SOUTH WAYNE - Black Hawk senior running back Brody Milz had been waiting for the moment on homecoming he could celebrate.
Milz scored two touchdowns to power Black Hawk to a 56-6 rout over Highland on Saturday. With the win, Black Hawk clinched at least a share of the conference title. The Warriors can win the Six Rivers Conference outright with a win over Shullsburg in the regular season finale Friday.
"It's been one of my goals in my high school career to win a conference championship," Milz said. "I have never won a conference championship before. It feels awesome."
Black Hawk (8-0, 6-0 Six Rivers Conference) forced four turnovers - two interceptions and ran two fumbles back for touchdowns.
"Defensively, we stuck to our jobs as a team," Milz said. "We played fast and physical."
The Warriors opened the first quarter with a six-play, 55-yard drive, culminating in Milz's 3-yard touchdown run. Junior Colby Argall ran in the two-point conversion to give the Warriors an 8-0 lead. Black Hawk senior Jett Rufenacht had a 30-yard TD run on an option play. Sophomore Jaylen Rufenacht then connected with Rece Shelton on a two-point conversion pass to give the Warriors a 16-0 lead.
The Warriors gashed the Cardinals for 286 rushing yards. Sophomore Jaylen Rufenacht rushed for 77 yards on eight carries and had one touchdown. Argall rushed for 59 yards on eight carries and had one touchdown and Milz ran for 56 yards on eight carries and scored once.
"It was the first win for this senior group on homecoming," Black Hawk coach Cory Milz said. "You can add that to their legacy."
Milz then recovered a fumble and returned it for a touchdown. On the Cardinals' next offensive play, Kyle Lovelace recovered a fumble and raced 34-yards for a touchdown to extend the Warriors' lead to 28-0 with 51 seconds left in the first quarter.
Both Jaylen Rufenacht and senior Jason Treuthardt had interceptions for the Warriors who scored 21 points off the Cardinals' four turnovers. Brody Milz also posted one sack.
36-6. Black Hawk senior quarterback Michael Flanagan hooked up with Jett Rufenacht on a 54-yard TD pass to give the Warriors a 44-6 lead. Rufenacht had a 2-yard TD run midway through the third quarter and Lovelace tossed a 2-yard TD pass to Brandon Schiferl.
Flanagan was 4 of 7 passing for 95 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Jett Rufenacht had three receptions for 93 yards and one touchdown.
Black Hawk plays Shullsburg in a regular season finale on Friday. Keeping starters healthy remains a goal for Cory Milz, but he wants his team playing sharp rolling into the playoffs.
"It's a fine line," Milz said of keeping the team healthy and getting them playing time to stay sharp. "It's one of the things you wrestle with as a coach. It's not fair to those seniors to only play them one quarter. They have individual goals too."
The Warriors played the game against Highland without starting linebacker Mitchell Quinn and sophomore offensive lineman Avery Baumgartner due to injuries.
Finishing the regular season remains a goal for Brody Milz.
"It would be nice to finish the season undefeated and get the No. 1 seed," he said. "Then it's an all new season."
Milz scored two touchdowns to power Black Hawk to a 56-6 rout over Highland on Saturday. With the win, Black Hawk clinched at least a share of the conference title. The Warriors can win the Six Rivers Conference outright with a win over Shullsburg in the regular season finale Friday.
"It's been one of my goals in my high school career to win a conference championship," Milz said. "I have never won a conference championship before. It feels awesome."
Black Hawk (8-0, 6-0 Six Rivers Conference) forced four turnovers - two interceptions and ran two fumbles back for touchdowns.
"Defensively, we stuck to our jobs as a team," Milz said. "We played fast and physical."
The Warriors opened the first quarter with a six-play, 55-yard drive, culminating in Milz's 3-yard touchdown run. Junior Colby Argall ran in the two-point conversion to give the Warriors an 8-0 lead. Black Hawk senior Jett Rufenacht had a 30-yard TD run on an option play. Sophomore Jaylen Rufenacht then connected with Rece Shelton on a two-point conversion pass to give the Warriors a 16-0 lead.
The Warriors gashed the Cardinals for 286 rushing yards. Sophomore Jaylen Rufenacht rushed for 77 yards on eight carries and had one touchdown. Argall rushed for 59 yards on eight carries and had one touchdown and Milz ran for 56 yards on eight carries and scored once.
"It was the first win for this senior group on homecoming," Black Hawk coach Cory Milz said. "You can add that to their legacy."
Milz then recovered a fumble and returned it for a touchdown. On the Cardinals' next offensive play, Kyle Lovelace recovered a fumble and raced 34-yards for a touchdown to extend the Warriors' lead to 28-0 with 51 seconds left in the first quarter.
Both Jaylen Rufenacht and senior Jason Treuthardt had interceptions for the Warriors who scored 21 points off the Cardinals' four turnovers. Brody Milz also posted one sack.
36-6. Black Hawk senior quarterback Michael Flanagan hooked up with Jett Rufenacht on a 54-yard TD pass to give the Warriors a 44-6 lead. Rufenacht had a 2-yard TD run midway through the third quarter and Lovelace tossed a 2-yard TD pass to Brandon Schiferl.
Flanagan was 4 of 7 passing for 95 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Jett Rufenacht had three receptions for 93 yards and one touchdown.
Black Hawk plays Shullsburg in a regular season finale on Friday. Keeping starters healthy remains a goal for Cory Milz, but he wants his team playing sharp rolling into the playoffs.
"It's a fine line," Milz said of keeping the team healthy and getting them playing time to stay sharp. "It's one of the things you wrestle with as a coach. It's not fair to those seniors to only play them one quarter. They have individual goals too."
The Warriors played the game against Highland without starting linebacker Mitchell Quinn and sophomore offensive lineman Avery Baumgartner due to injuries.
Finishing the regular season remains a goal for Brody Milz.
"It would be nice to finish the season undefeated and get the No. 1 seed," he said. "Then it's an all new season."
