Last year finished a lot better than it started for the Olentangy Liberty football team.

The Patriots learned a lot over the course of what turned out to be a 12-game season complete with a playoff win. First-year head coach John Sansbury learned a lot, too.

“Last year went very fast and I learned a lot,” he said. “The biggest thing I learned is little things matter. We lost a lot of close football games that were very painful. We are trying to pay attention to detail and be a tougher team this year.”

Liberty, led by a deep senior class, returns more than a few key pieces on both sides of the ball.

Andrew Leonard, a returning captain, will be starting behind center for the third straight season.

“We’ll be relying on him heavily for leadership,” Sansbury said of his quarterback. “He does a great job leading by example and working very hard. He cares a lot about Liberty football and doing things the right way.”

Jake Struck, a three-year starter at running back, is also back, as are linemen Bailey Byrd, Keegan McBride and Landon Hunter. Ryan Schapker will also be looked upon to add depth in the backfield.

“Jake is a dynamic football player coming off a great lacrosse season,” Sansbury said. “We’ll rely on him for offensive production. Bailey, a three-year starter on the line, will be relied on for offense and defense, Keegan will anchor our offensive line, Landon is also a three-year starter on offense and defense and Ryan will be used on both sides of the ball at H-back and defensive line and is a relentless worker.”

Defensive standouts back in the fold include linebackers Austin Stamp and Cam Cole.

“We’ll be relying on Austin to lead our team on defense this season,” Sansbury said. “He’s gotten bigger and stronger and has become a better leader this offseason. He also cares about Liberty football and doing things the right way … and Cam is healthy this year, and bigger and stronger.”

Offensively, Sansbury said he’d like to see the Patriots run it more.

“We’re trying to be a balanced offense this season and run the ball more,” he said. “We will also use more tight ends and H-backs.”

Defensively, he’d like to see other teams run it less … or at least less effectively.

“We need to be better at stopping the run this season,” Sansbury said. “We’ve been really working hard at that … using different fronts and stunts to help.”

As always the Patriots have a loaded schedule. It starts at rival Olentangy in Week 1 and ends with a Week 10 finale at Olentangy Orange.

“Our schedule is very difficult again this season, from Week 1 through Week 10,” Sansbury said. “Our conference was one of the best in the state last season. We’ll need to keep working hard and be tough this season to be successful in our tough league.”

2024 Schedule

Aug. 23 — @ Olentangy, 7 p.m.

Aug. 30 — vs. Glenville, 7 p.m.

Sept. 6 — vs. Gahanna Lincoln, 7 p.m.

Sept. 13 — @ Olentangy Berlin, 7 p.m.

Sept. 20 — vs. Dublin Jerome, 7 p.m.

Sept. 27 — vs. Dublin Coffman, 7 p.m.

Oct. 4 — @ Upper Arlington, 7 p.m.

Oct. 11 — vs. Hilliard Bradley, 7 p.m.

Oct. 18 — vs. Hilliard Davidson, 7 p.m.

Oct. 25 — @ Olentangy Orange, 7 p.m.

2023 Results

(4-8, 2-3 OCC-Central Division)

Aug. 18 — vs. Pickerington Central, L, 28-17

Aug. 25 — vs. Glenville, L, 34-10

Sept. 1 — @ Gahanna Lincoln, L, 46-28

Sept. 8 — vs. Olentangy Berlin, L, 24-17 (OT)

Sept. 15 — @ New Albany, W, 17-3

Sept. 22 — @ Dublin Coffman, L, 24-14

Sept. 29 — vs. Upper Arlington, W, 19-16 (OT)

Oct. 6 — @ Hilliard Bradley, L, 20-13

Oct. 13 — @ Hilliard Davidson, L, 10-6

Oct. 20 — vs. Olentangy Orange, W, 21-7

Oct. 27 — @ Findlay, W, 36-25 (OHSAA state playoffs)

Nov. 3 — @ Dublin Coffman, L, 17-14 (OHSAA state playoffs)