By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
When the final whistle sounded to end the Central Mustangs 2019 season, the team walked off the field with a record of 5-4. This may not have turned heads outside of Saline county, but to many Mustang fans, this marked the turning point for a program that had hit rock bottom just years before.
Salina Central, a traditional powerhouse in 5A, won a total of zero football games between 2016 and 2017. But the next year, the team brought in new head coach Mark Sandbo, and results followed.
Sandbo quickly righted the ship, snapping an 18 game losing streak in his debut, winning seven games in his first season at Central, and leading the Mustangs to a 5-4 finish last year. Despite all of that, going into the 2020 season, the third-year head coach isn’t ready to accept any praise just yet.
“I’m not satisfied,” Sandbo said. “I think we left some games out there last season and that falls on my shoulders.”
Sandbo’s Mustangs will have their hands full competing in a 5A division that once again will be loaded with top talent from all around the state. Everyone knows what’s at stake, and what the expectation is for players who don the maroon and white.
“We say it pretty loud, the expectation at Salina Central is that you’re playing football in November, that’s something our kids understand,” he said.
To return to November football, something the team has done just once since 2013, Central will turn to a new arm in Parker Kavanagh, who will be taking the reins from his older brother Jackson. Parker gained valuable varsity experience last year, starting one game in place of his injured brother, and is looking forward to expanding on that experience this year.
“I’m really hoping to make a name for myself this season,” Kavanagh said.
While Kavanagh will anchor the offense, he will be joined by a talented, fresh faced backfield, as junior Micah Moore and sophomore Kenyon McMillan will split reps, and handoffs throughout the season.
The O-Line will also be undergoing changes as Seniors Matt Glen and Jake Eisenhaur will fill the void left by departing seniors Houston Griffitts and Kobe Saunders, who earned all-league first and second team honors respectively.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Mustangs have a real chance to shine, returning a crew that plays exceptionally well in coach Sandbo’s fast and physical defensive scheme.
“When we want, we can get nine and eleven hats around the football on any given play and hopefully, that’s what you see on Friday nights,” Sandbo said.
In addition to leading the wide receiving corps, Jaxon Kolzow and Dakota Hogan will anchor a smothering Central secondary this year. They will be aided by returning outside linebackers like junior Nick Clayton and senior Brooks Burgoon, to ground opposing offenses throughout the season.
“The work ethic of this defense is extremely good,” senior DB Dakota Hogan said. “We’re very fortunate to have good leaders who have really stepped up this year.”
Playing in front of the secondary will be a lightning fast defensive line, with 6-3 pillars Rafael Serrano and Brayden McKnight hounding offenses from both ends.
The only remaining question for the Mustang defense is who will fill the shoes of Daelan McKnight and Israel Torres, the inside linebackers who signed to play for Washburn and Benedictine College last year.
“Both of those guys signed to play at the next level, so you can imagine what type of players they were,” Sandbo said. “But we feel really good with what’s coming behind them.”
While the positional battle rages on at practice, it appears that one of those inside spots will be going to junior Kayson Graham, who impressed coaches and teammates in limited opportunities last season.
While the Mustangs might not be ready to call it a comeback just yet, there is no doubt in the minds of many Central fans that the program is headed in the right direction. That optimism can only help to propel the Mustangs back to their winning ways.
“The winning mentality and culture of Salina Central football, and the community backing were already here,” Sandbo said. “We just needed to push to wake that giant.”
Central will open their season at home against Haysville Campus (1-8) on September fourth, and will close things out with the Mayor’s Cup against Salina South (2-7) in an effort to hold onto the cup for a third straight year.