Experienced offensive line should provide boost to Mahomet-Seymour

MAHOMET — Jon Adkins wasn’t sure what to expect when he ran up next to Noah Daniels and Phillip Daniels during a Mahomet-Seymour football practice last year.

All Adkins, about to start his sixth season in charge of the Bulldogs, saw was the twin brothers and offensive line starters for M-S slapping each other in the helmet.

“They would be driving a guy downfield and then they’d turn around and run back to the line of scrimmage and I’d think they’re fighting,” Adkins said. “So I come running in saying, ‘Hey! Hey! Hey!’ They’re like, ‘What?’ I’m like, ‘What are you guys doing?’ They’re like, ‘Oh, no, we’re just psyching each other up.’ So it’s really hard to tell sometimes if they’re getting mad at each other or just doing their own brotherly thing.”

The familiarity and comfort the Daniels’ twins feel can probably extend to the rest of the Bulldogs’ offensive line. That’s because M-S returns all five of its starters from a team that won the Apollo Conference regular-season title and reached the Class 5A playoffs for the third straight season.

Noah lines up at right guard, carrying a 6-foot-3, 230-pound frame into his junior season. Phillip (6-0, 230) is next to him at right tackle. At left tackle, 6-5, 280-pound Kolton Metcalf-Poulos is a returning all-conference selection before his senior season begins, while junior left guard Oliver Smith (6-3, 260) and senior center Tyson Finch (5-10, 220) make up the remainder of the line.

An offensive line that will protect senior quarterback Luke Dyer as Dyer begins his second season as the Bulldogs’ starter.

“It’s awesome knowing the guys I went through the season with last year are there,” Dyer said. “It makes it more comfortable for me knowing they all have experience and know what they’re doing. It makes my job a lot easier that they’re all coming back.”

Away from the football field — evident by the Daniels’ twins’ aggressive behavior at times — all five bring a different element to the program.

“There’s a wide range of it,” Dyer said of the group designed to keep him upright this fall. “The Daniels’ are super energetic. Tyson is a little quieter. Ollie is a little quieter, too, and you never really know what you’re going to get with Kolton. It just depends on the day, but he’s fiery. It’s definitely a wide range of personalities.”

One that is intent on keeping the Bulldogs atop the Apollo again this fall and wanting to ensure a quick playoff exit doesn’t ensue again. After back-to-back trips to the 5A state quarterfinals in 2021 and 2022, the Bulldogs saw their season end abruptly on a rainy night last October with a 20-19 first-round home loss against Triad at Frank Dutton Field.

Adkins said the depth of the offensive line has proved vital this offseason. Seniors Brayden Lamb and Adain Crull, along with junior Joshua Craig, have pushed the returning starters.

Molding all of this together falls on M-S offensive line coach Nathan Sievers, whom Adkins has high praise for.

“We call him the wizard because that dude just works miracles,” Adkins said. “I think any coach will tell you that if I can hire one position coach, it’s a great offensive line coach. If you can do that, that solves a lot of problems.”

The Bulldogs open with a challenging nonconference schedule in their first three games: Aug. 30 at home against Morton, Sept. 6 at Highland and Sept. 13 at home against Sycamore. All three of those teams finished 8-1 in the regular season last year and all three reached the 5A playoffs, with Sycamore advancing to the second round and Highland reaching the state quarterfinals.

But that cohesion and experience on the offensive line could go a long way in shaping what type of season M-S expects to have.

“It’s a nice luxury to have returning all five starting offensive linemen from a year ago,” Adkins said. “That’s never happened in my career.”