Marshall coach Kleinheinz has his work cut out for him this football season
MARSHALL, Wis. (BVM) — With Matt Kleinheinz as coach, Marshall has historically dominated the Capitol South Conference.
The Cardinals won 7 straight Capitol South Conference titles from 2006-2012 and made 11 straight appearances in the WIAA playoffs from 2006-2016.
Marshall, Wis. is located in Dane County which has strict restrictions in place due to COVID-19. Many of the surrounding schools opted to play football in the spring but Kleinheinz has other plans for his football team this fall.
Playing this fall has its challenges as all 7 games for the Cardinals will be played on the road. Marshall will also have to travel 25 minutes to Fall River, Wis. every Wednesday to participate in full-contact drills.
The season was already going to be a challenge as Kleinheinz and Marshall were transitioning to the Eastern Suburban Conference.
The new Eastern Suburban Conference will consist of old rivals Cambridge and Waterloo as well as some new faces in Tomahawk, Markesan, Palmyra/Eagle, Hustisford/Horicon, and Pardeeville.
Even with these hurdles Kleinheinz will have his team ready for the 2020 season considering all the work it took to make it happen. Kleinheinz is also Marshall’s Athletic Director and it took many long hours working with other athletic directors to put together a schedule.
Being able to balance three job titles, he is also Dean of Students at Marshall, would be difficult for anyone to handle but Klenheinz has done an amazing job to give his seniors the opportunity to play the game they love while still representing a Cardinals jersey.
Graduating a few miles down the road in Deerfield, Wis., Kleinheinz knows the importance of these small-town athletes embracing every chance possible to play. As it will most likely be the last time the majority of them will ever strap on a helmet again.
Coach Kleinheinz hopes to get back on track this season after the Cardinals fell to a 2-8 record last season and got booted out of the playoffs in the first round by Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau, 48-18.
“I almost like being an underdog as it’s easier for you to fly under the radar,” Coach Kleinheinz said in an interview with the Daily Dodge. “When your name starts appearing in print, all of a sudden you got a target on your back, you can’t go out and have a bad game and maybe sneak by. Everybody is going to be ready for you.”
The underdog road ahead begins Friday, Sept. 25, when the Cardinals take on Tomahawk and will try to prove why they deserve to have a football season no matter the uphill climb they face.
