Football Capsules: Taking a Quick Look at Liberty High
Liberty High
Head coach: Scott Chandler (1st season)
Assistant coaches: Matt Eckhardt; Mitch Wieland; Keenan Davis; Kaleb Williams; Jayden Scott; Chuck Benda; Evan Hartman; Nate Oswald; Nate Wieland; Evan Downes; Tony Burrier
Last season: 4-5
Returning starters: Sutton Koller, Sr., RB/DB; Dallas Miller, Sr., WR/DB; Owen Drapeaux, Sr., RB/LB; Caleb Burnett, Sr., LT/DT; Collin Decker, Sr., WR; Ethan Barber, Sr., DE/TE
Other returning letterwinners: Nathan Burnett, Sr., LB; Korbin Howard, Sr., DE; Mason Waterbury, Sr., LB/TE; Evan Colsch, Sr., DB/WR
Newcomers to watch: Reece Rettig, Jr., QB/DB; Jordan Schroeder, Jr. WR; Landon Bell, Jr., LB/TE; Taha Nasr, Jr., DL
Playoff history: 3 appearances (2019, 2020, 2022)
Circle the date: August 30 vs. West High. Liberty High opens the Scott Chandler era at home against West High and will be seeking its first win against the Trojans following a 35-28 loss at West High last season.
Headliner: Senior wide receiver Dallas Miller (5-11, 170) is one of the most productive returning receivers in the state after ranking in the top 10 in Class 5A in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns as a junior. Miller caught 60 passes for 804 yards and a 5A-leading 12 touchdowns.
Ready for a breakthrough: Senior Nathan Burnett had to wait his turn behind a strong group of senior linebackers last season making 12.5 tackles including eight solo stops with 2.5 for loss. With the top seven tacklers from Liberty High gone to graduation look for Burnett to take on a much bigger role as the leader of the Lightning defense.
Unsung hero: Senior lineman Caleb Burnett (6-3, 250) was solid last season but now takes on the role of the anchor on a re-built Liberty High line and will be look to for important on-field and off-field leadership.
Keep an eye on: Either as an opposing team, a defender or a fan it’s important to keep an eye on senior running back Sutton Koller (5-11, 175) who will make plays all over the field. Koller accounted for 1,146 yards from scrimmage and 15 touchdowns past season while averaging 8.7 yards per touch.
Remember the name: Senior receiver Collin Decker (6-3, 206) showed his impressive potential last season and should be in for an even bigger senior year after catching 26 passes for 415 yards and two touchdowns last fall.
Biggest strength: Skill position depth. Liberty High must replace two-year starting quarterback Graham Beckman but the strength of the team is the weapons the new Lightning signal caller will have at his disposal. Seniors Owen Drapeaux and Sutton Koller return at running back and Dallas Miller and Collin Decker are back at receiver giving the Lightning a deep group of offensive playmakers.
Biggest question: Who takes over at quarterback? All-stater Graham Beckman is gone after passing for better than 5,000 yards and 59 touchdowns over the past two seasons. Whoever steps in behind center doesn’t have to put up Beckman-type numbers but they must manage the offense and get the ball to a deep group of Lightning play makers.
Quotable: “I think we have to get faster and more physical on defense, special teams has a lot of room for improvement, I think we struggled there last year, and offensively we lost a quarterback who led the state in passing at two different classifications so we have a big hole there,” Liberty High coach Scott Chandler said. “We are going to have to rely on our older guys and hopefully we can grow on the lines.”
2024 Schedule
Date/Opponent/Record in 2023
August 30: West High (4-5)
September 6: at City High (6-4)
September 13: at Pleasant Valley (8-2)
September 20: Cedar Falls (7-4)
September 27: Cedar Rapids Prairie (5-5)
October 4: at Cedar Rapids Washington (1-8)
October 11: Ankeny (9-4)
October 18: at Waterloo West (4-5)
October 25: at Cedar Rapids Jefferson (4-5)
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