Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

TIFFIN – There is one quality that nearly every football coach is looking for above all others in quarterback – leadership.

As Clear Creek Amana head coach Gabe Bakker began the process of replacing his starting quarterback before this season senior Andrew Rohret stood out as an obvious choice for that reason.

Rohret is a leader.

“He is exactly what you are looking for as a leader,” Bakker said. “He was a leader for us on the field but he’s a leader in our school as a student-athlete and in the community and other kids followed his lead.”

In his first season under center Rohret led Clear Creek Amana to the best season in program history.

Rohret directed the Clippers to the first 7-0 start in school history, an 8-2 record and a spot in the Class 3A playoffs.

As the Clippers piled up wins Rohret garnered attention for his play on the field.

Rohret was among the most productive quarterbacks in the state this fall, accounting for nearly 2,000 yards of total offense and 27 touchdowns but it was his leadership away from the field that stood out.

 “A lot of people see me on the field playing football or wrestling but I want to try to be a complete student,” Rohret said. “I’ve always focused on having the good grades to also back that up and set an example that you can do sports and also do good in school.”

Rohret excels in school the same way he does in the classroom.

A three-sport athlete, Rohret is a National Honor Society member with a 3.7 grade point average and was named to the academic all-district team.

“I think he’s a student first, he takes his academics very seriously, he does a great job in the classroom and the other kids see that,” Bakker said. “A lot of our other seniors this year kind of followed his lead and we had a great group of seniors and had a bunch of guys on the academic all-district teams and that’s how you have good teams.”

Along with his academic and athletic workload Rohret took a leadership role in a community outreach program among the football team that included visiting area elementary schools.

Rohret joined teammates in reading books to kindergartners up to fifth grade students and also welcomed students at Clear Creek Amana elementary schools on the mornings of game days during the fall.

“It was really fun, I’m sure for those kindergarten kids that really impacts their day,” Rohret said. “They remember that when they see you playing on Friday night and that’s part of what makes a community special.”

Bakker came to Clear Creek Amana intent on building the football program into a consistent winner.

Rohret helped the Clippers go from 3-6 in 2017 to 8-2 and a playoff berth this fall.

It was his leadership and attitude that starts away from the football field that Bakker says is most vital in the success.

“He has a tremendous attitude, he is a guy that just wanted to win. It didn’t matter if he was going to be quarterback, full back, running back or tight end. He was going to do it for us,” Bakker said. “You saw the kids this year take on his mentality of we are just going to get the job done and I think he embodied that and the rest of our team followed his lead.”

Rohret spent the last few weeks transitioning from football to wrestling where he is currently the eighth-ranked 152-pounder in Class 3A and picked up the 100th win of his career at the Cliff Keen Independence Invitational over the weekend.

“It was really cool but at the same time I expected to do that,” Rohret said of his 100th career win. “I had that goal as a freshman to have 100 wins. It was really fun and a lot of people showed up to watch and that was really cool.”

As a three-sport athlete the transition times can be the busiest times for Rohret who plans to study civil engineering at the University of Iowa next fall.

For Rohret time management is critical to continue performing at a high level in school and athletics during busy months like November.

“You just have to really manage your time,” Rohret said. “You have to set certain times when you are going to get your homework done and make sure you stay on top of that as well as getting your rest. It’s busy but it’s something I like.”

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