Providence Football Tackles Tri-Metro Conference

Providence Academy Lions football has been king of the Minnesota Christian Athletic Association for the past two seasons with unbeaten records in the conference.

“It was a good conference, but we outgrew it,” said Lions Coach Nathan Harrington. “We were playing schools that suited up 20-23 guys and we were showing up with 45-50.”

The Lions will take on a new challenge this season when they begin play in the Tri-Metro Conference. The Lions will have their hands full with a conference that has produced a Prep Bowl team in eight of the last 10 seasons.

“It’s going to be a step up every game,” said Lions Captain Phifer Nicholson. “We’re excited about it.”

DeLasalle High School reached the Prep Bowl last season and other Tri-Metro teams have made noise in the metro prep football landscape. The Lions will open with Saint Croix Lutheran, a school that turned around its program into a playoff contender in recent years.

“They’re like us on steroids,” Harrington said. “They’re well-coached. Both teams are going to be running the ball a lot. It may be the quickest high school football game ever.”

Harrington will also get to revisit a school he formally coached and a stadium he had part in building at Blake.  He coached at Blake for four years until 2004 before coming to Providence. He helped in the building of Gordy Aamoth Stadium. Aamoth, a Blake alumnus and former football player there, died in the World Trade Center Attacks on September 11, 2001.

“It’s going to be odd going there,” Harrington said.

The Lions will also finally join the same conference as their cross-metro rival, Saint Agnes. The two have played each twice a season in the past, and the Lions have had the upper hand in the series as of late.

“It’s getting bigger,” Harrington said.

Harrington anticipates that Breck, Minneahaha Academy and Brooklyn Center will also be challenging teams to face in the Tri-Metro. Breck has a strong quarterback-wide receiver combination, Minnehaha consistently wins and BCHS has large numbers as a suburb public school.

“We’re expecting the same goals: win the conference, host a playoff game, win the playoff game and do more after that,” Harrington said. “We want to get to the third round.”

The Lions won their home playoff game last year against Minneapolis North before bowing out in the second round of the playoffs to eventual state-runner up Holy Family. In the school’s 10th year, the football program has grown in winning, the number of players and the size of the players.

“It is going to better for us with bigger competition,” said Lions Captain Ryan Dart.

Harrington started with building at the middle school level at PA. The middle school players run the same offense and defense. Weight training became required for the high school players.

“We had 25 guys under 140 pounds,” Harrington said about the early days. “Now, we have 25 guys over 240 pounds.”

The players also take part in kick-boxing and mixed martial arts to build agility. The Lions have a roster loaded with experience as 75 percent are entering their junior or senior year.

“It’s a total body strength work out, but very fun,” Nicholson said about the kick boxing. “It’s a tough work out.”

They return running back/safety Marshall Klitzke, Nick Schmitz at wide receiver/corner back and Kellen Carney at offensive/defensive line.

The Lions open their season on Friday night at Saint Croix Lutheran.