By Casey Lindecrantz
sports@myrjonline.com
DARLINGTON — The Redbirds kicked off 2024 with a resounding non-conference victory over Platteville, 28-0, on Friday, Aug. 23. The win was marked by over 300 yards rushing from the host squad.
“I’m happy with the team’s performance for the first game of the season,” Darlington head coach Travis Winkers said.
While the final score showed a blowout, it took most of the game to get there.
Nine scoreless minutes to open the game gave way to the Redbirds’ first points, setup by Ross Crist recovering a forced fumble by Dante Glendenning for a short drive to the endzone. Maddox Goebel got the handoff after a few plays from five yards out to earn the touchdown. Darlington missed on the point after, giving them a slim lead, 6-0.
Both squads traded the ball, with the Hillmen consistently marching to about the redzone, only to be stifled by the Redbirds each time.
With six points to their name beyond the halfway mark of the second quarter, Darlington struck gold again, thanks to another play by Goebel. This time, however, it came from special teams. A Platteville punt put the ball in Goebel’s hands at the Redbirds’ 24-yard line. He shot towards the 50, angling towards his team’s sideline. Goebel faced no resistance in the final 10 yards to the endzone, earning Darlington six more points. The Redbirds called his number for the 2-point conversion run. A success put Darlington ahead 14-0 at 5:44, a mark that lasted going into the half.
It took another 12 minutes of regulation, but Zeke Zuberbuhler, the Redbirds’ starting quarterback, made his scoring mark on the game. He connected with Broker Buschor for a 15-yard touchdown, and Yasser Andino-Andino avenged his prior PAT miss, giving Darlington a 21-0 lead.
Calum Crist also left his mark on the game via a 55-yard rush for a touchdown with most of the fourth quarter left to play. Another successful Andino-Andino PAT served the final point of the contest.
“We have plenty to work on, but the effort from the kids was great,” Winkers said. “We are also happy with how the kids responded after self-induced mistakes. We have a lot of kids getting meaningful varsity minutes for the first time, and when they were put in precarious positions, they responded physically and mentally very well.”
The Redbirds had an undisputed leader on offense in Calum Crist. He rushed for 206 yards and one touchdown on 22 attempts. Four other rushers combined for 104 yards, though Zuberbuhler was runner-up on the day with 42 on nine attempts. He also made the most of his time throwing the ball, completing all five of his attempts for 96 yards and a touchdown.
Darlington also beat the Hillmen thoroughly in the yardage battle. The Redbirds combined for 406 yards (310 rushing, 96 passing) while Platteville managed just 223 (69 rushing, 154 passing).
“Overall, we are happy, but now we are on to next week,” Winkers said. “We have another very good opponent in Prairie du Chien this Friday. We need to be playing at a very high level if we want to come away with a win.”
