Before he could put the Wautoma football team on his back and lead the Hornets to the WIAA Division 4 state final, quarterback Jared Abbrederis had to make sure his knees and legs could support the weight.

Two years ago, Abbrederis suffered a torn ACL and a broken femur during the seventh game of the season.

A state-caliber hurdler, Abbrederis recovered from the injury in time to qualify in the spring for the WIAA state track and field meet, where he finished fourth in the 110-meter high hurdles and fifth in the 300 intermediates. But some of his best competitive work has come in the past sixth months.

He returned to the WIAA state meet in track and field in June, winning the 110 highs and finishing second in the 300 intermediates, and now has quarterbacked the Hornets to their debut in the state final and a 7 p.m. date Thursday with Walworth Big Foot in the Division 4 title game.

"Bar none, he's the best leader and quarterback I've ever had," said Wautoma coach Dennis Moon, who has coached for 30 years — the past three as the Hornets' head coach. "He's just an awesome, awesome kid to have running the program."

Abbrederis enjoyed his finest game of a statistically stunning season Friday in a 42-24 state semfinal win over Baldwin-Woodville at Chippewa Falls.

The 6-foot-2, 170-pounder carried 38 times for 264 yards and three touchdowns to send the Hornets to Camp Randall Stadium for the first time. That pushed his output to 1,454 yards on 163 carries — an

8.9-yard average — and 25 TDs.

"He makes plays happen," Moon said of Abbrederis, a sturdy QB — he squats 390 pounds and can bench press 250 — who has thrown for 1,584 yards and 19 TDs.

"There were times Friday night where we were in the gun — second-and-10 or whatever — and we'd run a little quarterback keeper or a draw and it seemed like there was nothing there. But then you'd look up and it's third-and-2. He just has a way of making people miss."

Wautoma didn't give up

Playing for a state championship represents the pinnacle of a Ty Pennington-like rebuilding project for Wautoma.

This one wasn't completed in a week, but it was just eight years ago — with the Hornets in the throes of what would become a 21-game losing streak — there was pressure to drop the varsity program. Wautoma was outscored 147-0 its first three games that season (including a 71-0 loss to Fond du Lac Springs) with 10 seniors and eight juniors out.

"The coach wanted to drop the program right there on the spot ... and the school board wouldn't allow it," Moon said. "We hired a new staff. We got some weightlifting people in here and (added it) into the phy-ed curriculum. ... It didn't take too long after we started getting them a little bigger and ... stronger that things started to change around."

Extra points

Wautoma counts the enrollment of nearby Faith Christian Academy — all nine students — in its total for WIAA divisional placement. But Moon said there are no Faith Christian students on the football team ... Coach Jeff Rosemeyer of Division 5 finalist Colby has three brothers coaching prep football in Wisconsin — Robin at Gilman, Rod at Durand and Dean at Eau Claire North.