By ERIC FORTUNE

sports@vindy.com

CORTLAND

Over the last 10 years, the Lakeview Bulldogs have been a model of consistency going 72-37 with five playoff appearances.

Last year, the Bulldogs finished 6-4 and just missed the playoffs. The were .05 points behind Holy Name in Division IV, Region 13 for that eighth spot.

But Lakeview was a young team and three of its four losses came by an average of 28.6 points.

Bulldogs coach Tom Pavlansky felt his team needed to get stronger.

“We didn’t do a very good job last year of running the ball or stopping the run,” Pavlansky said. “We needed to get bigger, stronger, and faster. We had a lot of young kids playing for the first time.

“When you play against a Struthers and a Hubbard that have some serious skill and talent, there are some good sized kids that get after it over there. We struggled. I just think physically we were not able to match up as well as we needed to.”

Lakeview returns six starters on both offense and defense.

Offense

The Bulldogs return their quarterback, leading rusher, and two of their top three receivers from last season.

Zach Rogers is back under center for Lakeview after being named to the first-team in the All-American Conference’s White Tier. Rogers has thrown for 2,403 yards and 20 touchdowns in two seasons as a starter.

He’ll have Tony Crish (498 yards rushing) in the backfield with him and receivers Evan Adair and Drew Munno to help propel an offense that averaged 27.9 points.

“Those four guys have played a lot of football for us,” Pavlansky said. “Three out of those four guys are seniors. They’ve all played a good amount of football for us. They are all guys we are looking on for leadership. They all have ability. It definitely helps us out from an offensive standpoint. They are all capable and they are all a threat that the defense has to account for.”

Defense

Lakeview returns its top two tacklers (Joel Lindow and Crish) from last season, but will need to get more depth at linebacker.

They do have experience with their front seven that should help improve a unit that gave up 24.9 points a game last season.

“We’re waiting for guys to step up,” Pavlansky said. “We think there are some guys that are really capable and we’re excited to see them go after that in the scrimmages. We’ll definitely have some inexperience in the back end. We have young guys that are going to get better each week, but there are some definite concerns.”

Special Teams

Rogers will handle punting duties for the Bulldogs. Placekicker Noah Busefink has been a three-year starter and Evan Darrow will handle return duties.

“Special teams needs to be a strength of ours,” Pavlansky said. “We have two- and three-year starters at key positions.”

Outlook

Pavlansky feels his team needs to stay grounded and just look to get better each day as Lakeview will face the likes of Poland, Hubbard, and Struthers in league play.

“It doesn’t matter how many lettermen you have coming back or how much experience,” Pavlansky said. “We have to take care of today. You are guaranteed 10 chances to win a game. Other than that, that is it. We’re trying to build that opportunity for success. That takes a lot of time, a lot of effort and a lot of hours. If we do it, we’ll see how big that opportunity gets. When the lights come on, you have to take advantage of it.”