By TYLER HENRY
Lead Sportswriter - Salina Post
For the first time in 16 years, the Southeast of Saline football program is under new management, but it hardly feels like a new era in Gypsum.
Chance Ptacek has been on the SES sideline for every snap of the last 16 seasons, helping elevate the status of Trojan football from winner, to contender, to state champion.
The trusted right-hand man of legendary head coach Mitch Gebhardt wasn’t just the obvious choice; to those familiar with the ins and outs of the program, he was the only right choice, and with that decision made, the future of Southeast football is in excellent hands.
“There have been a lot of people before us who have helped build this culture, and there’s a standard and a tradition that’s been set here,” Ptacek said. “I’m excited for this year’s group to have a chance to show what they can do, but we still hang our hat on the process, and trust that the games on Friday will take care of themselves.”
All of this is not to say there won’t be big changes in Gypsum; on the contrary, the team that takes the field on September 4th will look drastically different from the one that posted a runner-up finish with a 12-1 record in 2025.
The Trojans graduated 16 seniors who achieved an overall record of 46-3, including 14 playoff wins and a 2A state title over their four-year careers.
This year’s squad returns a great deal of talent, but new stars will need to emerge if Southeast is to maintain the ridiculous pace they’ve set over the last eight seasons.
So much change in such a short period of time would faze most programs, but Southeast of Saline intends to continue marching to a steady drumbeat as a new season filled with opportunities draws near.
“We lost a lot this offseason, but I met with our seniors, and they want to attack this season with a “don’t flinch” mentality,” Ptacek said. “We still want to compete for a state championship, but any of our guys will tell you our focus is on the process and our priority is still on going 1-0 each week.”
The Trojans also have the advantage of deeply ingrained systems and lingo that have remained consistent over the last 16 years from varsity all the way down to junior high.
“We’re not changing a whole lot, and I think the kids and the coaches appreciate that,” Ptacek said. “There’s a new normal logistically, but the kids came in this summer, they knew what they wanted to do, and they’re ready to go.”
With so many new faces, it’s good to have returning pillars to build around, and the Trojans get several of those back, including starting quarterback and free safety Tiernan Ptacek, and two-way all-state lineman Tristan Swank.
Ptacek returns after saving the Southeast season in 2025, taking over for injured quarterback Gannon Jacobson in week six, and leading the Trojans to seven more wins and a state runner-up finish.
“Tiernan has great leadership qualities and he did a great job stepping in and playing at a high level beside that big senior class we had last year,” Ptacek said. “This year he’s taken on more of a leadership role and he’s bringing guys along to meet the expectations of our program.”
Beyond Ptacek, Swank, wideout Lyrik Lilley and a handful of rotational linemen, the offense will be completely retooled around a new batch of varsity hopefuls getting their first shot on Friday nights.
Senior LaVone Hopkins and sophomore Christian Peterson will look to fill the big shoes left by current Tabor College running back Grady Gebhardt, while Casson Klover, Tysen Keller, Hendrix Lund, Karson Barragan and Caden Peterson fill out a deep pool of new wideouts.
Elijah Kejr, Ryan Weller, Eli Olander and Kain Sawyers will all join Swank on the offensive line, with Kejr playing two ways with Swank and Christiann Peterson on the D-Line.
The linebacker corps will see the biggest overhaul, with Caden Peterson, Tysen Keller, Jayden Kloster and Josh Watkins rounding out the front seven, while Ptacek reprises his role alongside Casson Klover, Burton Brooks and Leighton Nutsch in the secondary.
The Trojans will once again stake their state-best 43-game regular-season winning streak against some of the toughest teams in 2 and 3A, facing the likes of Beloit, Wichita Collegiate and Council Grove.
“We have a very strong slate of teams that we’ll see this year,” Ptacek said. “Our district is going to be really solid again but these kids are hungry, and they’re excited to get this season going.”
Southeast opens the 2026 campaign at home in a Trojan War against Beloit.
2026 SES Football Schedule
- 9/4 - vs. Beloit
- 9/11 - at Lyons
- 9/18 - vs. Ellsworth
- 9/25 - at Marysville
- 10/2 - at Wichita Collegiate
- 10/9 - vs. Council Grove
- 10/16 - at Riley County
- 10/23 - vs. Minneapolis