This article was submitted by Bill Popkin.
An excellent effort by the entire Pony’s defense stopped the St. Bede Bruin football team in its tracks, in the first game of the season for both squads, on Tuesday, September 3, 2019, at E. M. “Bud” Cole Field in Morrison, IL. Held to just 21 yards of offense for the whole contest, the Bruin offensive unit simply could not get moving.
Morrison, on the other hand, got production from both their passing and ground attacks. They put 18 points on the board, more than enough for the 18-0 shutout victory.
Morrison scored first when Kayden White went over the goal line from five yards away, with 2:49 left in the opening stanza, to give the locals a 6-0 lead. Alex Anderson galloped into the end zone from the 23-yard line mid-way through the second period, to give Morrison a 12-0 lead, one that would stand until halftime.
In the third frame, Morrison’s offense stalled, in part because of several penalties and a punt return that was lost on a fumble. But the locals got back on stride in the last quartile. Thomas Dauphin blasted over the north end zone goal line from six yards away, to give Morrison its last touchdown of the night. Morrison did not convert any of their three extra point tries, but they were not needed in this game.
St. Bede utilized a spread offense with four receivers stationed widely along the scrimmage line. This left the quarterback and a lone running back in the backfield. Their passer could not connect on any of his nine attempts, so the offense was left to the lone running back. Morrison linemen keyed on him and stunted the Bruin offense. Defensive linemen Nathan Schaefer, Tyler Schambaugh, Beau Brackemeyer, and Aaron Freeman all had excellent games.
Morrison utilizes the wing-T offensive scheme (three running backs), and it was much more productive in this game. Dauphin had 57 rushing yards, Anderson 64, and White netted another 34. Quarterback Danny Mouw connected on 4-of-5 passes for 33 net yards. His receivers were Anderson (1-3 yards), Dauphin (1-14 yards), and Trey Strating (2-16 yards.)
Solid defense and a balanced offensive scheme made a winning combination!