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Beloit Memorial Football Team 2-0 After Routing Madison East
Knocking off Madison East’s Purgolders — even a 42-6 dismantling — likely won’t push the needle too much toward the respect Beloit Memorial’s football team hopes to earn this fall.
East (0-2) has been in rebuild mode even longer than the Purple Knights and seems to be spiraling even deeper.
“We saw East’s first week score (a 69-0 loss to Racine St. Catherine’s), but we never want to underestimate anybody,” said two-way lineman Mike Nora, who helped the Knights control the line of scrimmage on offense and nearly enjoyed a shutout on defense. “Personally, I watched film of them looking for how I can be successful, not how many mistakes they made. I’m very happy with the way we played collectively. Our defense played amazing.”
The offense wasn’t bad, either.
The Knights’ running game, so good in their opening 30-12 win at Racine Park, was even better against the Purgolders with 293 yards on 36 tries. Junior James Ford had his second straight 100-yard game with 14 carries for 127 and two touchdowns — all in the first half. Junior Vinson Reed added 106 on just nine carries, including a 46-yard burst for the Knights’ first score.
“The goal this week was to get better than last week,” Beloit head coach Brad Dement said. “We worked on our technique, our fundamentals and the kids responded well to that. We got on (the Purgolders) early and we were later able to rest some guys and play some others. The second team got some good reps.”
Still in the first quarter, Ford scored on a 15-yard run, Reed tacked on a second touchdown with a 13-yard sprint and the Knights quickly led 21-0.
While the defense effectively stalled East’s offense, the Knights went to the air for their next score. Adyn Potter hit Dontavious Olson with a 31-yard TD pass. Potter finished the game 3-for-3 for 66 yards. Sophomore Brayten Huebbe took over at quarterback in the second half.
Ford capped Beloit’s fifth scoring drive, a sustained ball-control march, with a 2-yard dive and Fry’s PAT made it 35-0, putting a running clock into effect for the rest of the contest.
Nora again set the tone in the second half when the defensive end finished East’s first possession with an interception with about a 20-yard runback.
“Mike is very coachable,” Dement said. “If you say something to Mike he is going to fix it. They run a lot of read option and you have to stay disciplined. Mike did that very well. He had a heck of a game, on offense and defense. He’s a high-effort kid and he’s going to get better and better.”
On offense, Dement gave Ford the second half off as well as many of the rest of his starters. The Knights’ only score came after a nice return by Jatavion Crawford gave them the ball at the East 40. Fullback E’Marion Thomas bulled his way for a first down on a fourth-and-short to keep the drive alive and then broke an 11-yard touchdown run. Fry’s PAT made it 42-0.
While the Knights knew they had a difference-maker in Ford after his great sophomore year, they may have stacked their backfield with the speedy Reed and burly Thomas, a solid change-of-pace runner who had tacklers bouncing off him like Eddie Lacy.
“(Thomas) starts at defensive end,” Dement said. “He ran hard for sure. He’s not going to dazzle you with his speed, but he’s a bruiser.”
East senior quarterback Jay’Vion Hassell, a better runner than a passer, finally averted the shutout when he scored from four yards away with less than a minute in the game. It was too late and way too little.
“This was special,” Nora said. “We knew it’s been a long time since we were 2-0. We have a good group of seniors who are leaders and who were in the weight room. It was good to see that leadership in action tonight.”
• UP NEXT: The Knights will face a whole new challenge in Week 3 when they host Elkhorn for their Southern Lakes Conference opener at Jacobson Field this Friday.
