This Week’s Message From the Coach….

You never know what to expect in week one.  Two things you want to accomplish as a coach are get your first win, and learn what needs to be fixed.  Both of these were accomplished with a hard-fought victory over Cerro Gordo.  The Broncos threw 44 passes in the game from numerous formations, adding motions and fakes.  This provided a great experience for our much improved secondary.  We allowed few yards after the catch and we intercepted 3 passes and got our hands on five more.  The front four recorded 7 sacks and held the Broncos to 6 yards rushing and 184 total yards.  Cerro Gordo was a new opponent with a new coach and there were many unknowns on our end.

The Blue Devils looked great on their first two possessions.  In the first drive, Reed Collins scored on a 9 yard sweep and Adam Baker caught a 47 yard touchdown pass from Krystian Ingram on the second drive.  It looked like the rout was on…but Cerro Gordo battled back.  Abandoning the run, the Broncos kept the defense off balance with numerous formations and motions and repeatedly made big plays on 3^rd down to keep drives alive.  The second quarter was a struggle for the Blue Devils on both sides of the ball.  After a short touchdown pass, we had a 14-6 lead at halftime. 

After halftime adjustments, things went better.  Finally, the Devils built a comfortable lead on Morgan Supergan’s short run and Austin Lock’s 47 yard touchdown run.  But mistakes were plenty.  10 penalties, a bad snap, a fumbled exchange…all led to an overall sloppy performance by the offense team.  A penalty negated an Ingram pass to Patton touchdown and also called back a 90 yard touchdown run by Reed Collins in the second half.  Some highlights included some vicious hits by Dakota Patton, Josh Kessler, Morgan Supergan, and Jake Huffman.  Kyle Lamm intercepted two passes; one in the end zone.  And Krystian Ingram, in his debut as the starting quarterback, threw for 181 yards and a touchdown.  Receiver Adam Baker was responsible for 154 yards receiving.

The Big Hit for the week is awarded to Jake Huffman. The Defensive Player of the Game was Adam Baker who broke up four passes.  Matt LeCleir was the Special Teams Player of the Game making four tackles on kick offs.  Lineman of the Game was Dakota Patton.  Scout Team Player of the Week was Caleb Bergman. 

The JV squad hosted Georgetown on Monday night and won 36-0.  Overcoming numerous penalties, the offense generated 328 yards compared to 101 for the Buffaloes. 

Junior Zach Martin led a solid rushing attack with 70 yards and a touchdown.  Luke Horton and Kevin Allen combined for another 84 yards.  LouJack Fullen had 32 yards rushing and 54 yards receiving and Ty Hufford scored on a 24 yard run and a 29 yard reception.  Caleb Bergman threw for 83 yards and also rushed for a touchdown.  On Defense, Austin Reinken dominated the line of scrimmage recording 5 tackles for loss, 3 sacks, and a blocked punt. 

The next opponent will be Villa Grove.  They have a great winning tradition and finished last season with a 8-3 record.  They are well coached by Chad Musselman and they have been predicted to win their conference.  The Villa Grove Blue Devils have 22 seniors on the roster which is amazing for their size of school  Key players for VG are seniors; fullback #25 Jess Shrum, receiver #7 Earvin Westray, quarterback #13 Eric Douglas, and linebacker #75 Thomas Albin.   Villa Grove defeated Salt Fork last week 28-14 so everyone should know that this team is a legitimate powerhouse.  Because of some costly turnovers on their part, we defeated them last year in overtime.  This should provide plenty of motivation for them to seek revenge.

Villa Grove is an awesome team and it should be a great game.  Games like this are why players play and coaches coach and fans come to watch.  Go Blue!