MARSHFIELD – In sports, adversity can strike at any moment. It doesn’t matter who you are.
Outside of the X’s and O’s, one of the best measures of a great team is its ability to find its way back onto its feet each time they stumble – especially in a period of change.
In 2025, Stratford, led by first year coach and former assistant Marshall Lehman, and his group have embodied that championship spirit.
Pursuing a fourth-consecutive state title, the Tigers opened their season up with back-to-back losses, a first since 2014.
No one batted an eye.
What followed was six-straight Tiger victories, which has earned the team a guaranteed placement as winner, or co-winner of the CWC-Large Conference heading into the final week of the year.
That makes the fourth consecutive season that Stratford has won or shared the conference title.
The swift turnaround has the Tigers’ coaching staff feeling a dose of déjà vu.
“It kind of reminds me of our 2022 state championship team,” Lehman said. “We started out kind of rough to start the year. A lot of upperclassmen, but guys kind of in their first year starting, and the way they grew from the beginning of the year to the end of the year was just something else considering where they were and where they got to.
“I’m kind of seeing that in this group as well right now. So it’s an exciting, special group, and awesome if they could continue and do what these other senior classes and former groups of athletes have done over the past three years.”
Loyal/Greenwood at Stratford: Friday, Oct. 17
One of the biggest factors behind the Tigers turnaround has been senior Brooks Vanderhoof, who was a key factor in Stratford’s 2024 championship run. After spending the first few weeks on minute restrictions, Vanderhoof is now back at full strength – and has quickly emerged as one of the most dangerous backs in the state.
On Oct. 10 in a 34-21 win over Amherst, who entered unbeaten, Vanhoof unleashed for 259 yards and three touchdowns.
“When you can turn a five-yard gain into a 40-yard touchdown run because you make guys miss, it’s pretty impressive,” Lehman said. “So having him back has been a huge help to our offense. Our other guys were doing a very good job as well, but just for the morale of the team, having one of your senior captains back out there and just his presence on defense is significant.”
Surely Vanderhoof’s return to dominance – and both sides of the ball finding and establishing their identities, has ignited Stratford’s surge. But Lehman feels it wasn’t so much about getting talent back on the field as much as rediscovering and falling in love with the process that made them champions in the first place.
“It’s just about constantly being consistent in practice and in everything we do,” Lehman said. “Not letting the little things in the classroom, football field or on the weekends distract us from our two ultimate goals, which is, number one, winning a conference championship. And second, winning state again.
“You don’t do those things unless you’re doing the little things, and you do them all consistently. So yeah, there was some struggle there early on, but we just keep doing what we’ve been doing and working with the kids as they get better every day”.
As Stratford enters its final regular-season matchup of the year against Loyal/Greenwood, the Tigers resemble a team that has rediscovered their mojo.
For Lehman, though, the wins are only half of the reward.
“We’re here to help our athletes grow as individuals. To be life ready, ready after high school and ready to take on challenges that are thrown at us every day as we get older. That’s the way I coach,” Lehman said. “It’s about helping them get better and become better men, and then be consistent on things we do in football. Ultimately, you hope that’s going to turn things around. And it has. That’s kind of always been our motto, and that’s how I am as a coach, and we’ll continue to be that way.”
Contact or send game stats/info to Sports Reporter Alfred Smith III at alfred.smith@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @AlfredS_III.
This article originally appeared on Marshfield News-Herald: Stratford rediscovers it’s mojo, leaning on championship principles in 4-peat pursuit
Reporting by Alfred Smith III, Marshfield News-Herald / Marshfield News-Herald
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
