The Chargers had a very impressive and magical season last year after the tragic events of the summer involving Owen Scheele the team’s starting quarterback. The Chargers started out the season with a 42-3 win over Luers and kept that momentum going throughout the year, knocking off Snider, Northside, and Quarterback Jimmy Sulivan’s former Team Homestead. There was a real purpose that the Chargers were playing for last year. When it came time for the playoffs they traveled to Penn and won by 20+, the next test came to Carroll and the Chargers Played the Warsaw Tigers for the Sectional championship and prevailed 34-17. It was on to regionals at Laffafette Jefferson High School, the Chargers looked like they were going to get beat until about 5 minutes left in the game when the 20-3 comeback was completed and the Chargers stole victory 21-20 Over the Bronchos.
History has been made at this point and it’s on to Semi-State which was played right here at Charger Stadium in the snow in front of a packed crowd, the Chargers were able to stop Hamilton SE from the 15-yard line to seal the deal and move on to the first state championship appearance in school history 21-15. The team had made it! They were going down to Lucas Oil Stadium for the title game, The energy around the team was electric and the feel for the first few minutes in the stadium was unreal. The Center Grove Trojans were able to claim victory in this game but not before Owen’s number 13 was Held at the 50-yard line and flown before the student section one last time. Last season was special for the Chargers, They’re hoping to make this year the same.
The 2023 Season is here and this is what to look for this season. Carroll opened their season at Hamilton Southeastern the same school that the Chargers beat in semi-state last year. The hype surrounding this game was incredible and the feeling was matched until about halftime of the game when the Chargers still hadn’t got on the board yet this year. Senior Running back Braden Steely was able to score the Charger’s first TD of the season right before halftime on a 4-yard rush. After making a stop heading into halftime the energy was back for the Chargers, Carroll was marching down the field ready to tie the game 14 when Junior QB Jimmy Sulivan launched the ball downfield for Senior Hansen Haffner but it was picked off and returned for a touchdown to make it 21-7 HSE. The Chargers would end only scoring once more and losing 28-14 meaning the team that they beat in semi-state has gotten it their way this time.
I asked coach Dinan on the game “We can’t turn the Ball over, we gave them 14 points, two pick-sixes, that’s 14 points we can’t afford to give up… We have to control the line of scrimmage, and make plays on both sides of the ball… we need to watch film and keep working.” The second game of the year, and the home opener is this Friday the 25th. Warren Central comes into town as the final out-of-conference game in the regular season. Warren Central lost 42-20 to 5A Snider on Friday but don’t discredit Warren Central as they have won multiple state titles back in the day. This week is a huge test of how well this Carroll team is built and to see if a bounceback is in their future. Week 3 is a road slate at Southside which will be a tuneup for all intents and purposes as South has not won a game in 3 years. Week 4 is another home game vs. Dwenger which should be a very good game, With the exception of last year this series has gone back and forth for a long time. It should be interesting to see if the offense is clicking by then. Week 5 will be another good test against Snider who has the potential to be very good this year after their own Semi-State run in 5A. Week 6 sees the Chargers hosting Wayne which should be a bit easier than Snider but still a tough task with the physicality of Wayne. Week 7 is a very important night, Senior Night, and it’s against Homestead at home, This game will have emotions running high as Carroll has beaten Homestead the last 3 times and this game is always the biggest game of the regular season.
I asked Nate Starks what he thought about this season and how to improve for the rest of the year and here is what he said “Well, this last Friday it was just a disappointment all the way around. I mean we didn’t just execute. I mean we played till the last whistle but we just didn’t execute um on simple things. We didn’t play our tempo or we didn’t catch all the balls we should have. We just didn’t make those plays, especially on the offense. I can’t really speak on the defense. But last year we just did those things. We did the Fundamental things, and we did all the little things that gave us the edge on the teams that may have been bigger and more athletic that didn’t do those little things… It’s awesome because it’s fixable. It’s nothing where it’s like I had to be God-given talent. So we could definitely fix that up. And, you know, first we did or we can get that out the way. I’m not too really, really worried about that affecting our whole season just because I know how the guys bounce back. Yeah, to be fixed. So this week’s a big week… I’m not saying this is a rollover game {Warren Central} but if we play right we’ll come out on top.”
Week 8 is Northrop at Spuller Stadium, and week 9 is the home closer vs. Northside. The Chargers are looking to improve on last year’s season and will be in action this Friday vs. Warren Central at home which you can watch live as well as every other home game on Charger Sports Network. Speaking of Lead Play By Play commentator Gavin Worrel said “The offensive line has got to be better. Jimmy was sacked 4 times.
The defense played their tail off on Friday. With almost the entire secondary graduating last year. The seniors needed to step up and they did. This team has to find unique ways to score like they did last year. Not only does it catch the other team off guard but it can give the team the boost of energy it needs to finish a game.
Final score prediction for week 2: 35-21 Carroll
Season record prediction: 10-2
Now you know what to look for for this Carroll season, The Chargers are ready, are you?
