The Coalers sure did look impressive on Saturday night
So, before we get started this week, I'd like to thank the handful of people who responded to my column last week. It was in response to who the greatest athletes were in the history of our area. There were some good ones, too.
What I noticed, though, was that there was only a couple of responses from people outside the community and I don't want them to get lost in the shuffle. Still, a list of the best athletes from Morris would be worth printing, too.
If you want to have a voice in this, it's simple. Take five minutes and e-mail me at tsmith@morrisdailyherald and tell me who you think the best male and female athletes are. Originally, I had it broken out by sports but most of you just seem to want to vote for a particular athlete instead.
I have a good sampling so far, but would like to get about 20 more to report it. Again, I'm looking for people to send me the top athletes (at least 5) in the area from Morris, Minooka, Coal City and Seneca. Obviously most of the athletes were at their peak in high school but that doesn't have to be the end of it.
There are a lot of good athletes from the area. Drop me a line and let me know what you think. Please put AREA ATHLETES in the subject header. The prizes in the sports chest are getting low, but anyone who responds will receive a small reward.
Anyway, this past Saturday I had the chance to see the Coal City football team play for the first time this season. I have to say I was impressed. It's a team which looks good running the ball, as well as passing the ball.
Going in, I figured that the conditions were going to favor the Coalers. After all, Dunlap is a predominately passing-oriented team and the field at Dzuris Athletic Complex was ... well ... with all apologies to John Cullick ... it was not in real good shape. It's no indictment on the wizard of groundskeeping or anything, but the field was a slip-slidey mess of mud and muck when the toe met the ball at kickoff at 6 p.m.
"You should have been here last night," Coal City coach Lenny Onsen told the media contingent on Saturday after the game near the inner rim of the track. "It rained so much (Friday) that it was up five rings onto the track."
For those visualizing at home, that's standing water on the field and very near the stands at CCHS.
Coal City certainly got the best of it at the onset of the game. Though running back Bobby Kroeger told me that "every time you'd step on the field, you'd sink in", which you would think would be an asset to a passing team, Dunlap was certainly behind the eight ball. The Eagles started the game by not completing a single pass in the first half, going 0-for-9 in the passing game.
On the other hand, Coal City quarterback Colt Smith told me that the Coalers didn't mind the muck much because he knew exactly where his wide receivers were going to be. It resulted in him completing 10-of-13 passes for 160 yards on the night.
"Our receivers ran good routes and on a tough field like this, the advantage was to our receivers," Smith said. "Considering everything, we were able to throw the ball like we wanted to."
When Coal City ran the ball, Kroeger was blowing through holes created by the line. The senior running back ran 18 times for 112 yards and he scored twice.
The defense was simply outstanding for the Coalers. Other than yielding a score at the start of the second half, that was it for the Eagles. Dunlap coach Bruce Cazalet found it easy to simply tip his cap to Coal City after the game.
"They (Coal City) did a great job in coverage. Their defensive backs were right there with our receivers all night," Cazalet said. "I thought our quarterback threw some good balls out there tonight, but they cover well. Coal City has good athletes and their defense is incredibly fast. They make the plays out there and they also tackle well."
Now Coal City will be set to face what is certain to be a slightly tougher task against Richmond-Burton on Saturday at 2 p.m. on the road. The Rockets are a Wing-T team who will go right at the Coalers on the defensive side of the ball.
It should be a good game and one that will be interesting to see what the locals can do if the rain stays away in the forecast like it's supposed to.
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