A look back at the 2019 football season for Mingus doesn’t bring a lot of fond memories. The Marauders were 0-10, losing all but one of those games by more than one possession and all but three games by more than 20 points. But as bad as that season was, it’s not one that the Mingus team is shying away from.
The Marauders are quick to bring up the bad memories of last year and hope to use them as motivation to have a much better season in 2020.
“I think it’s huge to have wins this year,” senior linebacker Zach Figy said. “I don’t mean blowout wins. Just wins. That’s all that matters. It doesn’t matter if it’s one point or 100. We’ve got to get wins. We were talking about it earlier. People come to winners. They fill the stands, bring revenue in and help pay for that nice weight room we’ve got. We have everything here to attract the people. We have everything to get players. All we have to do now is win.”
One of the changes the Marauders have this year is with the head coach. Robert Ortiz was not retained after two years leading the program. He was replaced by Doug Provenzano.
A potential issue that the Marauders face this year is depth — or a lack thereof. Mingus will start the season with a total of 31 players on the varsity team. But the players that Provenzano has seen on the field in practices have impressed the new coach.
“There’s power in numbers and we don’t have a lot of numbers,” Provenzano said. “What we do have, I like. I like what I have. We’re trying to change the culture, trying to change the atmosphere. It’s not easy coming off of an 0-10 season. It messes with your confidence.”
Provenzano identifies himself as a run first coach. Fortunately for him, last year’s top rusher, senior running back Drew Meyer, returns. He ran for 638 yards with four touchdowns a season ago.
Provenzano has seen other bright spots on offense. This includes an offensive line that he’s said has gotten better every week. The Marauders also have a returning starting quarterback in junior Zach Harrison, who started every game for Mingus as a sophomore. Seniors Andrew Nahar and Jonathan Sanchez, as well as junior Freddy Jimenez, all caught at least 18 passes a season ago. So, while Provenzano does like to run, the Marauders should feature plenty of passes, as well.
“I set up the passing game with the running game but I like to throw the ball,” he said. “And we’ve got a quarterback who can throw the ball. So we’re good. The better the quarterback is the more I’ll throw.”
The game the Marauders are most looking forward to is the first one, when they’ll go on the road to take on Flagstaff High School at Coconino High School on Friday, Oct. 2, starting at 4 p.m.
“Obviously our first game, I feel like it’s our most important,” Sanchez said. “If we win, it’s going to be a huge confidence booster for us. Even the Verrado scrimmage was a huge confidence booster. We didn’t know how we were going to do against them — a 5A school — but we did pretty well.”
The week after, on Friday, Oct. 9., Mingus will have their first home game against Mohave, with a 7 p.m. kickoff. One of the more interesting games of the year will be against Bradshaw Mountain on Friday, Oct. 23, at 7 p.m. Mingus will see a familiar face on the opposing sideline in long-time Marauders coach Bob Young, who now coaches the Bears.
Another change this year will be in the stands. To start the season, the Mingus players will be permitted two passes. Figy expressed a hope that they’ll be able to have their entire families in the crowd for senior night.
Sanchez added that he hopes that the community will continue to support the team, regardless of how the games are watched.
“Don’t quit on us,” he said. “Last year was a terrible season and it wasn’t fun to watch, either. Even for us on the field. But this season, you definitely want to see. Come out, watch on TV or YouTube — support us. You won’t be disappointed.”
