Indian gridders trip on the road
By Bob Fenske
Of The Summit
WEBSTER CITY - Chad Moore stood on the empty Webster City football field last Friday night and told it like it was.
“They told everyone - their newspaper, their radio, everyone - that they were going to come right at us and win it up front,” he said. “And you know what? That's exactly what they did. They beat us up front.”
When it was over, the Lynx and their rarely-seen single-wing offense had piled up 329 rushing yards on their way to a 34-20 win in the Class 3A, District 2 opener for both teams.
Truth be told, though, it wasn't so much the offense Webster City ran, it was the way they executed it.
“They pushed us around, and that was disappointing,” Moore said after his team fell to 2-1 overall. “It's why we emphasize the weight room so much, but tonight just wasn't pretty.”
The fifth-year coach tried to coax himself into a smile, but it was a minute one.
“It's one game and there's a lot of football left,” he said, “but we've got to get better. I know we set the bar awfully high [in a 48-23 season-opening win over Crestwood], but we've taken a step back each week. We've got to get it together.”
The irony is that for those not at the game who only saw a stat sheet - sans score, of course - it looked like a pretty even game.
Both teams finished with 369 total yards, and Forest City quarterback Andrew Rosacker ran for 111 yards and threw for 183 more while Zeke Kasper had 68 hard-earned yards on just 10 carries.
But on this night, the yards on the stat sheet weren't much of an indicator of what happened on the field.
The Indians were done in by three things - the Lynx running game, their penchant for turnovers and their inability to cash in on scoring opportunities.
Forest City threw three interceptions and lost a fumble, but maybe the key moment in the game came on Forest City's opening drive that began when Tyler Harmon recovered a fumble near midfield.
The Indians marched to the Webster City 15-yard line, where they faced a third-and-1. Two plays later, the Lynx had stuffed Forest City and had taken over on downs.
“Who knows if scoring there would have made a difference,” he said, “but I sure would have liked to find out.”
By the end of the first quarter, Forest City was looking at the wrong end of a 14-0 score and the Lynx went up 20-0 midway through the second quarter on the second of Dalton Keane's three touchdown runs.
Still, the Indians didn't go quietly into the night. Kasper set up his 16-yard touchdown run with a bruising, breaking-tackles-everywhere 25-yard run.
“That's the kind of heart we've got to get 11 guys playing with,” Moore said. “Talk about refusing to go down. That was Zeke.”
But Webster City scored on its first possession of the second half, and after another Kasper TD run at the end of the third quarter, the Lynx put the game away with a Keane touchdown pass early in the final quarter.
Forest City would add a late touchdown when Andrew Rosacker hit Tyler Harmon in the game's final minute, but it was too little, too late.
“We didn't quit, I'll give our kids that,” Moore said, “but we've got to get better and we've got to get better in a hurry. There are no easy ones in this district.”
The good news for the Indians is that they come home for two straight games - hosting Charles City Friday before playing Iowa Falls-Alden a week later.
Moore, though, spent a good 10 minutes Friday night challenging his players to return to the form they showed in that season opener.
After the Indians headed to the locker room, he stood alone on the field.
“It's time for the leaders on this team to step up and be counted.”
By Bob Fenske
Of The Summit
WEBSTER CITY - Chad Moore stood on the empty Webster City football field last Friday night and told it like it was.
“They told everyone - their newspaper, their radio, everyone - that they were going to come right at us and win it up front,” he said. “And you know what? That's exactly what they did. They beat us up front.”
When it was over, the Lynx and their rarely-seen single-wing offense had piled up 329 rushing yards on their way to a 34-20 win in the Class 3A, District 2 opener for both teams.
Truth be told, though, it wasn't so much the offense Webster City ran, it was the way they executed it.
“They pushed us around, and that was disappointing,” Moore said after his team fell to 2-1 overall. “It's why we emphasize the weight room so much, but tonight just wasn't pretty.”
The fifth-year coach tried to coax himself into a smile, but it was a minute one.
“It's one game and there's a lot of football left,” he said, “but we've got to get better. I know we set the bar awfully high [in a 48-23 season-opening win over Crestwood], but we've taken a step back each week. We've got to get it together.”
The irony is that for those not at the game who only saw a stat sheet - sans score, of course - it looked like a pretty even game.
Both teams finished with 369 total yards, and Forest City quarterback Andrew Rosacker ran for 111 yards and threw for 183 more while Zeke Kasper had 68 hard-earned yards on just 10 carries.
But on this night, the yards on the stat sheet weren't much of an indicator of what happened on the field.
The Indians were done in by three things - the Lynx running game, their penchant for turnovers and their inability to cash in on scoring opportunities.
Forest City threw three interceptions and lost a fumble, but maybe the key moment in the game came on Forest City's opening drive that began when Tyler Harmon recovered a fumble near midfield.
The Indians marched to the Webster City 15-yard line, where they faced a third-and-1. Two plays later, the Lynx had stuffed Forest City and had taken over on downs.
“Who knows if scoring there would have made a difference,” he said, “but I sure would have liked to find out.”
By the end of the first quarter, Forest City was looking at the wrong end of a 14-0 score and the Lynx went up 20-0 midway through the second quarter on the second of Dalton Keane's three touchdown runs.
Still, the Indians didn't go quietly into the night. Kasper set up his 16-yard touchdown run with a bruising, breaking-tackles-everywhere 25-yard run.
“That's the kind of heart we've got to get 11 guys playing with,” Moore said. “Talk about refusing to go down. That was Zeke.”
But Webster City scored on its first possession of the second half, and after another Kasper TD run at the end of the third quarter, the Lynx put the game away with a Keane touchdown pass early in the final quarter.
Forest City would add a late touchdown when Andrew Rosacker hit Tyler Harmon in the game's final minute, but it was too little, too late.
“We didn't quit, I'll give our kids that,” Moore said, “but we've got to get better and we've got to get better in a hurry. There are no easy ones in this district.”
The good news for the Indians is that they come home for two straight games - hosting Charles City Friday before playing Iowa Falls-Alden a week later.
Moore, though, spent a good 10 minutes Friday night challenging his players to return to the form they showed in that season opener.
After the Indians headed to the locker room, he stood alone on the field.
“It's time for the leaders on this team to step up and be counted.”
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Forest City Summit
105 South Clark Street
Forest City, IA 50436
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