‘Tone setter’: How Butler County football offenses are reviving the H-back, incorporating classic philosophies
Today’s offensive football game is more air-based and spread out than ever. That doesn’t mean coaches don’t harken back to earlier days, though.
“As (you) get older, you figure out that your dad was right about a lot of things,” Mars wide receivers coach and former Navy quarterback Ed Malinowski said. “My dad was one of my high school football coaches. He was like, ‘Look, the thing that the game is missing is a fullback, Ed.’ And he’s right to a degree. Because the fullback is … a tone-setter.
“This sounds barbaric, but if you want to start a game off (right), run iso. Run the fullback right at their Mike linebacker and see what happens.”
Malinowski feels the H-back — a hybrid between a fullback and tight end — has become a valuable position at the prep level again. A few Butler County teams have used the position with success through the first half of 2025.
The Planets have rushed for 956 yards so far, with senior Ayden Yocum (737 yards on 108 attempts) leading the charge.
“It’s not just the straight-up spread (run-pass option) anymore,” Malinowski said. “Now you’ve got people that are kind of incorporating some things that used to be what you would see in the Power-I game … and even some Wing-T things that you see coming in.”
Tight end Ethan Kresinksi stands in as Mars’ H-back when needed. Malinowski said the senior squats 465 pounds and runs a 4.9-second 40-yard dash.
“You get to be with all the big dogs up front, you get to hang out with all them because they’re more of the goofy crowd, I’d say,” said Kresinski, who admires San Francisco 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk’s game. “It’s always fun being with them. Then, when we do team, I’ve got to stay with the skill. During practice, I’ve got to learn how to do both, skill and the big fella stuff.”
North Catholic receiver/tight end Reid Rinker played fullback in middle school. Tight end Nick Franco can also fill the Trojans’ H-back role. North Catholic coach Chris Rizzo estimated Rinker is 6-foot-1 and 180 pounds, while Franco is 6-foot, 185.
“Hitting is a big part of it as a tight end or an H-back,” Rinker said. “With my ability to go out and hit and just go up the hole and read stuff — and still be a mismatch against linebackers in the pass game — I think it’s a great spot for me.”
Rizzo described Franco as a perfect fit at the position. The Trojans have the Butler County area’s second-leading rusher in senior Logan Schade (657 yards on 45 carries). In front of him, Franco’s big and strong enough to bulldoze into a defense as a fullback, but can also play in-line tight end and run intermediate routes.
“From a week-to-week basis in high school football, there’s not a lot of guys that have a ton of variation, so any little thing that you can sprinkle and make somebody get prepared for or be aware of, those truly are the things that get you excited,” Rizzo said.
“My favorite part’s gonna be the hitting,” Franco said. “Just being able to hit someone with no (repercussion), it’s legal. And there’s so much emotion in the game, so when you can just go throw your body into someone and you can be good at it, it’s great.”
Franco said he likes watching highlights of Miami Dolphins fullback Alec Ingold and former New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Rob Gronkowski.
“Just changing into 12 personnel or a heavy set, it’s a different kind of attacking,” Franco said. “You kind of show … we’re just going to beat you with the guys we have.”
