BOURBON - They aren't horses, but they sure are mudders.
In Triton's 41-13 second round victory over Whiting Friday, the Trojans hammered out a school-record 490 yards on the rain-soaked Whiting field. That victory put the squad in the sectional championship game, a first for Triton."There's going to be a lot of excitement around this game, with this being the first time we've ever gotten this far," Triton's sixth-year coach Rodney Younis said. "Honestly, for the coaching staff and players, we expected to be here. It wasn't the goal to just get here, we want to win it."
Before the season even started, winning a sectional championship was the Trojans' goal. And on Friday at 8 p.m. in Bourbon, they'll get that chance when the Class A, 7th-ranked South Newton Rebels come to town.
"It will definitely be a game where we need to be able to stick to the game plan," Younis said. "We need to run the ball and run the clock down. They are very dangerous on offense, so we can't get into a shootout."
South Newton enters the game with the state's top offense, averaging 47 points a game. The Rebels' spread offense is ran by quarterback Ben Welsh, who's averaging 248 passing yards a game, having thrown 32 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Most of Welsh's passes go to Brice Wiley, who's cought 50 passes for 887 yards and 14 touchdowns.
So to keep that offense off the field, Younis will look for another solid running game from seniors Reggie Davis, Troy McIntyre and Chad Ulmer, as well as sophomore Adam Creighbaum. Against Whiting, the four combined for 472 yards, led by Creighbaum's 158. Ulmer finished the contest with 148, McIntyre 98 and Davis 68.
"Our line was doing a really good job," Ulmer said of the game.
In the offense, Ulmer has been Triton's rusher up the middle, while Creighbaum and Davis receive runs to the outside. While those three are softening up the defense, McIntyre can then pick and choose his holes from the quarterback position.
"I just sell the fakes to those guys, and the line opens up with Chad Ulmer in the middle," McIntyre said.
In the 63-0 win over River Forest in the opening round, and last week's 41-13 win, the Trojans have rushed for a combined 816 yards.
"We've really been getting it going," Younis said of the rushing attack. "Against Whiting, I never thought we'd get 490 yards, but I thought we'd probably have success."
In this week's game, Triton will face a similiar offense as Whiting's, but on defense, South Newton may present some different challenges.
"They're pretty fast, strong and physical," Younis said. "We're not going to push them around like we did Whiting, but the key will be staying on our blocks."
The defense will also need to focus on Welsh, who'll have more than just Wiley to focus on.
"They have Brice Wiley and a couple of other athletes," Younis said of South Newton. "Last week, we were able to key on just one guy, and kind of contain him. This week, we're going to have to pay attention to a few guys."
And while Triton will enjoy it's first-ever sectional championship appearance, Friday won't be South Newton's first rodeo. Just last year, the Rebels reached semistate, losing to eventual Class A state champion Sheridan.
"They have a lot of experience," Younis said. "Last year, they're quarterback was a receiver, and their line has a lot of juniors. So those guys may not have played as much, but they still have a lot of players with experience."
And at least for now, the Trojans are enjoying their experience.
"It's been fun," Ulmer said of the attention surrounding the Trojans.
"When people see us up town, they mention how they saw us in the paper, or wish us luck," he added.
So while the attention's been fun, Younis doesn't want his guys to just settle for this much excitement. He wouldn't mind seeing them play for a regional title as well.
"It's going to be an atmosphere they've not played in," Younis said of Friday's home game. "The game's going to be packed, but it's exciting. It's something they've earned."
