Record-setting night for Cougars
Schroeder scores four TDs; freshman back nets 187 yards
Friday night, the North Harrison Cougars had a good
time with their season debut under the lights in Campbellsburg. Ten
touchdowns led to a school record in total points for a game, as the
Cougars walloped the West Washington Senators 68-12.
"We wanted
to play with good effort, and I thought we did that," Cougar head coach
Jason Mullis said. "You can’t fix effort, and I really thought our guys
played hard."
North Harrison (1-0) put out what their coach wanted
for four solid quarters, overmatching the inexperienced Senator (0-1)
football team. Senior Ty Brown anchored the stifling North Harrison
defense that yielded -12 yards of West Washington’s offense in the
first half. Brown logged 11 tackles, two for losses, and corralled
Senator quarterback Martin Chastain for a pair of sacks.
"I thought we were flying around the ball again," Mullis said of his defense.
The defense held Chastain to five of 18 passing for 19 yards as the junior was on the run most of the night.
Offensively, the 2007 Cougars put their name in the
record books by scoring an eye-popping 68 points. It was the most
points scored since the record was set with a 63-20 win on the same
field against West Washington in 1982. Sophomore Corey Isaac led the
first-quarter charge. After the opening kick-off, North Harrison
executed its longest series of the night, a 57-yard, eight-play drive
capped by a 14-yard Isaac touchdown run.
North Harrison scored
with the first play on its next three offensive plays from scrimmage.
After forcing West Washington to punt from the one-yard line, Isaac
struck again, breaking several tackles before scampering 27 yards for
his second score.
Star running back Bryan Schroeder got in on
the action the next series, taking the first play 54 yards down the
left sideline for a score. The next Cougar possession was a
mirror-image of the previous score. Schroeder and the offense ran the
same play for a touchdown on their next one-play series. Eleven
offensive plays into the game and the Cougars were up 28-0 by the end
of the first quarter.
Schroeder led the team in rushing with 207
yards on 10 carries and four trips to the end zone. He needs to average
about 200 yards per game to reach the state career rushing record.
"We
could have probably ran him a lot more, but we’ll save that for later,"
Mullis said. "Our offensive line was creating some big holes out there.
We feel like we can really run the football."
After Josh
Cheatham pounded in a two-yard score, his first of two scores, the
Cougars created their first turnover of the season on defense. Facing a
third-and-short, Michael Cundiff caused the Senators to cough it up,
and Andrew Kitchel recovered the pigskin.
The first injury scare
of the season came on the next Cougar play. Taking a run down the left
side of the field, Isaac suffered a knee injury as he was brought down
by the Senator defense. Prior to the injury, Isaac had 48 yards and two
touchdowns on four carries.
"He’s a good ball player," Mullis said. "He’s a tough kid for only being a sophomore. I just hope he’s all right."
With
Isaac out, freshman Matt Bruderle stepped into Isaac’s role on offense
and flashed the future of Cougar football. When his number was called
on his first offensive play, Bruderle ran past the defense 56 yards for
a score.
On his second play from scrimmage, the freshman
sensation sprinted 70 yards down the sideline, but when he stretched
out for the goal line, he fumbled before he got there, resulting in a
West Washington touchback.
"He’s a 175-pound freshman, and he’s
got some good speed to him," Mullis said. "He would have his first two
varsity touchdowns on his first two plays but one was taken away."
Mullis
was impressed with Bruderle, but said he teaches his team not to
stretch out for touchdowns. It was the effort of going for the score
that Mullis appreciated. Bruderle finished with an outstanding 187
yards and two scores on six carries in his varsity debut. His final
score was aided by a strong stiff-arm that drew praise from the
sideline as he scampered 54 yards to the end zone.
West
Washington scored a pair of touchdowns late in the fourth quarter, the
first on a six-yard pass from Chastain to Josh Ross. The second came on
another pass, this from Kendal Rosenbaum to Taylor Proffit from three
yards out.
Overall, Mullis was pleased to get the first game and win out of the way.
"There are a few injuries that we’re a little concerned about with Corey Isaac and Robert Grant, but we’ll be OK," he said.
Up
next for the Cougars is their first home contest and it’s a big one.
The Big Cat Classic invades Ramsey Friday night when rival Corydon
Central comes to town. Corydon Central (0-1) dropped its opener to
Class A No. 3 Perry Central 49-0.
"It’s still a rivalry game,"
Mullis said. "We’re going to go in, watch film, fix what we can, then
bring everything we have to the table. I don’t care if it is week two
or week eight, we’re going to have to step up. Last year, we came in as
heavy favorites and that game was a shoot out. We know they are going
to be ready."
Schroeder ran in the game-winning score with 12 seconds left last year, to give the Cougars a 47-43 win.
The game time has been changed to 8 p.m. due to the anticipated high temperatures.
The Corydon Democrat
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