By Jerry Lindsey, Assistant Editor.
The Morrison Mustangs traveled to Dakota, IL, with hopes of recording a win, after opening the season against highly-ranked opponents. It did not take long to light up the scoreboard! They took their first possession and marched 85-yards to the end zone. Speedster Brady Anderson gained 31 yards on two carries, before Quarterback Carson White connected with Colin Renkes, for a 35-yard touchdown pass, to open the Mustang scoring. Joshua McDearmon kicked the extra point to give the Mustangs a 7-0 advantage.
Anderson struck again in the second quarter when he scampered 65 yards to up the score to 13-0; the McDearmon extra point failed. The ensuing on-side kick off was recovered by Morrison on the Dakota 35-yard line. Carson White immediately connected with Levi Milder on the first snap to record a 35-yard touchdown pass completion. McDearmon connected on the extra point, and the Mustangs led 20-0 with 7:53 remaining in the first half. The Mustangs continued to dominate the Indians and earned the Mustangs another possession, after denying the Indians on a fourth down effort and giving the Mustangs the ball at the 33-yard line. Two snaps later, White connected with Anderson. He scampered 73-yards for another Mustang score to up the advantage to 26-0. McDearmon changed the score to 27-0 and the Mustangs went into the halftime break with a confident 27-0 lead.
Dakota opened the second half with a time-consuming drive, that only accumulated 37 yards, before Mustang Noah Stout recovered a fumble to end the Indians’ hopes. The Mustangs needed only three plays, before they scored on a 38-yard touchdown run by Levi Milder. McDearmon successfully connected the extra point to up the score to 34-0.
The Indians found the scoreboard in the fourth quarter. They completed a 70-yard drive when Dayln Long found the end zone after a 20-yard scamper. Long was successful on the extra point and the score changed to 34-8. Excitement heightened as Morrison’s Carson White fumbled the first snap of the next possession, and the Indians had possession at their own 46-yard line. They owned the ball for four minutes and were only able to generate four positive yards, after committing costly penalties before turning the ball over on downs at their own 15-yard line. Five snaps into the next Morrison possession saw reserve Quarterback Charles Pruis complete a pass to Levi Milder. He raced the sideline to complete an 82-yard score to run the advantage to 40-8. McDearmon upped the score to 41-8 with only 3:10 remaining in the game.
The final minutes saw plenty of action. The Indians needed only three plays to score, following the Mustang touchdown. The Indians’ Brodie Goode used runs of 26 yards and 52 yards to change the score to 41-16. The Mustangs struck right back on the ensuing kickoff. Brady Anderson returned the ball 80 yards for the touchdown. McDearmon established the final tally with his extra point kick. The Mustangs ruined the Dakota Homecoming while recording their first win of the season 48-16.
Highlights of the Mustang win would include the strong defensive effort combined with Brady Anderson’s rushing yards (106) combined with his 73-yard pass completion for a score, and the 80-yard kickoff off return to end the game. Carson White recorded over 100 passing yards ending in two touchdowns.
The Mustangs return home on Friday, October 17, to face the arch-rival Fulton Steamers, in a 7:00 p.m. contest. They would love to see a large, enthusiastic crowd at Morrison High School to cheer them on.