Squires Still Perfect
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Anthony [email protected]
Of Manchester's 213 total yards, 110 came on two plays, with senior Brady Miller scoring a 67-yard touchdown on the second play from scrimmage and junior Seth Brubaker scoring from 43 yards out on the Squires' third-from-last play of the night.[[In-content Ad]]"A few plays here and there, and that makes the difference in a ballgame," Whitko coach Wayne Swender said after his team ran 56 offensive plays to Manchester's 33 in a Three Rivers Conference football loss.
Manchester (4-0, 2-0 TRC) had the plays working for them, while Whitko (1-4, 0-2 TRC) was moving the ball up and down the field, but always had something negative happen.
"We moved the ball through the air, we just need to continue to improve offensively," Swender said of his team, which had 16 first downs to Manchester's three. "We're just not scoring many points.
"That's the part that's frustrating," he added. "We're moving the ball down the field, we just can't punch it in the end zone. That's frustrating."
The most frustrating part of the game for Swender's guys was Manchester's pass rush, which forced 15 sacks on senior quarterback Gabe Starkey.
"(Manchester) did a nice job of just coming after us from different places," Swender said. "Our offensive line, they just need to continue to get better and our (running) backs need to step up and not wait for the guys coming at us."
The Squires spent the majority of the game in the Wildcats backfield, sacking Starkey for a total loss of 104 yards, resulting in negative-29 rushing yards for Whitko on the night.
"We knew we had to get pressure on (Starkey), because when he gets time to sit back there and throw - he's good," Manchester coach Brandon Baker said. "He is very good. We challenged our defensive line to get skinny, to get through those gaps to shoot into the backfield."
The most consistent Squire to get in Starkey's face was junior Austin Flack, who accounted for 6.5 sacks on the night.
"He's really a linebacker, but we put him down on the line just because of his quickness and his toughness," Baker said of Flack. "He did a great job of getting through the offensive line and making big plays."
And the Squires definitely needed the pass rush against a strong-armed, accurate quarterback.
When given time, Starkey marched the ball down the field connecting on 19 of 35 attempts for 186 yards.
On the night, Starkey's most reliable option was sophomore Derek Snep, who hauled in 11 grabs for 151 yards.
"We just need to continue the quick-fire stuff - get rid of the ball quickly - and that's what we're working on," Swender said.
However, each time Whitko got deep into Manchester territory, it seemed like a high snap would occur or the Manchester defense was able to just bum-rush Starkey for a big loss.
"We couldn't do much offensively," Baker said. "The defense carried us through. They made some big, big plays on defense. Some fourth-down stops and forcing them into third-and-long situations. I'm very proud of our defense. Offensively, we've got to get better. Plain and simple."
Outside of the two long rushing touchdowns, the Manchester offense was silent, picking up just 103 yards of total offense.
"(Whitko) did a good job of getting off blocks," Baker said. "We didn't sustain blocks. That's something we definitely have to get better at. A tribute to (Whitko) for getting off blocks, but we need to maintain those blocks and hit those holes a little bit quicker."
Following Miller's touchdown with 11:37 remaining in the first quarter, Whitko eventually evened things up with a five-yard touchdown run by junior Dakota Harmon with three seconds left in the first quarter.
The Wildcats touchdown drive was made possible thanks to a Manchester roughing the kicker penalty on a punt, which kept the Whitko offense on the field.
After the two first-quarter scores, the Manchester offense would sputter out, while Whitko moved the ball down the field, until it shot itself in the foot.
"I don't think we were ready to play," Baker said. "During pregame, we were kind of ho-hum. We weren't fired up, we didn't have that enthusiasm. We didn't in practice (Thursday) either. It's something I can't understand, because this is a big rivalry. These kids know each other, they hang out with each other. It was disappointing that we didn't come out ready to go."
Manchester sophomore kicker Derek Self did connect on a 35-yard field goal in the second quarter to give his team the 9-6 lead, but Brubaker's 43-yard run with 2:07 left in the game finally ended any hopes Whitko had for a home win.
"We knew we were going to be in a dogfight, and it was there," Baker said.
The Squires are now 4-0 for the first time since 1963, but once again, their coach wasn't getting a Gatorade shower.
"We don't really sit around and set goals for how many games we want to win," Baker said. "We want to compete and be in every game so we give ourselves a chance at the end. The guys have performed above our expectations. We were 4-6 last year. If we lose every game from here-on-out, nobody will care that we were 4-0, because we end up with the same record.
"We're going for that conference title, that's what we want," he added.
The next step to that goal comes Friday at home against North Miami, while the Wildcats are at Wabash.
Of Manchester's 213 total yards, 110 came on two plays, with senior Brady Miller scoring a 67-yard touchdown on the second play from scrimmage and junior Seth Brubaker scoring from 43 yards out on the Squires' third-from-last play of the night.[[In-content Ad]]"A few plays here and there, and that makes the difference in a ballgame," Whitko coach Wayne Swender said after his team ran 56 offensive plays to Manchester's 33 in a Three Rivers Conference football loss.
Manchester (4-0, 2-0 TRC) had the plays working for them, while Whitko (1-4, 0-2 TRC) was moving the ball up and down the field, but always had something negative happen.
"We moved the ball through the air, we just need to continue to improve offensively," Swender said of his team, which had 16 first downs to Manchester's three. "We're just not scoring many points.
"That's the part that's frustrating," he added. "We're moving the ball down the field, we just can't punch it in the end zone. That's frustrating."
The most frustrating part of the game for Swender's guys was Manchester's pass rush, which forced 15 sacks on senior quarterback Gabe Starkey.
"(Manchester) did a nice job of just coming after us from different places," Swender said. "Our offensive line, they just need to continue to get better and our (running) backs need to step up and not wait for the guys coming at us."
The Squires spent the majority of the game in the Wildcats backfield, sacking Starkey for a total loss of 104 yards, resulting in negative-29 rushing yards for Whitko on the night.
"We knew we had to get pressure on (Starkey), because when he gets time to sit back there and throw - he's good," Manchester coach Brandon Baker said. "He is very good. We challenged our defensive line to get skinny, to get through those gaps to shoot into the backfield."
The most consistent Squire to get in Starkey's face was junior Austin Flack, who accounted for 6.5 sacks on the night.
"He's really a linebacker, but we put him down on the line just because of his quickness and his toughness," Baker said of Flack. "He did a great job of getting through the offensive line and making big plays."
And the Squires definitely needed the pass rush against a strong-armed, accurate quarterback.
When given time, Starkey marched the ball down the field connecting on 19 of 35 attempts for 186 yards.
On the night, Starkey's most reliable option was sophomore Derek Snep, who hauled in 11 grabs for 151 yards.
"We just need to continue the quick-fire stuff - get rid of the ball quickly - and that's what we're working on," Swender said.
However, each time Whitko got deep into Manchester territory, it seemed like a high snap would occur or the Manchester defense was able to just bum-rush Starkey for a big loss.
"We couldn't do much offensively," Baker said. "The defense carried us through. They made some big, big plays on defense. Some fourth-down stops and forcing them into third-and-long situations. I'm very proud of our defense. Offensively, we've got to get better. Plain and simple."
Outside of the two long rushing touchdowns, the Manchester offense was silent, picking up just 103 yards of total offense.
"(Whitko) did a good job of getting off blocks," Baker said. "We didn't sustain blocks. That's something we definitely have to get better at. A tribute to (Whitko) for getting off blocks, but we need to maintain those blocks and hit those holes a little bit quicker."
Following Miller's touchdown with 11:37 remaining in the first quarter, Whitko eventually evened things up with a five-yard touchdown run by junior Dakota Harmon with three seconds left in the first quarter.
The Wildcats touchdown drive was made possible thanks to a Manchester roughing the kicker penalty on a punt, which kept the Whitko offense on the field.
After the two first-quarter scores, the Manchester offense would sputter out, while Whitko moved the ball down the field, until it shot itself in the foot.
"I don't think we were ready to play," Baker said. "During pregame, we were kind of ho-hum. We weren't fired up, we didn't have that enthusiasm. We didn't in practice (Thursday) either. It's something I can't understand, because this is a big rivalry. These kids know each other, they hang out with each other. It was disappointing that we didn't come out ready to go."
Manchester sophomore kicker Derek Self did connect on a 35-yard field goal in the second quarter to give his team the 9-6 lead, but Brubaker's 43-yard run with 2:07 left in the game finally ended any hopes Whitko had for a home win.
"We knew we were going to be in a dogfight, and it was there," Baker said.
The Squires are now 4-0 for the first time since 1963, but once again, their coach wasn't getting a Gatorade shower.
"We don't really sit around and set goals for how many games we want to win," Baker said. "We want to compete and be in every game so we give ourselves a chance at the end. The guys have performed above our expectations. We were 4-6 last year. If we lose every game from here-on-out, nobody will care that we were 4-0, because we end up with the same record.
"We're going for that conference title, that's what we want," he added.
The next step to that goal comes Friday at home against North Miami, while the Wildcats are at Wabash.
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