Week 4 vs Vinton-Shellsburg

Sorry for not giving a pre-game update, but technical difficulties temporarily seized my service.  But we are back in action, and that is exactly what I wanted to talk to you about.  Friday's match-up with VS was a crucial game for us.  After two tough losses, it was important for us to rebuild our confidence and right the ship a little bit.  We had a fantastic week of practice that was built by great senior leadership.  With positive peer coaching from our team captains-Mason Simon-Ressler, Dylan James, and Blake Kass-the team responded to the call to action to get better every day.  It was great to watch the guys work hard, follow each other, and have success.

We knew that VS would be a big physical team.  We knew that they would need this win to position themselves for a solid play-off seed as well.  The battle lines were drawn early in the 1st quarter when they drove 80 yards down the field for a Vinton-Shellsburg touchdown.  It was a grind to respond with a touchdown of our own.  The 65 yard drive was capped off by a Dylan Kramer QB sneak from the 1 yard line.  With the extra point kick by Nick Kruse good, we set out to battle again with a 7-7 score.  After another long drive by the Vikings, leading to another touchdown, we got the ball back at our forty yard line with 30 seconds to go in the half.  After a couple of small gains with the clock running down, we decided to call a time-out with 3 seconds left in the half.  Dylan Kramer connected with Dylan James on a 52 yard bomb to finish the half with a 14-14 tie.  That momentum swing was just what we needed to electrify the crowd, the players, and the coaches.

After a couple of half-time adjustments, we came out and played good old WD football.  Our defense shut them out in the second half, and our offense poured on three more TD's, coming via Dylan James on a 20 yard pass from Kramer, Cody Reimer on an 11 yard scamper, and Blake Kass on a 36 yard cut back run.  Cody Reimer returned to the field for the first time, after breaking his arm in practice before week one.  Cody was just as happy to be back as we were to have him.  He showed why he was a starter to begin with, and performed well (even sporting a cast).  We also welcomed back offensive tackle Luke Schroeder.  Luke tore his ACL in the play-off game against Grinnell last season.  He has worked harder than you could possibly imagine to be game ready the week that he was cleared to play.  His determination has been an example for all the athletes in our program.  If you want it bad enough, you can make it happen.  Great job Luke! 

We had the chance to clear the side lines on Friday.  Getting every athlete the opportunity to feel the heat of the Friday Night Lights is incredibly rewarding as a coach.  In the pre-game speech we talked about winning this game for the person next to you, and that is exactly what we did.  The kids truly won this game together and for each other.  We are starting to see a very tight bond begin to form amongst the men.  We can't wait to make it stronger practice by practice, game by game.

West Delaware Week 3

Tyler Donovan (25),  Dylan Gansen (2)

Dylan Kramer (15),  Dylan James (24),  Blake Kass (42)

Friday night we traveled to Manchester to take on district rival West Delaware.  Coming off an 8-1 regular season and a state semifinal appearance, we new that they would be a tough opponent.  But we felt well prepared with a solid game plan. 

The first half was an absolute battle, and we picked up some scars on the way.  On the second play of the game, Tyler Donovan, starting free safety and slot receiver, went down with what they thought was a broken leg, fortunately it turned out to be a severely sprained left ankle.  Dylan Gansen stepped in on defense and Shannon McDermott was the next man in offensively.  After a slight delay, we went back and forth delivering blows and fought to keep the score 6-0 at halftime. 

The second half started with a long touchdown run for the Hawks and was followed up by an end zone fumble that led to a touchdown recovery for West Delaware, a quick 13 point swing that was tough to bounce back from. 

The team showed no signs of quitting.  The start of the 4th quarter showed promise when a solid drive took us to the 20 yard line, where Dylan Kramer hooked up with Dylan James for a TD pass in the end zone.  That was followed by a defensive stand, but a fumble a few plays later kept us from building the momentum necessary for a comeback.

Win or lose, our weekly measuring stick is improvement.  The two biggest aspects of the game were improved upon.  We blocked much better than we did a week ago, and our defense tackled with a purpose.  Blake Kass and Dylan James led the defense with 10+ tackles a piece.  And James proved to be a threat in the air racking up 7 catches for 78 yards and  TD.  We didn't come out of this game with a win, but we definitely progressed from a week a go.  We are excited to redeem ourselves in front of our home crowd this week when Vinton-Shellsburg comes to "The Buc" for district play.  Hope to see you there!

West Delaware Prep Week

Blake Kass (42),  Dawson Nemmers (23),  Dylan Kramer (15)

Dan Beard (31),  Dylan Gansen (2)

With the West Delaware Hawks coming off an overtime loss to Dyersville Beckman, the team will be ready to rumble against us this week.  The last two seasons contests were barn burners.  In 2010, the Hawks edged us with a last minute defensive stand in a high scoring shoot-out.  Last year we handed them their only regular season loss in a 17-16 victory on our own Buchman Field here in Epworth.  They will be ready for redemption and eager to make up for last week.  With the start of district play, every game matters for the play-offs.  With that much more on the line, we expect both teams to come eager to fight for a victory.

They are a big physical team that looks to run the ball 80 percent of the time.  With an athletic offensive line, they like to pull  centers and tackles to work to the outside.  But out of their spread pistol formation, they have the ability to pass as well and a quarterback that is mobile.  It will take a solid team defensive effort to get the job done this week. 

With our offense starting to put things together, we look to have a good mixture of run and pass to keep the Hawks defense on edge.  With a four headed monster at the running back position, Blake Kass and Dawson Nemmers at fullback, Dan Beard and Dylan Gansen at half back, we have a great balance of strength and speed to attack with.  As we continue to tweak our running game, Dylan Kramer and the passing game should have the opportunity to ignite and keep our offense moving the chains.  We look for long sustained drives that control the clock. 

Our preparation has been fantastic this week.  The effort and attitude has been everything that we could ask for from these young men.  Friday is the test!  A road win would be huge, and that is exactly what we are shooting for.

Week 2 vs Maquoketa

Dylan Gansen (2),  Kyle Kass (67),  Luke Schroeder (52),  Cody Reimer (20)

The last two seasons against Maquoketa have been big games.  In 2010 we needed a win to put ourselves in a position to make the play-offs.  We pulled through with a victory in a last minute nail-biter in front of a roaring home crowd.  Last year we played at Maquoketa for a chance to win the district.  We came up short in a last minute battle, and Maquoketa went on to claim their first district title in quite some time.  We knew this game would be no different and carry the same weight with this year's teams. 

The game started quickly with the Cardinals scoring on their first drive.  After a couple of quick defensive adjustments, we were able to keep them at bay while we got the offense on track.  Dylan Gansen busted a 53 yard sweep into the end zone in the second quarter to even up the score at 7 a piece.  The Cardinals scored one more TD before the half, and it left us trailing by 7 at the break.

The second half turned into a mess with sloppy ball handling.  We put the ball on the ground 7 times total for the game, and turned it over 3 times, all in Maquoketa territory, setting them up for some easy offensive possessions.  Poor tackling compounded with fumbles made for a recipe for disaster in the second half.  Finishing with a 30-7 loss made for a long weekend but a great opportunity to grow from our mistakes.  After films on Saturday morning, the team is ready to address our mistakes and get back to work.  If we learn a page from a win and a book from a loss, then we learned plenty from Friday's experience.  We aren't proud of the outcome, but we are very proud of the effort.

We are still in the process of building depth right now.  With two tackles injured, Kyle Kass and Luke Schroeder, we are anxious to get them back and start building a rotation that can give our guys the needed breaks to sustain a consistently high level of play.  Cody Reimer returns to the line-up this week after being sidelined with a broken arm.  Although it will be tough for Cody to carry the ball for us since he is in a cast, this creates more depth at defensive back and on special teams.  With a district rival in West Delaware to prepare for this Friday, we know the importance of getting better everyday this week.  We are excited to get back in the ring and go toe-to-toe with a quality opponent.