Rainer Looks to Lead Colts to State Title . By : Ryan Fletcher
The Rivercrest Colts enter the 2023 football season as the odds-on favorite to not only win their 4A conference but they have great chances of bringing home a state championship . Rivercrest returns a plethora of talent from a year ago that saw their team finish in the final four last season . Possibly the most talented player returning is a guy that does a little bit of everything and whole lot scoring and that ’ s Michael Rainer . Rainer has managed to catch for over 1000 yards each of his last two seasons . This year he will look to eclipse some of the schools receiving records and make his name as one of the all-time Colt greats . He ’ s got mixed emotions going into his final season . “( It ’ s ) Bitter sweet honestly , ( I ’ m ) very happy to be doing it in the red and grey ! Just a little sad it ’ s almost over .”
There are many great attributes that can be used to describe Rainer , but versatility might be his greatest weapon . Not only did Michael finish as the top receiver in his conference last year but he also rushed for nearly 900 yards while scoring 10 touchdowns . He ’ s the high school version of San Francisco 49er Deebo Samuel as he will often get as many carries as he gets targets . “ I enjoy it because I know if we ’ re short at certain position , I can go fill in wherever I ’ m needed and give it my all .” His versatility doesn ’ t stop at those two positions as he will sometimes lineup at the quarterback position as well , and he loves when he gets the chance to do it . “ I enjoy it quite a bit . It makes me feel like Mike Vick or Lamar Jackson when I ’ m in at quarterback because I know that when I ’ m at QB we ’ re running it .”
Rainer knows that expectations are not only high for himself but also the team . He expects the team to be very salty in 2023 . “ Expectations are very high for us this year . We started showing what we were made of last year with a young group of guys . I feel like we ’ ll win it all this year if we play like we know we can . Rivercrest is known for football . It feels as if it ’ s a must to keep the winning tradition going . It ’ s been quite some time since a Rivercrest team has had a losing season or didn ’ t make the playoffs ! I ’ m just glad not only me but also my team gets to go down as Rivercrest great .” Rivercrest lost to a highly talented Pocahontas team early last season in the conference and actually started the season 1-3 . They then reeled off eight straight wins with six of those being in the conference . He attributes much of the team ’ s success to the coaching staff . “ The coaching staff is great . I couldn ’ t ask for a better staff . I ’ ve learned from all of them honestly . They ’ ve all taught me different aspects of the game .”
The sure handed receiver believes the team will be better in many ways and doesn ’ t just expect one person to lead the way as he see ’ s the depth and talent for the Colts . “ Honestly , I expect all of them to play well . I can ’ t tell you a better team in the state when we ’ re all giving it our all and pushing ourselves to our full potential .”
While winning is Rainer ’ s number one priority , he does have some business to take care of in terms of individual numbers as he only is a few touchdowns shy of the schools receiving record . “ Honestly , I can say I ’ m blessed . I ’ ll go down in school history with many of other great receivers that have come through !” When asked what he wanted Rivercrest fans to remember him for he had this to say . “ My leadership and my effort . I always try to keep everyone ’ s head up because I know we all make mistakes , and I know that the play you take off could cost the game . So , you have to give it your all every play !”