | 160 | So. | QB/DB |
| 16 | Isaiah Russ | 5-9 | 155 | Sr. | WR/DB |
| 19 | Colby Mahood | 5-10 | 130 | Jr. | WR/DB |
| 20 | Trenton Denhartog | 6-0 | 150 | Sr. | WR/DB |
| 21 | Jaden Fritsch | 6-0 | 165 | So. | WR/DB |
| 22 | Tazer Stone | 5-10 | 140 | Sr. | RB/LB |
| 23 | Oscar Caridad | 5-7 | 160 | So. | RB/LB |
| 24 | Kevin Nolasco | 5-6 | 175 | Sr. | RB/LB |
| 25 | Danyil Tkachov | 5-11 | 170 | Jr. | RB/LB |
| 28 | Alex Hunt | 5-8 | 145 | So. | WR/DB |
| 29 | Chase Dubois | 5-10 | 180 | Sr. | RB/LB |
| 30 | Hudson Reid | 6-1 | 200 | Jr. | RB/LB |
| 31 | Jaden Seitz | 6-0 | 195 | Sr. | TE/LB |
| 32 | Garrison Folk | 5-8 | 160 | Sr. | WR/DB |
| 33 | Trenton Aiello | 5-7 | 135 | So. | WR/LB |
| 34 | Jacob Westfall | 5-8 | 175 | Jr. | RB/LB |
| 35 | Chase Covell | 5-7 | 115 | So. | WR/DB |
| 42 | Brittain Solomon | 5-11 | 140 | Jr. | K |
| 45 | Caleb Kielpinski | 6-2 | 160 | So. | WR/DL |
| 51 | Justin Nevins | 6-0 | 220 | Jr. | OL/DL |
| 52 | Isaiah Hee | 5-7 | 180 | Sr. | OL/DL |
| 53 | Gavin Silver | 5-9 | 200 | So. | OL/DL |
| 54 | Porter Schmidt | 5-10 | 210 | Sr. | OL/DL |
| 55 | Cody Goucher | 6-0 | 210 | Sr. | OL/DL |
| 56 | Gavino Rodriguez | 6-1 | 205 | So. | OL/DL |
| 57 | Mason Vega | 6-1 | 185 | So. | OL/LB |
| 58 | Joshua Soto | 6-3 | 215 | Sr. | OL/LB |
| 60 | River Markusen | 5-11 | 210 | Sr. | OL/DL |
| 69 | Tristan Alanis | 5-10 | 210 | Sr. | OL/DL |
| 70 | Tobin Akre | 5-9 | 195 | So. | OL/DL |
| 73 | Ryan Rigsby | 5-10 | 255 | Sr. | OL/DL |
| 74 | Connor Ellis | 6-2 | 260 | Jr. | OL/DL |
| 76 | Wyatt Cole | 6-2 | 245 | So. | OL/DL |
| 78 | Chris Reid | 6-1 | 270 | So. | OL/DL |
| 79 | Cameron Calvert | 6-4 | 280 | Jr. | OL/DL |
| 82 | Cruz Rodriguez | 6-3 | 225 | Sr. | TE/LB |
| 83 | Joshua Rogers | 6-1 | 195 | Sr. | TE/LB |
| 84 | Drew Schroeder | 6-3 | 180 | Jr. | TE/LB |
| 88 | Conner Bolick | 6-0 | 155 | Jr. | TE/LB |
| NA | Dawson Almer | NA | NA | Jr. | WR/DB |
| NA | Tristen Lambe | NA | NA | Jr. | TE |
| NA | Kavika Hee | NA | NA | So. | WR/DB |
| NA | Travis Baker | NA | NA | So. | WR/DB |