Beloit Memorial holds off Wilmot to improve to 4-2

BELOIT — Beloit Memorial had turned up its intensity in the second half Friday night, yet it still seemed very much like a football game that would be decided by which offense had the final possession.

That all changed when the Purple Knights’ defense rose up and made a game-saving stand late in the fourth quarter, allowing the hosts to hang on for a 28-21 victory over Wilmot at Jacobson Field.

Beloit improved to 2-2 in the Southern Lakes Conference and 4-2 overall, winning four games for the first time since the 1999 season.

“Every game is a must-win for us now,” said junior running back James Ford III, who rushed 25 times for 155 yards and a touchdown. “This gets us one step closer to the playoffs. We were a little slow in the first half, but we dialed it in during the second half and the offensive line was really pushing. I love all those boys.”

While they were able to run the ball at will at times, the Knights trailed 21-14 at the half after throwing a late interception and allowing Wilmot (1-5, 0-4) to score on a 21-yard touchdown pass from Brock Kibler to Noah Canella with 8 seconds left.

“We didn’t cover that well at all and it was an easy throw,” Beloit head coach Brad Dement said. “On defense, the kids played down the first half. They weren’t doing a good job keeping our backside edge. They were crashing down too much. The linebackers weren’t filling the holes on the backside. I was angry about that at the half. They did a better job in the second half.”

Beloit’s offensive line came out like it was on a mission to start the second half. The Knights got the ball first and Owen West’s kick return to the Wilmot 47 was followed by eight straight running plays with quarterback Adyn Potter crashing over the goal line from the 1. Noah Fry booted the tying extra-point.

Sorely in need of a stop, Beloit’s defense got one as Wilmot drove to the Beloit 45 before stalling. A punt gave the Knights the ball at the 22 and they kept it on the ground again between Ford and Brannon Hatchett (10 carries, 65 yards), who had scored on a pair of short running plays in the first half. This time Hatchett had a 21-yard run and an 8-yard burst to set up Ford’s 14-yard touchdown run on the first play of the fourth quarter. Fry was perfect again to give the Knights a 28-21 lead.

The Knights’ defense forced a quick three-and-out, but Beloit committed a holding penalty on the return and then inexplicably picked up six yards in three running plays and had to give the ball right back to Wilmot.

“That irritated me because we had a chance to ice the game right there,” Dement said.

Instead, the Knights punted and Wilmot took over at its 26. On second down, Kibler took off a quarterback keeper and ended up at the bottom of a pile. Shaken up, he left the game and did not return.

“Their starting quarterback (Kibler) is a heck of a football player.” Beloit two-way tackle Jaedyn Coleman said. “He was playing quarterback and linebacker and playing really well.”

Backup quarterback Manny Sperando kept the Panthers’ hopes alive when he connected with Dillon Decker for 14 yards on fourth down-and-13 to midfield.

“The game should have been over right there,” Dement said. “They had a linemen 10 yards up field on that catch. So the defense still had to deliver.”

Wilmot reached the Beloit 31, but a rushed Sperando threw an incompletion on third-and-6 and then had his pass picked off by Cameron Doss with 2:05 left. The Knights let Ford have three straight carries to pick up a first down and kill the clock in the process.

Ford also got in on some action on defense in the secondary with the Knights beset with injuries to some key players.

“I love to play anywhere they need me,” the junior said. “We’re brothers out here. We’ll do whatever it takes to cheer each other up and help each other win.”

That seemed to be a common theme with the Knights, particularly in the second half.

“The offense, we were definitely moving the ball this game,” Coleman said, “Defensively, in the first half we were a little rocky, but we picked it up in the second half and got the job done. This was a must win after dropping our past two games. We have to keep getting it done. With the core guys we have, if we play as a team the way we did in the second half, we can get anything done.”

Dillon Larson led the Knights with eight solo tackles and 12 total tackles. Potter had five solos and eight total tackles and Mike Nora had four solos and five total tackles.

• UP NEXT: The Knights travel to Burlington this Friday.

• BOXSCORE:

BELOIT MEMORIAL 28, WILMOT 21

Wilmot……...7 14 0 0 – 21

B. Memorial..7 7 7 7 – 28

BM – Hatchett, 8, run (Fry kick)

Wil – Kibler, 19, run (Biel kick)

BM – Hatchett, 8, run (Fry kick)

Wil – Canella, 8, pass from Kibler (Biel kick)

Wil – Canella, 21, pass from Kibler (Biel kick)

BM – Potter, 1, run (Fry kick)

BM – Ford, 14, run (Fry kick)

TEAM STATS: Rushing – Wil 31-210, BM 42-239. Passing – Wil 95, BM 26. Passes – Wil 15-7-1, BM 5-2-1. Fumbles – Wil 1-0, BM 0-0.

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS: Rushing – Wil, Canella 5-95, Kibler 10-74, Morgan 9-34. BM, Ford 25-155, Hatchett 10-65, Wes 4-18. Passing – Wil, Kibler 9-5-0, 77; Sperando 6-2-1, 18. BM, Potter 5-2-1, 26. Receiving – Wil, Canella 3-32, Selchan 2-38. BM, Crawford 1-18, Olson 1-8.