Coming off a rough first season at the helm and the recent loss of his top returning player, Oskaloosa football coach Terry Porter is surprisingly optimistic.

After finishing 1-8 in 2003, with the season’s lone victory coming in the form of a 20-0 shutout of rival McLouth, the bright spot the Bears had coming into this season was Todd Newell.

The senior cornerback/tailback was an All-Delaware Valley League selection a season ago, but when he slipped and fell off a combine this summer, he suffered a broken ankle, and will not participate in his final season.

Even with the significant subtraction from the roster, Porter still has high expectations.

“I know it’s just hard (on Newell),” Porter said. “He’s played contact football since he’s been in the third grade. Any small-town kid looks forward to his senior year to let it all hang out.

“We want to win five ball games and qualify for the playoffs,” he added. “The kids have really bought into that.”

Five victories is going to come as quite a task for a team that returns only nine starters from last season and has a schedule that includes powers such as Troy and Silver Lake.

If the Bears are to reach their goals set before the season, which aside from making the playoffs includes turning the ball over far less frequently than they did in 2003, Porter wants to make sure his team is mentally tough.

“If we get beat, it’s not going to be because we did not work hard enough,” Porter said.

When it comes to actual game action this season, Porter is hoping that the strengths of his team will help cover up some spots that remain in limbo.

Front row, from left: Larsen Stevenson, Jacob Beach, Derek Brey, Dillon Robbins, Brock McGinnis, Coby Artman, Brandon Hawks, David Williams, Sean Berry-Brune. Second row: J.T. Lata, Jake Hamn, Jake Rowland, Aaron Briggs, Sabin Sharon, Cody Steffey, Ben Drinkard. Third row: Boone Heston, Donald Brock, Joey Adams, Tyler Leonhard, Jodel Houk, Kyle Inscho. Fourth row: Daniel Besser, Tyler Metzger, Dustin Stark, Tony Barnes, Travis Stalkfleet, Jake Kerns, manager Lindsay Cubbage.

The biggest question mark is at the quarterback position. As it stands right now, the starting job belongs to senior Tony Barnes, and is his to lose, according to Porter. Barnes is an outstanding athlete who fits the Bears’ needs nicely, but should he struggle, freshman Brock McGinnis is eagerly waiting next in line.

McGinnis headlines what Porter calls the best incoming class of freshmen in the school’s history, but he is in no rush to throw the Bears’ future starter into the fire right away.

“Tony Barnes has done a pretty good job, and he’s a good athlete,” Porter said. “I don’t want to start a freshman unless I absolutely have to. Brock will most definitely be our quarterback of the future.”

The team’s two most obvious strengths will come at the tight end position and on the defensive line. Porter likes to occasionally line up two-tight end sets, but since he’s stacked at the position this year, might be forced to do so more often. Two names to keep in mind at the position are Joel Houk and Clay Metzger.

Houk, a junior, missed last season after breaking both of his wrists in a four-wheeler accident, while Metzger, a freshman, will be another first-year player Porter expects to have a big impact.

On the defensive line, the Bears bring a lot of size. The line is anchored by senior Lee King (6-foot-7, 250 pounds) senior Adam Robbins (6-4, 290) and senior newcomer Dustin Stark (6-4, 215), who also will see time at fullback.

Newell’s absence is going to be felt on defense especially, as he was the Bears’ leading tackler last year. Aside from the defensive line needing to dominate in his absence, so will sophomore defensive end/linebacker Jake Rowland. He was fourth on the team in tackles as a freshman, and is willing to pick up the slack left by Newell’s absence.

“He would have been a big help,” Rowland said of Newell. “I just keep my focus and do what I’m supposed to do and do my job right and we’ll be fine, I think. I want to go out there and kick butt, and I know that goes for the rest of the team too.”

Oskaloosa starts its season Friday against Troy.