With key pieces back, East Buchanan could be in line for a special football season

WINTHROP — The ingredients are certainly there.

With a future Iowa football player anchoring both lines and two returning 1,000-yard rushers, East Buchanan could be in line for a big season.

The Buccaneers were 9-2 in 2022, losing 20-6 to eventual state champion Grundy Center in the Class A quarterfinals after making it to the semifinals in 2021. Now, with the core of those two teams entering their senior seasons, East Buchanan Coach Jerry Alden knows this has the makings of a special year.

“We always tell our kids you have to earn it,” Alden said. “In the last two or three years we have kind of earned that. Now, it is not just having the mindset of a championship team, you also need to have the work ethic of a championship team. Our guys are not going to forget what it takes to get there.

“I think our ceiling is as high as it has been in a while, but, like I tell everybody, we're a small school and most of our guys go both ways so if you have an injury it is likely you have not one, but two positions to replace. So it will be important for us to stay injury free and over the last two years, for the most part, we have been able to do that.”

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Even with the return of 1,000-yard rushers Tanner Thurn and Hunter Bowers, any conversation about the third-ranked Buccaneers begins with senior lineman Cody Fox. The 6-foot-5, 295-pounder committed to Iowa in June of 2021 and is expected to play on the offensive line there. Fox has been a starter since his freshman season and already is a two-time all-state selection.

Despite those accolades, Alden said Fox is a player who is all about his team.

“Cody is just not one of those kids who seeks the limelight,” Alden said. “I mean when he committed (to Iowa) he was committed. He doesn't take phone calls from other schools. He's just a real down-to-earth kid. If you came to our practice you wouldn't recognize him any different from any other kid as far as attitude. For him, it is just to continue to grind away and get better.”

Fox is the centerpiece of a defense that returns nine starters and held all but two opponents under 100 yards rushing per game. He also anchors an offensive line that cleared the way for a team that rushed for 4,315 yards in 2022, with three backs going over 1,000 yards.

Ryland Cornell (1,299 yards) has graduated, but Thurn (1,474 yards, 21 touchdowns) and Bowers (1,098 yards, 11 TDs) are back.

“Typically, when you lose a 1,000-yard rusher, you think you have to look hard to replace him,” Alden said. “Fortunately, we have two 1,000-yard rushers returning. It will be a lot more of the same from us on offense.”

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Thurn (5-10, 190), who was an all-state linebacker last year, is more of a power runner while Bowers (6-3, 185), who averaged an amazing 13.9 yards a carry, is more of a breakaway threat.

“Hunter didn't even play running back for us until about the third game last year,” Alden said. “We had an injury in the backfield and we moved him there to get the ball in his hands more often.

“Tanner is just your typical middle linebacker/fullback. A lot of teams don't play with a fullback, but we do. All his yards come from that fullback spot so he runs over a lot of people to get where he is going.”

Even though he was just 18-of-32 passing and rushed for only 24 yards, Trystin Russell (6-0, 180) returns at quarterback for East Buchanan. According to Alden, the lack of statistics was not because of a lack of ability on Russell's part.

“It's not that we can't throw the football. It's just that we haven't had to throw the football,” Alden said. “We've got our returning quarterback back and the few passes that Trystin threw, his percentage was pretty high and touchdown-to-turnover ratio was pretty high. It was something we definitely worked on during the offseason and we'll probably see a little bit more of it this year.”

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A good indicator for 2023 will likely come in next Friday night's opener at home against Sumner-Fredericksburg.

“We will learn a lot about ourselves Week 1 in our only non-district game when we step up a class to face Sumner-Fredericksburg,” Alden said. “They return most of their team and I think they will be one of the better Class 1A teams in the state.”

A closer look at East Buchanan

Coach: Jerry Alden (22nd year)

Last year: 9-2 (5-1 in Class A, District 4)

Returning starters: Cody Fox OL-DL, Tanner Thurn FB-LB, Hunter Bowers, RB-WR-S, Carter Wilgenbusch OL-LB, Clay Wilgenbush OL-LB, Gavin Reck TE-RB-LB, Caleb Dirks OL-FL, Trystin Russell QB, Todd Dawes RB-DB, Cameron Graham RB-LB.

3 keys to success: Avoiding key injuries; Continued success running the ball; Defense dominating the line of scrimmage

Big game: Aug. 25 vs. Sumner-Fredricksburg.