Chetek players sporting blond hair

I was up in Chetek this afternoon to do a story on running back Elliot Waterhouse and the Bulldogs' spectacular season.

It wasn't long before I noticed that all of the players — and even coach Jay Dachel — had died their hair blond. Apparently it's a ritual in Chetek to do that if the team makes the playoffs. Dachel agreed to do it after the Bulldogs' 14-0 victory over Mondovi.

This is the second time Chetek has advanced to a state quarterfinal in three years. The Bulldogs also made it this far in 2005 when it lost to Somerset 42-21. This year the opponent is Stanley-Boyd, a team that features multi-dimensional quarterback Kyle Thorpe and deep-threat wide receiver Nick Summerfield.

The Orioles coach, Jeff Koenig, is also no stranger to Chetek. He used to be an assistant with the Bulldogs and served on the same staff as Dachel.

I asked Dachel if there's a friendly wager on the line, like the loser has to rake the leaves in the yard of the winner. "No, nothing like that," Dachel said. "Just bragging rights. But maybe that's a good idea."

The third-round game begins at 7 p.m. Friday night in Stanley.