Wolff’s emergence at center a positive for Kings
Coach Franz had spent offseason wondering who would fill open void on Kofa’s line
There is only one returning starter on Kofa’s offensive line for the upcoming football season, and coach Ben Franz said replacing Charles Santini, a two-year starter at center, was the biggest question coming into 2015.
After the first official day of practice, Franz may have already found his guy: Anthony Wolff.
“If we were playing a game tomorrow, he would have that job,” Franz said after practice July 27. “That’s big for him. His hard work is paying off.”
Franz did clarify after practice Thursday that every starting spot is still open until those decisions are made.
Wolff was an unknown commodity for the Kings, as he spent 2014 on junior varsity. The work ethic alone has Franz excited.
He spent the summer frequently hitting the weight room, did track in the spring and made improvements all offseason long.
The junior made it a goal to be the team’s starting center all offseason.
“I was just thinking of nothing but snapping all summer,” Wolff said. “Just working hard, that’s all. Being committed to the team, coming every day to practice, the weight room — everything became a big part of me becoming the center.
“If you really want it, then you’ll just grab it and reach for it. When I heard that center was open, I just really wanted that, and it made me 100 percent more confident in what I’m working for. I’m not just working for nobody, I’m working for the team.”
It isn’t just the work ethic that has impressed Franz either. After the first round of daily-doubles at 6 a.m., Wolff goes straight to band practice all afternoon, grabs a quick dinner in the locker room and is back out in helmet and pads at 6 p.m. for another round of football.
“He’s a great kid, character-wise,” Franz said. “He’s the kind of kid you want in your program, because he’s just good to have around. He builds his team up. He’s always positive.
“He’s the kind of guy that if he’s in a room, he’s the guy that everyone wants to hang out with. He’s not trying to draw attention to himself, but he’s such a good kid, he’s such a nice guy that you just want to be around him. I absolutely love that.”
Aside from the physical improvements that came from the work in the weight room, returning starting quarterback Tanner Peterson said the notable improvement was in Wolff ’s confidence, a necessary trait for the player in charge of the offensive line.
“He just keeps getting better and better every day,” Peterson said. “We don’t even take warm-up snaps. I trust him that much.”
Peterson said he and Wolff don’t have the same rapport he had with Santini, but he is just getting to know Wolff, and that relationship will build with time.
Locking up a center alleviates a major concern going into the year for Franz. That confidence others have seen in Wolff isn’t always seen with others vying to be the starting center.
“For whatever reason, guys tend to shy away from the center position,” Franz said. “You’re the quarterback of the offensive line and you’ve got to take that role seriously. If the snap doesn’t get back to the quarterback when we’re run-