Wiesbaden football head coach Steve Jewell, center, speaks to his players at the end of a practice session Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016. Jewell's squad will be hoping to at least match last season's runner-up status in Division I despite losing several key seniors. (Dan Stoutamire/Stars and Stripes)
Wiesbaden football head coach Steve Jewell, center, speaks to his players at the end of a practice session Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016. Jewell's squad will be hoping to at least match last season's runner-up status in Division I despite losing several key seniors. (Dan Stoutamire/Stars and Stripes)
Wiesbaden football players run conditioning drills to close out a practice session Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016. After the drills, the defense was quickly tasked with getting into various formations to test their ability to think quickly when tired. (Dan Stoutamire/Stars and Stripes)
Joel Waan, a senior safety and backup quarterback at Wiesbaden, looks into the backfield during a practice session Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016. Waan and fellow safety Caleb Brown will be hoping to provide a strong, experienced back line to the Warriors' defense this year. (Dan Stoutamire/Stars and Stripes)
Amir Hobson, with ball, a backup running back with Wiesbaden, attempts to avoid tacklers from the first-team defense during intrasquad drills Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016. (Dan Stoutamire/Stars and Stripes)
Chris Hobson, a senior linebacker at Wiesbaden, prepares to move on the snap during a practice session Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016. Hobson will be a key defensive tempo-setter in the middle for the Warriors, who finished runners-up in last year's Division I playoffs. (Dan Stoutamire/Stars and Stripes)
Caleb Brown, a senior defensive back at Wiesbaden, attempts to intercept a pass during practice Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016. Coach Steve Jewell said Brown will be relied on heavily this year as the Warriors look to go one better than last year's Division I runners-up. (Dan Stoutamire/Stars and Stripes)
Offensive and defensive lines face off during a Wiesbaden football practice Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016. Wiesbaden, runners-up last year in Division I, will be looking to replace several key starters, including graduated quarterback Eric Arnold. (Dan Stoutamire/Stars and Stripes)
Fourteenth in a series of glimpses at high school football camps around Europe.
Just as a series of first downs can lead to a touchdown, the Wiesbaden Warriors have a series of goals that might just lead to a championship.
Steve Jewell, now in his 13th year as Warriors head football coach, breaks it down one step at a time. He wants Wiesbaden to win its opening game, Sept. 17 at Lakenheath. He wants to the Warriors to win their first home game, Sept. 30 against archrival Ramstein. Next up, in order: make the playoffs, reach the title game, and win the DODEA-Europe Division I championship.
Sounds simple enough when presented in a neat, orderly list. But Jewell knows the reality is far more complicated.
For one, Jewell returns just nine players from last year’s European runner-up squad, which took a dramatic 10-7 loss to Stuttgart in last year’s title game. That lack of experiences creates the volatile situation of numerous underclassmen in the starting lineup.
And Jewell’s systems, while generally effective, aren’t the easiest to quickly grasp. The Warriors will “utilize multiple offensive sets” in a “misdirection running” offense, while fielding a shape-shifting defense that could see anywhere from four to six Warriors up front in any given package.
But that challenging regimen feeds into the Warriors’ other set of goals - those involving player and team development.
Jewell describes a number of largely intangible goals that nonetheless will have a noticeable impact on the Warriors’ pursuit of a very tangible championship.
Wiesbaden will strive to “build a team environment,” elicit “maximum effort” from each player, and develop its players “as students and athletes.”
If Jewell and the Warriors can keep those metaphorical chains moving, the real ones on the sideline just might come along with them.
