‘Lucky to have three pretty good ones’: Sterling finding ground-game success with talented RB trio

STERLING – Backfield-by-committee has been a staple of Sterling football for the past few seasons. With running backs Antonio Tablante, Cale Ledergerber and AJ Kested as mainstays in the rotation, this year is no exception.

Depending on the flow of the game and who has the hot hand in a given week, the distribution of carries can vary significantly for any of the three Golden Warriors running backs. But as good friends off the field and unselfish, team-first players on it, they’re all willing to sacrifice to ensure the arrangement works for everyone.

“I feel like everyone is willing to split their reps, everyone is willing to give everyone a chance,” Kested said. “And I feel like we’re all good enough to the point where not one person is better than the other.”

“It’s nice every now and then to get breaks from each other, too,” Tablante added. “We’re all cool with splitting reps with each other. We’re all good friends. It’s just a bond on and off the field.”

“Not one of us is better,” Ledergerber agreed. “We’re all trained equally.”

In seven weeks of regular-season play, Tablante has held the title of lead back. In the 56-19 Week 7 win over Rock Island, the 6-foot-1, 210-pounder rushed 19 times for 118 yards (6.2 yards per carry) and three touchdowns. In the 34-28 Week 6 overtime win over Quincy, he tallied 16 carries for 77 yards (4.8 YPC), and added two catches for 25 yards with a receiving touchdown. In the 40-0 Week 5 win over Geneseo, he rushed nine times for 74 yards (8.2 YPC) and a touchdown.

Kested and Ledergerber have also been effective in more limited opportunities. In the Quincy game, the 6-foot, 185-pound Ledergerber rushed six times for 37 yards (6.2 YPC), and caught two passes for 16 yards. Against Rock Island, he totaled 29 rushing yards on six carries (4.8 YPC).

The 5-foot-11, 160-pound Kested piled up 50 rushing yards and a touchdown on 10 carries against Geneseo, and went for 37 yards on five rushes (7.4 YPC) rushing against Rock Island. His value on defense, and especially in the return game, have also been a big part of 6-1 Sterling’s success. Against Quincy, Kested racked up 167 yards on three kick returns (55.7 average), and in the 40-7 Week 1 win over Lakes, he scored a spectacular 68-yard punt return touchdown.

For the season, Tablante has 68 carries for 383 yards (5.6 YPC) and seven touchdowns, Kested has 29 rushes for 212 yards (7.3 YPC) and four scores, and Ledergerber has 32 carries for 175 yards (5.5YPC) and two TDs. Ledergerber also is tied for the team lead with seven catches, with 49 yards and a touchdown receiving; Tablante has four catches for 49 yards and a TD.

Having a backfield rotation where any runner can come in and average four or five yards per carry, while working in tandem with quarterbacks Kael Ryan and JP Schilling, and the threats they present as runners, makes for a deadly combination on the Sterling offense.

The backfield depth also helps the Warriors keep their runners fresh throughout games.

“AJ and Antonio both start on the defensive side of the ball, and when Cale’s not in the rotation, then he’s one of the guys who goes outside [to receiver] and plays a little bit, so it’s huge for our depth. I think it’s huge for guys staying fresh, especially if they get one off on D, then they’re ready to go for that next thing,” Sterling coach Jon Schlemmer said.

“[The backfield rotation]’s something we’ve done for quite a long time. I think back to ‘17 with Nyrel Sullivan, he was probably the last one in a long time that was kind of just that feature back. Otherwise, we’ve had a lot of kids get different carries back there. And they buy into it. They’re not selfish about it. They understand that that’s kind of what we do in this program, and we’re lucky to have three pretty good ones.”

As a tight-knit group on and off the field, Tablante, Ledergerber and Kested are able to feed off each other’s energy and build momentum easily, even if they just rotated into the game.

No matter which running back is on the field, they’re always confident the offense will be able to convert a critical first down, score a touchdown, or make a play to stay in a favorable down and distance.

“I feel like I have a lot of confidence in both of these guys,” Kested said. “Let’s say, I have a big play. I feel like they’ll have a big play right after me, and it’ll just carry on through.”

“The momentum we carry after AJ or Cale get a first down, that just boosts our confidence for the next play, and the next play after that,” Tablante said.

With three different running styles at their disposal, the Warriors can deal damage on the ground in multiple ways. It’s also tough on defenses when they have to adjust for the difference in speed, power and elusiveness following substitutions, Ledergerber says.

“It makes it harder for other teams to compete with us,” he said

Schlemmer sees some similarities in his running backs when comparing them side-by-side, but also sees key differences that set them apart from one another.

“I think if you look at Antonio, he’s a powerful kid. He can get downhill. He’s got good speed, but he’s a big-body kid,” Schlemmer said. “AJ, I don’t know how to describe him. He’s goofy. He can contort his body. He makes cuts where a lot of kids don’t see it. And I think if you look at him, you don’t necessarily think a bruising running back, but he’s still able to do a really good job at running back. He can go get you three yards if you need it.

“And then Cale, he’s probably got the best straight-line speed of anybody, so when he finds a gap, if he can really turn it on and hit that second gear, he’s tough to catch. All three can catch the ball out of the backfield, they all three bring similar-but-different skill sets to the table, but they’re all equally important.”