By Audrey Carrico
NKyTribune sports contributor
Brossart will begin this football season with a new head coach at the helm. The high school selected Adam Kozerski, a current teacher and son of former Cincinnati Bengals player and Holy Cross head coach Bruce Kozerski, to run the program.
“I’m very fortunate to have been given a chance,” Kozerski said. “I know I’m a younger coach, but the tremendous experience I’ve had so far in my career has given me the confidence necessary to be the leader of this program.”
Kozerski had over 10 years of experience at different coaching positions with his father’s program at Holy Cross. “For 26 years he was ‘coach Koz’ and now I have my chance to follow the name,” he said.
The new head coach has taken charge of a Brossart team that had just seven seniors on the roster last season and finished 5-6 after coming up short against Dayton, 14-0, in the first round of the Class 1A playoffs.
Despite suffering the team’s first losing record in five seasons, the Mustangs did earn a home game in the playoffs with key wins against district opponents Holy Cross and Trimble County.
“We have guys in key spots who have experience with varsity football,” Kozerski said. “Experience at the varsity level, especially in a small school where guys have to play both ways, allows us to have better anticipation and a deeper knowledge that could mean the difference in close games.”
Offensively, Brossart returns seven starters, including senior running back Cameron Mandel, who rushed for 732 yards and eight touchdowns in his first season as the team’s primary ball-carrier.
At quarterback, senior Tyler Holtz will be running a new offensive scheme for the Mustangs. Last year, he was primarily used as a back-up to starting quarterback Keegan Gulley, who is moving to wide receiver for his senior season. He’ll join returning wide receivers Timothy Kitt and Nicholas Cozzi.
Brossart has a pair of veteran linemen in seniors Joe Schroeder and Shane Willike, who will be protecting Holtz on offense and getting after the opposing quarterback on defense.
Schroeder and Willike, who combined for 6.5 sacks last season, will be among several two-way starters on defense. Mandel will be at linebacker once again with Gulley and Cozzi in the secondary.
“The versatility for the team as a whole translates well on offense and defense, which is critical at a small school where depth can be a challenge,” Kozerski said.
The new head coach views this season as a chance to repeat the Brossart program’s prior success.
“Our seniors have played on district championship teams and they want to win another,” Kozerski said. “We want to go out and compete with everyone on our schedule and get a lot of different players involved.”
BROSSART MUSTANGS
2023 SEASON: 5-6 record, lost in first round of Class 1A playoffs.
STARTERS RETURNING: 7 offense, 5 defense.
DISTRICT: Class 1A, District 4 with Holy Cross, Ludlow, Trimble County
HEAD COACH: Adam Kozerski (first season as head coach).
2024 SCHEDULE
Aug. 23 – at Walton-Verona, 7:30 p.m.
Aug. 30 – at North College Hill (Ohio), 7 p.m.
Sept. 6 – PINEVILLE, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 13 – NICHOLAS COUNTY, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 20 – at Lloyd, 7 p.m.
Oct. 4 – PARIS, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 11 – vs. Holy Cross at Thomas More, 7 p.m.
Oct. 18 – LUDLOW, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 25 – TRIMBLE COUNTY, 7:30 p.m.
Nov. 1 – at Pendleton County, 7:30 p.m.