Nicollet gets defensive in 9-Man football win over Cleveland
CLEVELAND — Cleveland was controlling the football and playing physically, which was the worst-case scenario for Nicollet.
But an early goal-line stand showed that the smaller Raiders could play defense.
“That was huge,” Nicollet coach Tom Murphy said. “Cleveland is big and physical, and they really took control up front on that first drive. But to come out of that first half without giving up any points, that was big.”
Nicollet used big plays to offset Cleveland’s time of possession advantage to win 28-14 in a Southern Confederacy nine-man game Friday night at Cleveland.
Cleveland had 78 plays, including 54 rushes, while Nicollet had only 49 plays. However, Nicollet had two more yards in total offense.
“Their time of possession advantage was huge,” Murphy said. “But we made some big plays. This team isn’t as fast as last year’s team, but we still run pretty well.”
In the first quarter, Cleveland had a 14-play drive that covered 61 yards and took more than five minutes, but the Raiders held on a fourth down at the 6, setting the tone for most of the game.
“Our defense is like a family,” senior linebacker Tanner Elliott said. “We all run to the ball, and we trust each other. We don’t get that stop if we don’t trust each other.”
In the second quarter, Nicollet scored first on a 30-yard pass from receiver Evan Guffey to tight end Jay Hendrycks, and Matt Fischer’s PAT kick made it 7-0 with 4:53 left before halftime.
Before the end of the half, Nicollet added another touchdown on Tanner Elliott’s 1-yard run. The score was set up by a 49-yard pass from Dalton Elliott to Guffey.
Nicollet made it 22-0 in the third quarter on a 3-yard run by Tanner Elliott, one play after Dalton Elliott passed 20 yards to Guffey.
“The offensive line did a great job tonight,” Tanner Elliott said. “They really set the tempo.”
Cleveland’s first score came on the last play of the third quarter on a 4-yard run by Joe Green.
Nicollet answered with a 3-yard pass from Dalton Elliott to Guffey, and Cleveland ended the scoring on a 2-yard pass from Josh Plonsky to Spencer Davies.
Dalton Elliott completed 7 of 17 passes for 190 yards, and Guffey had five receptions for 174 yards.
“Dalton did a good job of keeping plays alive and making things happen,” Murphy said.
Cleveland had 176 yards on 54 rushing attempts. Plonsky rushed for 55 yards and passed for 97 yards.
Cleveland (3-1) plays Granada-Huntley-East Chain/Truman on Friday, while Nicollet (4-0) hosts Randolph.
“Our goal at every practice is to get better at something,” Tanner Elliott said. “Conditioning, blocking, tackling. After tonight, we have to work on pursuing and wrapping up.”
But an early goal-line stand showed that the smaller Raiders could play defense.
“That was huge,” Nicollet coach Tom Murphy said. “Cleveland is big and physical, and they really took control up front on that first drive. But to come out of that first half without giving up any points, that was big.”
Nicollet used big plays to offset Cleveland’s time of possession advantage to win 28-14 in a Southern Confederacy nine-man game Friday night at Cleveland.
Cleveland had 78 plays, including 54 rushes, while Nicollet had only 49 plays. However, Nicollet had two more yards in total offense.
“Their time of possession advantage was huge,” Murphy said. “But we made some big plays. This team isn’t as fast as last year’s team, but we still run pretty well.”
In the first quarter, Cleveland had a 14-play drive that covered 61 yards and took more than five minutes, but the Raiders held on a fourth down at the 6, setting the tone for most of the game.
“Our defense is like a family,” senior linebacker Tanner Elliott said. “We all run to the ball, and we trust each other. We don’t get that stop if we don’t trust each other.”
In the second quarter, Nicollet scored first on a 30-yard pass from receiver Evan Guffey to tight end Jay Hendrycks, and Matt Fischer’s PAT kick made it 7-0 with 4:53 left before halftime.
Before the end of the half, Nicollet added another touchdown on Tanner Elliott’s 1-yard run. The score was set up by a 49-yard pass from Dalton Elliott to Guffey.
Nicollet made it 22-0 in the third quarter on a 3-yard run by Tanner Elliott, one play after Dalton Elliott passed 20 yards to Guffey.
“The offensive line did a great job tonight,” Tanner Elliott said. “They really set the tempo.”
Cleveland’s first score came on the last play of the third quarter on a 4-yard run by Joe Green.
Nicollet answered with a 3-yard pass from Dalton Elliott to Guffey, and Cleveland ended the scoring on a 2-yard pass from Josh Plonsky to Spencer Davies.
Dalton Elliott completed 7 of 17 passes for 190 yards, and Guffey had five receptions for 174 yards.
“Dalton did a good job of keeping plays alive and making things happen,” Murphy said.
Cleveland had 176 yards on 54 rushing attempts. Plonsky rushed for 55 yards and passed for 97 yards.
Cleveland (3-1) plays Granada-Huntley-East Chain/Truman on Friday, while Nicollet (4-0) hosts Randolph.
“Our goal at every practice is to get better at something,” Tanner Elliott said. “Conditioning, blocking, tackling. After tonight, we have to work on pursuing and wrapping up.”
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