BRODHEAD - Every time Brodhead-Juda running back Trenton Jordan ran the ball his eyes had to light up like lights on a Christmas tree.
Jordan rushed for 185 yards on 16 carries and scored a touchdown to help guide the Cardinals to a 45-19 non-conference win over Darlington Friday night. The senior averaged 11.5 yards per carry as the Cardinals rushed for a total of 402 yards.
"The line did great tonight," Jordan said. "I don't know what they did. They just kicked it into another gear. Last week we were kind of flat. We came in and played with a lot of emotion."
If there was any doubt how the Brodhead-Juda football team would respond after a season opening loss, they answered that. Senior quarterback David Earleywine completed 4 of 8 passes for 41 yards and four total touchdowns - two rushing and two passing.
"We knew after we lost to River Valley, we had to come in and make a statement," Earleywine said. "We had to get the 'W'. It was a big win. We didn't want to start 0-2."
Brodhead-Juda (1-1) made a big statement early on. Earleywine capped a seven play, 64-yard drive when he connected with Joey Jordan on a 10-yard TD pass. The Redbirds fumbled the ensuing kickoff and the Cardinals recovered. Brodhead-Juda senior Jesse DeLorme cashed in on the turnover with an 18-yard score with 2:51 left in the first quarte, making it 14-0. DeLorme rushed for 107 yards on 12 carries.
The Redbirds answered when Mitchell Whalen returned a kickoff 85-yards for a touchdown. Darlington then recovered a squib kick at the Cardinals' 34-yard line. Three plays later, Levi Wedig scored on a 1-yard run late in the first quarter. The two-point conversion pass failed to make it 14-13 Brodhead-Juda.
"We obviously have a lot of things to work on especially special teams wise," Brodhead-Juda coach Jim Matthys said. "You look at the whole scheme of things and I think we got better. The backs ran hard and the offensive line got off the ball. It made a difference."
The Cardinals responded with a six play, 70-yard drive culminating in Earleywine's 4-yard TD run to make it 21-13. Darlington senior quarterback Zach McArthur, facing a third-and-6, tossed a swing pass to Mitchell Langkamp, who dodged several tacklers and took it for a 55-yard TD that cut the deficit to 21-19 with 8:21 left in the second.
McArthur completed 5 of 9 passes for 83 yards. Langkamp rushed for 33 yards on six carries and had two catches for 57 yards with one touchdown.
"Obviously, we made some strides offensively," Darlington coach Scott Zywicki said. "We are capable of doing a lot of good things. Being capable and doing it are two different things."
The Cardinals answered by scoring 10 points in the final 2:39 before halftime. Earleywine capped a 10-play, 66-yard drive when he plunged in for a 1-yard TD run. Late in the second quarter, the Cardinals lined up for about a 52-yard field goal. Brodhead-Juda's Matt Trotter tossed a 16-yard pass to Brandon Bauman on the fake field goal, and Bauman was able to get out of bounds with 1.1 seconds left. Josh Dougherty then booted a 33-yard field goal that gave the Cardinals a 31-19 halftime lead.
Zywicki said the problem for the Redbirds is on defense.
"You can't give up the points we are and the chunks of yards and be successful," Zywicki said. "We have to be able to get off blocks to make a tackle. Right now we can't even fight our way out of a paper bag. Our defense was atrocious. It's my responsibility and it's disheartening."
On the Cardinals' first play of the third quarter, DeLorme rumbled 27 yards. Jordan then ripped off a 30-yard run. Jordan capitalized on the drive when he rammed in for a 1-yard TD run that made it 38-19. Earleywine put the game away when he tossed an 8-yard TD pass to Bauman.
Even though the Cardinals shut down the Redbirds in the second half, Matthys expects improvement before opening Rock Valley South Conference play at Big Foot next week.
"Defensively, we played pretty good. We had some tackling issues," Matthys said. "All we can do is work and take another step to get better."
Earleywine is looking forward to playing at Big Foot.
"Big Foot has been getting a lot of recognition in the state," he said. "They are a great team. If we come out and play like we did tonight it should be a great game."
Darlington opens up SWAL play hosting Riverdale next week.
"We have so much to do, I don't know if we can get it all done in one week," Zywicki said.
Jordan rushed for 185 yards on 16 carries and scored a touchdown to help guide the Cardinals to a 45-19 non-conference win over Darlington Friday night. The senior averaged 11.5 yards per carry as the Cardinals rushed for a total of 402 yards.
"The line did great tonight," Jordan said. "I don't know what they did. They just kicked it into another gear. Last week we were kind of flat. We came in and played with a lot of emotion."
If there was any doubt how the Brodhead-Juda football team would respond after a season opening loss, they answered that. Senior quarterback David Earleywine completed 4 of 8 passes for 41 yards and four total touchdowns - two rushing and two passing.
"We knew after we lost to River Valley, we had to come in and make a statement," Earleywine said. "We had to get the 'W'. It was a big win. We didn't want to start 0-2."
Brodhead-Juda (1-1) made a big statement early on. Earleywine capped a seven play, 64-yard drive when he connected with Joey Jordan on a 10-yard TD pass. The Redbirds fumbled the ensuing kickoff and the Cardinals recovered. Brodhead-Juda senior Jesse DeLorme cashed in on the turnover with an 18-yard score with 2:51 left in the first quarte, making it 14-0. DeLorme rushed for 107 yards on 12 carries.
The Redbirds answered when Mitchell Whalen returned a kickoff 85-yards for a touchdown. Darlington then recovered a squib kick at the Cardinals' 34-yard line. Three plays later, Levi Wedig scored on a 1-yard run late in the first quarter. The two-point conversion pass failed to make it 14-13 Brodhead-Juda.
"We obviously have a lot of things to work on especially special teams wise," Brodhead-Juda coach Jim Matthys said. "You look at the whole scheme of things and I think we got better. The backs ran hard and the offensive line got off the ball. It made a difference."
The Cardinals responded with a six play, 70-yard drive culminating in Earleywine's 4-yard TD run to make it 21-13. Darlington senior quarterback Zach McArthur, facing a third-and-6, tossed a swing pass to Mitchell Langkamp, who dodged several tacklers and took it for a 55-yard TD that cut the deficit to 21-19 with 8:21 left in the second.
McArthur completed 5 of 9 passes for 83 yards. Langkamp rushed for 33 yards on six carries and had two catches for 57 yards with one touchdown.
"Obviously, we made some strides offensively," Darlington coach Scott Zywicki said. "We are capable of doing a lot of good things. Being capable and doing it are two different things."
The Cardinals answered by scoring 10 points in the final 2:39 before halftime. Earleywine capped a 10-play, 66-yard drive when he plunged in for a 1-yard TD run. Late in the second quarter, the Cardinals lined up for about a 52-yard field goal. Brodhead-Juda's Matt Trotter tossed a 16-yard pass to Brandon Bauman on the fake field goal, and Bauman was able to get out of bounds with 1.1 seconds left. Josh Dougherty then booted a 33-yard field goal that gave the Cardinals a 31-19 halftime lead.
Zywicki said the problem for the Redbirds is on defense.
"You can't give up the points we are and the chunks of yards and be successful," Zywicki said. "We have to be able to get off blocks to make a tackle. Right now we can't even fight our way out of a paper bag. Our defense was atrocious. It's my responsibility and it's disheartening."
On the Cardinals' first play of the third quarter, DeLorme rumbled 27 yards. Jordan then ripped off a 30-yard run. Jordan capitalized on the drive when he rammed in for a 1-yard TD run that made it 38-19. Earleywine put the game away when he tossed an 8-yard TD pass to Bauman.
Even though the Cardinals shut down the Redbirds in the second half, Matthys expects improvement before opening Rock Valley South Conference play at Big Foot next week.
"Defensively, we played pretty good. We had some tackling issues," Matthys said. "All we can do is work and take another step to get better."
Earleywine is looking forward to playing at Big Foot.
"Big Foot has been getting a lot of recognition in the state," he said. "They are a great team. If we come out and play like we did tonight it should be a great game."
Darlington opens up SWAL play hosting Riverdale next week.
"We have so much to do, I don't know if we can get it all done in one week," Zywicki said.
