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AREA FOOTBALL CAPSULES: Northmen start season with win
Pius falls to Smith-Cotton
By Bill Knust
For everyone thinking that Oak Park High was going to be a football pushover this season, think again.
The Northmen showed they are still a team to be taken seriously in the Northland with a 28-18 victory against Lee’s Summit on Friday, Aug. 29.
The Northmen jumped out to a 21-0 lead behind the arm of senior quarterback Kevin McConnell, the legs of senior running backs Bubba Dotson and Nick Werst, and the power of the offensive line.
Northmen coach Keith Ross was pleased with the offensive execution in the first half, but said there are still things to improve.
“The first half we came out and did a great job,” Ross said. “We controlled the ball. In the second half we had a couple of breakdowns — special teams on one and defensively on the other. They had some speed and they scored. That tightened it up in the second half, but I was very pleased with our kids’ effort. It was great. They came out and played very hard.”
McConnell finished the night 12-of-14 passing with three touchdown passes. His 28-yard touchdown pass to Preston Swenson gave Oak Park a 28-12 lead in the fourth quarter.
“Kevin is an accurate passer,” Ross said. “If he gets time to throw he will usually hit his target. We do have to do a little bit better job pass blocking. That is one thing we do have to get better at. As the year goes on, hopefully we will get better with that.”
Oak Park’s offensive line was able to open holes for Dotson and Werst as well.
“They were staying on their blocks and doing a great job,” Ross said. “The backs also did a good job of getting yards after contact.”
McConnell fired touchdowns to Watson and receiver Trey McDermott in the first and second quarters, respectively.
The Northmen have little time to rest. Belton, a Class 5 state finalist last year, makes its trip to the District Activities Center on Friday night for a 7 p.m. kickoff.
Second quarter too much for Warriors
St. Pius X head coach Rick Byers saw a lot of good things out of his team in a 37-19 loss at Sedalia Smith-Cotton.
However, it was a bad second quarter that had him shaking his head.
Smith-Cotton running back Solomon Watkins finished with 273 yards on 15 carries, including two second-quarter touchdowns that were part of a 23-point outburst.
Byers said Watkins was clearly the best player on the field Friday night, and that it was a good lesson to his defenders on how to tackle a big-time running back.
“We played well,” Byers said. “He had a few big runs that those kind of players make. You take him out of the equation and we were right there.”
The Warriors did get two big question marks answered in terms of the running back and offensive line positions.
“We have a little ways to go, but we moved the ball up and down the field,” Byers said. “Our line was a big surprise. They did a good job because (Smith-Cotton) was a lot bigger up front and we were able to move them off the ball.
“We were pretty pleased. We answered some questions at running back that we were a little worried about. We had some kids that did some good things.”
Byers said the play of running backs junior Andre Tinoco, sophomore Anthony Zicarelli and senior Jonathan Hoban was a big plus. He also said his offensive line was able to work against a big front four for the Tigers.
“We had a couple of starters back, and the kids we plugged in did an excellent job,” Byers said. “We were able to run inside and get an excellent line surge. Against a team the size of Sedalia with a bunch of seniors coming back, I thought we did real well.”
Pius will open its home slate against Center on Friday, Sept. 5, at 7 p.m.
Sports writer Bill Knust can be reached at 389-6605 or billknust@npgco.com.
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The Northmen showed they are still a team to be taken seriously in the Northland with a 28-18 victory against Lee’s Summit on Friday, Aug. 29.
The Northmen jumped out to a 21-0 lead behind the arm of senior quarterback Kevin McConnell, the legs of senior running backs Bubba Dotson and Nick Werst, and the power of the offensive line.
Northmen coach Keith Ross was pleased with the offensive execution in the first half, but said there are still things to improve.
“The first half we came out and did a great job,” Ross said. “We controlled the ball. In the second half we had a couple of breakdowns — special teams on one and defensively on the other. They had some speed and they scored. That tightened it up in the second half, but I was very pleased with our kids’ effort. It was great. They came out and played very hard.”
McConnell finished the night 12-of-14 passing with three touchdown passes. His 28-yard touchdown pass to Preston Swenson gave Oak Park a 28-12 lead in the fourth quarter.
“Kevin is an accurate passer,” Ross said. “If he gets time to throw he will usually hit his target. We do have to do a little bit better job pass blocking. That is one thing we do have to get better at. As the year goes on, hopefully we will get better with that.”
Oak Park’s offensive line was able to open holes for Dotson and Werst as well.
“They were staying on their blocks and doing a great job,” Ross said. “The backs also did a good job of getting yards after contact.”
McConnell fired touchdowns to Watson and receiver Trey McDermott in the first and second quarters, respectively.
The Northmen have little time to rest. Belton, a Class 5 state finalist last year, makes its trip to the District Activities Center on Friday night for a 7 p.m. kickoff.
Second quarter too much for Warriors
St. Pius X head coach Rick Byers saw a lot of good things out of his team in a 37-19 loss at Sedalia Smith-Cotton.
However, it was a bad second quarter that had him shaking his head.
Smith-Cotton running back Solomon Watkins finished with 273 yards on 15 carries, including two second-quarter touchdowns that were part of a 23-point outburst.
Byers said Watkins was clearly the best player on the field Friday night, and that it was a good lesson to his defenders on how to tackle a big-time running back.
“We played well,” Byers said. “He had a few big runs that those kind of players make. You take him out of the equation and we were right there.”
The Warriors did get two big question marks answered in terms of the running back and offensive line positions.
“We have a little ways to go, but we moved the ball up and down the field,” Byers said. “Our line was a big surprise. They did a good job because (Smith-Cotton) was a lot bigger up front and we were able to move them off the ball.
“We were pretty pleased. We answered some questions at running back that we were a little worried about. We had some kids that did some good things.”
Byers said the play of running backs junior Andre Tinoco, sophomore Anthony Zicarelli and senior Jonathan Hoban was a big plus. He also said his offensive line was able to work against a big front four for the Tigers.
“We had a couple of starters back, and the kids we plugged in did an excellent job,” Byers said. “We were able to run inside and get an excellent line surge. Against a team the size of Sedalia with a bunch of seniors coming back, I thought we did real well.”
Pius will open its home slate against Center on Friday, Sept. 5, at 7 p.m.
Sports writer Bill Knust can be reached at 389-6605 or billknust@npgco.com.