HHS group plays by title, special teams
Led by senior Mason Wojtas, the Huntley special teams unit has been a force for the Red Raiders, who accomplished a co-Fox Valley Conference championship and a home Class 8A playoff game against Andrew of Tinley Park.
Wojtas is a perfect 4 for 4 in field goal tries and 12 for 15 in Point After Touchdown attempts. He averages 39.8 yards per punt for 996 total yards with a long of 59 and eight inside the opponents’ 20-yard line. He has topped 1,200 yards in kickoffs. He works with former college kicker HHS alum Jon Albers.
Steve Peterson/My Huntley News Huntley senior punter, field goal kicker Mason Wojtas.
Special teams coordinator Gibson Danekas is happy with how the unit has contributed. Leaders also include kick returners Joey Arvidson (196 yards in punt returns, 84 kickoff return yards) and Omare Segarra.
Danekas explained the special teams’ members important role on the team in responses to survey questions.
Describe the overall talents of the players on special teams.
Gibson Danekas: “We have been really fortunate to have developed a culture on special teams that the players have bought into. We emphasize special teams more than most high school teams and our players want to be a part of it. We have a combination of starters and backups on special teams. It is incredibly hard to win eight games in the Fox Valley Conference and to do so you have to be sound on special teams. Our players and their attention to detail and desire to be great are what have allowed us to have success. We are lucky to have such great kids who want to be a part of something bigger than themselves.”
One game in particular stands out when the unit played a role was the onside kick against Dundee-Crown. Who recovered it and do you work on that often?
Danekas: “Wojtas recovered it. We try to be as detailed as possible on special teams. Wehave a weekly meeting where we go through the game plan and watch film of the opposing team. We will prepare for as much as we can for some weeks we will have some fakes in but may not use. For D-C, we actually had not practiced or planned for that to happen. We notice during the game their front line was leaving early so we made the call to see if we could recover the onside. We are lucky to have a coach like head coach Mike Naymola who allows us to do things like that. One of the coolest parts for me is that our special teams guys are watching film and coming to practice with their own notes, ideas and schemes for us to run. That just does bot happen at every school. It is a reflection on the culture they have created.”
Describe the impact and skill of Wojtas for kickoffs, punts and PATs.
Danekas: “Wojtas has been an important part of our team’s success this year. The kicking game in high school football tends to be overlooked and under appreciated, so when you have a player like Wojtas it allows you to capitalize on a variety of things during the game. One of the most important things to know about Wojtas is that he deserved the success he has had. He works as hard as anyone on our team on his craft during the winter, kicking in snow and goes to kicking camps, and practices on his own time almost daily. He loves kicking and thankfully for us he has been able to have a ton of success. He is a kid that will kickat the next level.”
Describe the efforts of Wojtas’ fellow kickers senior Aiden Krakwchuk and junior Elizabeth Johnson.
Danekas: “We are blessed to have multiple kickers in our program. Krakwchuk and Johnson put in a lot of work and if needed to play we have confidence in them to perform at a high level. Those three have become very close and are so invested in kicking.
HHS also has the skills of return men, senior Arvidson and junior Segarra, how big have their seasons been?
Danekas: “Both of these guys can make a big play when they get the ball. Arvidson has been such a pivotal player for us throughout his career. He is a kid that does it the right way on the field and really epitomizes the type of character that HHS football strives for. Segarra has been great for us as well. I think in the past weeks he really has started to play with more confidence and you can tell by the returns he has had the past few weeks. We are lucky to have him back for another season next year. Both of these kids will tell you the same, their success comes from the nine guys who are blocking for them. We consistently tell our kids ‘it is not about me, but about we.’ The kids have genuinely bought into that mindset. Again another reflection of the culture they have built.
What is your football coaching and playing background?
“I am in my fifth year on the football staff at HHS, fourth as special teams coordinator. I coached at Dixon High School in the same role. I was fortunate to learn from great?coaches as a player at Wheaton Warrenville-South and Wheaton College.”
