The Morrison Mustangs entered E. M. “Bud” Cole field on Friday, September 7, 2018, with hopes that the week-long rains had ended, and they could return to the win column against the visiting Kewanee, IL, Boilermakers. Hall of Fame recognitions returned some elite athletes and cheerleaders from the past, and the skies cleared for a setting appropriate for Friday Night Lights.
The opening quarter recorded limited offense from either side of the ball. It was quickly noted that Kewanee’s offense evolved around quarterback Kavon Russell. Soft, soggy turf and a challenging Mustang defense only allowed Russell one pass completion, for 16-yards, and a two 10-yard scampers on broken plays, in the opening quarter.
The Mustangs opened the scoring in their first possession of the second quarter. They marched 46-yards in seven plays, with Keegan Anderson scoring at the 8:38 mark from the 6-yard line. Riley Wilkens gained 18 of the 46 yards in four carries up the middle. Field conditions restricted the needed footing for consistent outside execution. The defense took over the second quarter. They restricted Russell and company to -11 yards rushing and 5-yards passing. Russell was constantly picking himself up, after hard contact from the motivated Mustang defense. The half ended with the Mustangs up 6-0, but the momentum was definitely established by the defense.
The third quarter started with the notable absence of Kewanee’s quarterback and punter, Kavon Russell. Mustangs completely shut down the Boilermaker offense, allowing them only one yard of total offense in three possessions. The Mustang defense backed the Boilermakers deep into their own territory, when a Brevin Prius punt fell dead at the 10-yard line. Three snaps later, a bad fourth-down snap was recovered on the Kewanee 3-yard line, and the ball was turned over to Morrison on downs. Two snaps later, Jacob Schlegel rolled out to his left and sprinted into the end zone to up the score to 12-0 with 3:10 remaining in the third quarter.
The fourth quarter was all Morrison. They generated an 11-play scoring drive that ended with a fourth down, 25-yard pass completion from Schlegel to Wade Hackbarth, to nail the win at 18-0.
The Mustang offense was slowed by the soft field conditions, but ended the night with 171 yards rushing and 33-yards in the air. Rushing leaders were Riley Wilkens (61 yds), Keegan Anderson (58 yds), Brandon Zigler (15 yds), and Jevin Smith (18 yds.)
The defense lived in the Kewanee backfield all evening. They recorded 14 Boilermaker plays for negative yardage, and their aggressive pursuit ended quarterback Russell’s evening after one half. The Boilermaker offense only totaled 33 yards all evening, ending with 28-yards passing and 5-yards rushing.
The Mustangs will now travel to Sterling, IL, next Saturday evening, September 15, to take on the #2 State ranked Newman Central Catholic Comets. This game is one of the true rivalries remaining in high school football and a place that true football supporters of the Morrison Mustangs should plan to attend.