Following a reconstructive season last fall, Freeport football coach John Gaillot set a simple objective for a team that hasn’t yet reached its full potential.

Just improve.

“Every step you take on the field has to be your best,” he said. “You just need to get better. We’re already better than we were last year.”

It will be a collective effort if these Yellowjackets want to take the next step forward.

“It’s not one individual player,” senior tight end/inside linebacker Sean Selinger said. “It’s just everybody combined — and that’s how we’re going to make it work.”

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The Yellowjackets are just a full season removed from reaching the WPIAL Class 3A semifinals. They had a chance to angle into the postseason late into October 2023.

“Even with that young team,” Gaillot said.

That group has made its strides since its 3-7 2023 showing. That askew slate included five losses by at least 19 points, but three wins of 27 points or more — including two shutouts.

“We took our lumps last year,” Gaillot said. “We were in games, but we just couldn’t finish. That was the inexperience of those young kids. We had so many freshmen and sophomores playing — probably more than what I’ve ever had playing here. But they kept battling and all those kids came back.”

Junior Drew Ross steps back in as the team’s leading returning passer (1,259 yards last season) and rusher (294). Classmate Madden Wisniewski, a receiver, ranked fourth on the squad with 434 all-purpose yards.

The seasoning gained by that pair and others reminds Freeport defensive coordinator Todd Durand of previous instances of growth.

“A lot of times, things come in cycles,” Durand said. “In 2015, when we had that team that did so awesome, a lot of them started as sophomores. Just like (2022’s) team, a lot of them started as sophomores. This is the same mold that we’re seeing right here.”

Senior tight end Sean Selinger and wide receivers Owen Neistein, Madden Wisniewski, Danny King and Bryson Paga will all be featured in the passing game. Dawson Gaillot will be at tailback.

1. Patching a hole

All-time program sacks leader Colton Otterman graduated this summer, so how do the ‘Jackets recoup? By sticking to a blueprint.

“We always look at, ‘Who’s our best 11?’” John Gaillot said. “Then we usually get 14 or 15 that can rotate in and out.”

In a base 3-4 plan that gives multiple looks, Freeport will rely on the skills and communication of its inside linebackers — penciled in are Selinger and Dawson Gaillot — along with Ross, who also plays safety.

Sophomore Danny King and juniors Owen Neistein and Madden Wisniewski will also be in the secondary.

The staff plugs in utility players wherever needed, helping when injuries inevitably impact options.

“We’ve got some depth, which helps us,” John Gaillot said. “When you have 40 kids or so ... and you have just that many athletes, you can rotate and keep people fresh instead of playing the entire game.

“That’s how we did (what we did) in 2022, with all those kids going down. We were just rotating people in and those kids really stepped up.”

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2. Meet the new OC

For the fourth time in as many go-rounds, Freeport has a new offensive coordinator.

Dylan Henderson, a West Shamokin graduate in his mid-30s, brings a much-needed energy to the unit.

“Coach Durand and myself, it takes us a long time to try to get up because we’re getting older and our knees are hurting and stuff,” Gaillot said. “We don’t run, we don’t do (that stuff). ... He’s a magnet. They’re all stuck to him with every word.”

Gaillot said last year the Yellowjackets relied on the air game more than he liked. He prefers the attack be more balanced this time around, and Selinger figures to be a big variable in that equation.

“I definitely see me more fit for blocking than running seam routes down the field,” Selinger said. “It’s cool to get a couple catches a game, but really I’m just looking to block and get our running backs in the endzone.”

3. Conditioning important

Being that a good deal of its players line up on both sides on Friday nights, conditioning is a non-negotiable for a team of Freeport’s size. Gaillot stresses the profits of running and proper hydration show up when it matters, a theme that shows in players’ mentalities.

“You’ve just got to push through it and show the younger guys that you can’t get out of it,” senior offensive lineman Sam Austin said. “You just might as well get into it.”

“A lot more running than I would like, personally,” Selinger said. “It definitely will help us when it comes fourth-quarter time in September. ... If you’re taking the conditioning lightly, then it’s not going to really help you and do the job that it serves. Everybody kind of puts their head down, and we all just work.”

* connotes division/conference game