Assistant Editor Jerry Lindsey supplied the photos and wrote the report.
A humid, fall evening welcomed football fans to E. M. (Bud) Cole Field in Morrison, IL, to open the 2022 IHSA Football season, for Newman Central High, Sterling, IL, and Morrison. Both teams entered the opening game with uncertainties and questions about the teams’ potential.
The first quarter offered Morrison two possession to establish their offense, but each ended with a three-and-out, to return the ball to Newman. Newman owned the ball twice and scored on their second possession, on a 1-yard plunge by Hunter Luyanda. The extra point kick failed, and the quarter ended with the Comets up by a 6-0 score.
The Mustangs owned the ball twice in the second period. They failed to earn a first down and gained only eight yards on the ground. The Comets had two possessions and gained a negative one yard on the ground and 46 yards in the air. The Comets’ first half advantage of 6-0 left the crowd with much anticipation of the possibilities to come, in the last two quarters of this season opener.
Morrison opened the second half with ball possession but failed to earn a first down; they were forced to punt. The ensuing punt by Daeshaun McQueen was blocked and recovered by the Comets on their own 13-yard line. Gabe Padilla took the first snap to the two-yard line, and Noah Britt crossed the goal line two plays later, to up the Newman score to 12-0. J. J. Castle connected with Gabe Padilla to complete the two-point conversion and up the score to 14-0, with 6:51 remaining in the third quarter.The Mustangs responded when Evan McDonnell recovered a Comet fumble on the five-yard line, as the clock moved under the two-minute mark. Three snaps later, McQueen scored the first 2022 touchdown. The quarter ended with the Comets leading by a single touchdown 14-6.
The third quarter action failed to germinate any momentum in the fourth quarter. The Mustangs failed to generate any positive yardage in their last three possessions. While the Mustangs’ offense struggled, the Comets scored twice. They opened the quarter with a two-yard score by Hunter Luyanda. A successful extra point moved the score to 21-0 with 11 minutes remaining.
As the Mustang offense continued to struggle, the Comets excited the crowd when Noah Britt skirted left end and scampered 76 yards, before he was downed on the two-yard line with under two-minutes remaining. Two plays later Gabe Padilla scored from the two-yard line. The extra point kick closed the evening, with the Comets recording a 28-6 opening night victory over the Morrison Mustangs.