BLANCHARDVILLE - New Glarus-Monticello junior Gabe Noyce didn't have a problem with the football season starting a week earlier this season.
Noyce proved Friday night that the Knights will have a dangerous combo of playmaking quarterbacks who can run the option to perfection. Noyce scored three touchdowns to propel the Knights to a 45-18 win over Pecatonica-Argyle.
"It was a big game and very important," said Noyce, who teamed with senior Lukas Kolasch and a powerful running game that gashed the Vikings for 398 total rushing yards. "We have worked very hard to get to where we are at. They (teammates) got me the opportunities and we all capitalized. We have to keep working and never be satisfied."
The Knights won the non-conference game despite committing 13 penalties for 85 yards. NG-M scored 24 points on their first four drives of the second half to put the game away.
"One of the things we talked about is how we would react when the bullets started flying," NG-M coach Jeff Eichelkraut said.
One of the big bullets came when Pecatonica-Argyle junior quarterback Jon Hendrickson tossed a pass to Dillon Conwell who flipped to Jared Johnson on a 50-yard hook and lateral TD pass right before halftime that cut the Knights' lead to 21-18.
NG-M scored 14 points off of four Vikings' turnovers (two fumbles, one interception and a turnover on downs).
"I would say that we were not in condition to play and that falls back on me," Pecatonica-Argyle coach Larry Green said. "We thought we were ready to come out and we didn't execute."
The option gave the Vikings fits in the second half. On the Knights' first drive of the second half, they capped a seven play, 67-yard drive when junior Spencer Jones scored his second touchdown of the game on a 2-yard run.
Eichelkraut is excited about being able to play two quarterbacks who can make plays.
"Gabe and Lukas are both weapons with their feet," Eichelkraut said. "We were running the sweep early and they were keying on that so we went to the option underneath. The offensive line was firing off the ball and that wore them down."
The Vikings fumbled the ensuing kickoff and the Knights cashed in. Noyce scored on a 4-yard TD run to give the Knights a 35-18 lead.
"We knew what their offense was capable of doing," Green said. "They came out in the second half and really took it to us. We had a lot of mental mistakes. We were not tackling the right guy. That is what we will work on when we go back to practice and prepare for the conference opener next week."
Early on, the game had the makings of a shoot-out. The Knights on their first drive marched 70 yards on five plays culminating in Noyce's 22-yard TD run on a sweep. The Vikings answered on their second possession when Hendrickson hooked up with Kyle Zwicker on a 40-yard TD pass about midway through the first quarter. Kolasch then scored on a 19-yard run to give the Knights a 14-6 lead with 3:11 left in the first quarter.
The Vikings were able to cash in on a nine-play, 90-yard drive late in the second quarter when Hendrick-son had a 17-yard TD run. The Vikings faced a critical fourth-and inches from their own 19-yard line and the Knights were called for encroachment to keep the scoring drive alive.
"Kudos to the seniors," Eichelkraut said. "They had a lot of players who were green on the field and they pulled it together."
Noyce proved Friday night that the Knights will have a dangerous combo of playmaking quarterbacks who can run the option to perfection. Noyce scored three touchdowns to propel the Knights to a 45-18 win over Pecatonica-Argyle.
"It was a big game and very important," said Noyce, who teamed with senior Lukas Kolasch and a powerful running game that gashed the Vikings for 398 total rushing yards. "We have worked very hard to get to where we are at. They (teammates) got me the opportunities and we all capitalized. We have to keep working and never be satisfied."
The Knights won the non-conference game despite committing 13 penalties for 85 yards. NG-M scored 24 points on their first four drives of the second half to put the game away.
"One of the things we talked about is how we would react when the bullets started flying," NG-M coach Jeff Eichelkraut said.
One of the big bullets came when Pecatonica-Argyle junior quarterback Jon Hendrickson tossed a pass to Dillon Conwell who flipped to Jared Johnson on a 50-yard hook and lateral TD pass right before halftime that cut the Knights' lead to 21-18.
NG-M scored 14 points off of four Vikings' turnovers (two fumbles, one interception and a turnover on downs).
"I would say that we were not in condition to play and that falls back on me," Pecatonica-Argyle coach Larry Green said. "We thought we were ready to come out and we didn't execute."
The option gave the Vikings fits in the second half. On the Knights' first drive of the second half, they capped a seven play, 67-yard drive when junior Spencer Jones scored his second touchdown of the game on a 2-yard run.
Eichelkraut is excited about being able to play two quarterbacks who can make plays.
"Gabe and Lukas are both weapons with their feet," Eichelkraut said. "We were running the sweep early and they were keying on that so we went to the option underneath. The offensive line was firing off the ball and that wore them down."
The Vikings fumbled the ensuing kickoff and the Knights cashed in. Noyce scored on a 4-yard TD run to give the Knights a 35-18 lead.
"We knew what their offense was capable of doing," Green said. "They came out in the second half and really took it to us. We had a lot of mental mistakes. We were not tackling the right guy. That is what we will work on when we go back to practice and prepare for the conference opener next week."
Early on, the game had the makings of a shoot-out. The Knights on their first drive marched 70 yards on five plays culminating in Noyce's 22-yard TD run on a sweep. The Vikings answered on their second possession when Hendrickson hooked up with Kyle Zwicker on a 40-yard TD pass about midway through the first quarter. Kolasch then scored on a 19-yard run to give the Knights a 14-6 lead with 3:11 left in the first quarter.
The Vikings were able to cash in on a nine-play, 90-yard drive late in the second quarter when Hendrick-son had a 17-yard TD run. The Vikings faced a critical fourth-and inches from their own 19-yard line and the Knights were called for encroachment to keep the scoring drive alive.
"Kudos to the seniors," Eichelkraut said. "They had a lot of players who were green on the field and they pulled it together."
