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“No one’s come close to the communication we do,” he said. “Other teams just come out and they look down, they hardly talk at all.”

But there are a few team stats that show this lightweight group is more than holding its own.

The ball carrier was stopped for a loss on a mere eight of those plays. And quarterback Mitch Beau doesn’t need to worry when he’s looking to pass. Krueger estimated there’s been about three or four sacks all season.

Head coach Bob Hyland was a collegiate all-American as a guard at North Dakota State. And throughout the 80s and 90s, Hyland had a virtual parade of big, strong linemen that garnered attention on all-state teams.

“Our line is amazing; they pretty much do everything — 90 percent of the success should go to the line,” Parker offered with no hesitation. “They’re making everything for us. They’re always walking up to the line, and they’re making the calls. They make running the ball so much easier.”

In the Ledgers’ three toughest games (WLA, Cedar Grove and Lancaster), they ran the ball a total of 146 times.

This group doesn’t get that kind of limelight, but that’s not a problem. What they really want is team success.

How much success should be credited to the linemen is subject to debate. Krueger guessed 75 percent, Belisle and Soldner weren’t shy and said all of it, and running back Anthony Parker found a middle ground.

It probably shouldn’t be a surprise that the success comes with fundamentals. No, at an average of just 207 pounds, they won’t throw any opponent around, but with quick feet and Krueger’s emphasis on communication, they’ve more than made up for the lack of size.

“Every time there’s a play, we’re talking, we’re picking each other up,” said Belisle, the biggest starter at 6-foot-3, 230 pounds. “Our team chemistry is great; there’s never any problems.”

It sounds simple enough, but Belisle, who is the lone member of the group to also start on defense, has noticed that few, if any, match the Ledgers in barking out instructions.

“You know calling the plays it never is a question of ‘can we pass or do we have to run,’ ” Krueger said. “There’s never a question with this group. They do both of them very well.”

Springs has scored 545 points in 13 games and has rushed for 3,000 yards this season, an average of 232 per game and 6.1 yards per rush.