GRIDIRON GLANCE ’24: Zephyr Bulldogs

August 23, 2024 at 8:08 am Derrick Stuckly

ZEPHYR – With back-to-back district championships to their credit, the Zephyr Bulldogs in 2024 look to continue their regular season success and carry that into the postseason this fall.

Joining the Bulldogs, who are coming off an 8-3 campaign, in the new District 13-A Division II are former District 15 rivals Sidney, Blanket and Gustine, while fellow two-time defending district champion Rising Star has been added to the mix.

“The district got tougher this year adding Rising Star to it,” said Zephyr head coach Jeremy Phillips, who owns an 81-63 career record and 22-30 mark going into his sixth season with the Bulldogs. “It’s going to be an adventure and a battle every week to get better. Hopefully by the time we get to district we’ll be rolling.

Last year we were young, this year we have a lot of experience coming back. I think if we can gel and improve on our weaknesses we can make a run and win playoff games. We’re grateful for the last two years of district titles but everybody in that locker room feels like it’s time to do more than just win district. That’s the expectation.”

The Bulldogs return five starters on each side of the ball. Players to watch include Tripp Ballard (678 rushing yards, 18 TDs; 15-255, 3 TDs receiving), Wyatt Stevens (43 of 75 passing for 924 yards, 16 TDs, 4 INTs), Chayden Woodcock, CJ Byers and Reese Hamm, among others.

“Tripp on defense is always around the football. On the offensive side he’s going to take a larger role with carries,” Phillips said. “Wyatt is also a senior and it’s his second year in this system. We expect him to really shine this year. He also plays on the defensive line, which is a rarity, but he’s pretty good there. They’re the leaders of the team, and we’ll go as far as they take us.

“A couple of young ones that should step up are Chayden Woodcock, he’ll be our tailback this year, and he was Newcomer of the Year last year. He should be big for us. CJ Byers and Reese Hamm are two sophomores that will have major roles on the team this year. We return five starters on both sides of the ball, we lost Karsen Floyd but he was pretty big in everything we did. Even though we just lost one, that’s a big hole to fill. We’re hoping a couple of underclassmen might be able to step up and fill that role, and we’re excited about that opportunity for them.”

Prior to the start of district, the Bulldogs will square off against Veribest, Blackwell, Gorman, Lingleville, Strawn, and Santa Anna.

As for what Phillips wants to see early in the season, he said, “We want to come together as a group. We return five so hopefully we’ll be peaking earlier this season than we were last year. We know our strengths and we know our weaknesses, and we want to turn those weaknesses into strengths. Hopefully we’re able to fix some of things that got in our way last year and become more of a complete team.”

The District 13-A Division II slate features games at Rising Star, home against Blanket, at Sidney, and the regular season finale where Gustine comes to town.

“Blanket is better than they were last year, it was rebuild for them, so they’re going to push us,” Phillips said. “Rising Star, last year we were barely able to beat them on an interception late in the fourth quarter, so we know that’s going to be a battle. Sidney has some experience, but I heard they had some move outs so I don’t really know what to expect from them at this point. Gustine had a good eighth grade that’s coming up so they should be improved as well.”

As for potentially capturing a third district championship and making a lengthy postseason run, Phillips said, “We’re excited about the playoffs and how they line up. The last couple of years we got a Top 5 team in the state even after winning district. This year will be a different path, so this year the team that wins our district will get a traditional bi-district game, but the runner-up will still have a really tough game in Oglesby, which is the preseason No. 1 team in the state. There’s more pressure on winning district this year.”

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ZEPHYR BULLDOGS 2024 SCHEDULE

Aug. 30	at Veribest	7:30 p.m.
Sept. 6	Blackwell	7:30 p.m.
Sept. 13	at Gorman	7:30 p.m.
Sept. 20	Lingleville#	7:30 p.m.
Sept. 27	Strawn	7:30 p.m.
Oct. 4	at Santa Anna	7:30 p.m.
Oct. 11	at Rising Star*	7:30 p.m.
Oct. 18	OPEN
Oct. 25	Blanket*	7:30 p.m.
Nov. 1	at Sidney*	7:30 p.m.
Nov. 8	Gustine*	7:30 p.m.