Print
E-mail
Comment
Rate
Clarinda pounces on Atlantic’s miscues, Trojans drop opener 19-7
Click image to enlarge
   |
| Share This Story: |
  
|
Atlantic fumbles in the ball 8 times in non-district loss, starts season 0-1
By Drew Herron
NT Sports Editor
ATLANTIC— Mistakes mounted and the wheels spun as Atlantic fell in their season opener Friday night to Clarinda 19-7 at the Trojan Bowl.
Atlantic committed eight total fumbles on the night and quickly fell into a deepening hole that peaked at 19-0 with just under five minutes to play in the second quarter.
Adding injury to insult, the Trojans have likely lost their quarterback Jacob Hartwig indefinitely as Hartwig, a three-year starter, went down during the team’s opening drive of the first quarter with a reported broken collarbone.
“It’s a game of breaks,” Clarinda coach Dave Carper said afterwards. “Atlantic lost their quarterback, with that turnovers are bound to happen and we were able to capitalize on them.”
Atlantic’s first four possessions of the first half resulted in a pair of fumbles and a pair of punts, the second of which was blocked and scooped up by Clarinda senior Jeff Williams with 7:53 to play in the second quarter, Williams notching his second score on the night with about a 15-yard dash into the end zone to put the Cardinals ahead by two scores.
Less than three minutes later, Clarinda’s Tyler Hough recovered another Trojans’ fumble deep in Atlantic territory and appeared to be off to the team’s third TD of the half before Atlantic running back Keenan Benn brought him down with a potentially touchdown-saving tackle.
All tallied up, the Trojans managed just one first down and -20 yards of total offense in the first half and Clarinda was well on their way.
“I think we just need to be more consistent on both sides of the football, to be sound in every area of the game,” Trojans coach Gaylord Schelling said. “We just need to get better.”
Atlantic’s ability to get much of anything going on offense was hindered by a steady and aggressive defensive rush from Clarinda, who stacked the box and dared the Trojans to pass with backup quarterback Parker Hoye under center.
The break the Trojans desperately needed appeared to have come late in the second quarter when junior defensive back Zach Christianson picked off Clarinda quarterback Bryant Hummel on the Atlantic side of midfield and returned it down to the Cardinal’s 14-yard-line.
But any hope of cutting into Clarinda’s lead before the halftime break spoiled as the Trojans’ line buckled under the pass rush and the offense moved backwards.
In the second half, a more cohesive defensive effort kept the Trojans in the game but turnovers on offense kept destroying any chance to seize momentum.
Atlantic finally got on the board with 1:03 to play in the fourth quarter as senior Jacey Hoegh stepped in the line of a quarterback option pitch from Hummel and dashed in five yards for a TD.
For the Trojans, it was important to get something on a night where everything seemed to go wrong initially.
“We battled until the end and played with heart, sometimes that’s all you can do,” Schelling said. “The second half, we did a little bit better, but still not where we need to be.”
Perhaps bigger than losing this one particular game is moving on without Hartwig, their leader and General on offense. Considered to be one of the top returning QBs in the area, Hartwig will now have to watch from the sidelines for the time being.
“It’s just one of those unfortunate things in football,” Schelling said. “Nobody loves the game more than that young man, so my heart hurts for him.”
The loss drops Atlantic to 0-1 and the Trojans will close out their two-game non-district schedule next Friday at Denison.
Atlantic committed eight total fumbles on the night and quickly fell into a deepening hole that peaked at 19-0 with just under five minutes to play in the second quarter.
Adding injury to insult, the Trojans have likely lost their quarterback Jacob Hartwig indefinitely as Hartwig, a three-year starter, went down during the team’s opening drive of the first quarter with a reported broken collarbone.
“It’s a game of breaks,” Clarinda coach Dave Carper said afterwards. “Atlantic lost their quarterback, with that turnovers are bound to happen and we were able to capitalize on them.”
Atlantic’s first four possessions of the first half resulted in a pair of fumbles and a pair of punts, the second of which was blocked and scooped up by Clarinda senior Jeff Williams with 7:53 to play in the second quarter, Williams notching his second score on the night with about a 15-yard dash into the end zone to put the Cardinals ahead by two scores.
Less than three minutes later, Clarinda’s Tyler Hough recovered another Trojans’ fumble deep in Atlantic territory and appeared to be off to the team’s third TD of the half before Atlantic running back Keenan Benn brought him down with a potentially touchdown-saving tackle.
ADVERTISEMENT |
“I think we just need to be more consistent on both sides of the football, to be sound in every area of the game,” Trojans coach Gaylord Schelling said. “We just need to get better.”
Atlantic’s ability to get much of anything going on offense was hindered by a steady and aggressive defensive rush from Clarinda, who stacked the box and dared the Trojans to pass with backup quarterback Parker Hoye under center.
The break the Trojans desperately needed appeared to have come late in the second quarter when junior defensive back Zach Christianson picked off Clarinda quarterback Bryant Hummel on the Atlantic side of midfield and returned it down to the Cardinal’s 14-yard-line.
But any hope of cutting into Clarinda’s lead before the halftime break spoiled as the Trojans’ line buckled under the pass rush and the offense moved backwards.
In the second half, a more cohesive defensive effort kept the Trojans in the game but turnovers on offense kept destroying any chance to seize momentum.
Atlantic finally got on the board with 1:03 to play in the fourth quarter as senior Jacey Hoegh stepped in the line of a quarterback option pitch from Hummel and dashed in five yards for a TD.
For the Trojans, it was important to get something on a night where everything seemed to go wrong initially.
“We battled until the end and played with heart, sometimes that’s all you can do,” Schelling said. “The second half, we did a little bit better, but still not where we need to be.”
Perhaps bigger than losing this one particular game is moving on without Hartwig, their leader and General on offense. Considered to be one of the top returning QBs in the area, Hartwig will now have to watch from the sidelines for the time being.
“It’s just one of those unfortunate things in football,” Schelling said. “Nobody loves the game more than that young man, so my heart hurts for him.”
The loss drops Atlantic to 0-1 and the Trojans will close out their two-game non-district schedule next Friday at Denison.
 |
||
| Nodaway Valley no match for Griswold |
Article Rating
Reader Comments
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of atlanticnewstelegraph.com.
Submit a Comment
We encourage your feedback and dialog, all comments will be reviewed by our Web staff before appearing on the Web site.
Please note: We provide our story commenting feature in order to solicit feedback, debate and discussion on topics of local interest. Please keep in mind that civility is a necessary component of productive conversation. All blatantly inflammatory or otherwise inappropriate comments (i.e. vulgarity, marketing, etc.) are subject to rejection and/or removal. Comments will appear if and when they are approved. Thanks for reading, and thanks for participating.
