MARION — Elgin was more than ready for Week 2.
Starting the Northwest Central Conference football season Friday night against their cross-county rival, the Comets proved their readiness from the opening kick.
"Ridgedale wants to compete with us every single year no matter the Ridgedale team. They want to beat us, and there’s talk that goes on, so we knew we had to be the harder hitting team and come out with that momentum first," Elgin senior Quinten Harrison said.
The Comets (1-1) played a near perfect first half en route to a 27-8 home victory over Ridgedale (1-1).
"We were super focused coming into it. We had a really good talk in the complex, so coming out here we knew we had to pound them in the throat," Harrison added.
What did Elgin do in the first half?
The Elgin lead was 21-0 at halftime, and it felt double that. The Comets punished Ridgedale for 210 rushing yards and 12 first downs while controlling the ball for nearly 19 of the 24 minutes. On defense, Elgin limited the Rockets to three three-and-outs, holding them to negative-9-yards of total offense.
"We have a strict line of zero yards. I feel like we did that really well. Actually we did better. They got negative," Harrison said of their first half.
More football photos: GALLERY: Northmor at South Central Football
Rivalry game in volleyball: Elgin, Ridgedale matchup in key early season NWCC volleyball match Thursday
The Comets started the game with a 12-play, 80-yard scoring drive, then recovered a popped up kickoff. While they didn't score on the second possession, they ended up forcing Ridgedale to play defense for the first 10 minutes of the first quarter.
The tone was set.
"Weight room, that’s the thing. They laid on us up front. They were more physical than we were. It was brutal," Ridgedale coach Corey Chatman said.
Bad field position for Ridgedale helped Elgin's cause. On its third series, Elgin took advantage of a short field after a punt to drive 28 yards for a score. It was more of the same on Elgin's fifth possession of the half, needing to go just 31 yards to make it a 21-0 score at halftime.
"That’s what we were looking for," Elgin coach Zach Winslow said. "It felt like we dominated last week as far as time of possession. As long as we stayed out of our own way, that was the whole goal of tonight. Do what we do. Be efficient. Don’t make any mental errors. I thought in the first half we pretty much did that.”
How did Ridgedale respond in the second half?
The Rockets were better in the second half, but Elgin was never in jeopardy. Ridgedale managed 47 yards rushing and four receptions for 12 yards.
"It was almost like déjà vu from last year," Chatman said of their 32-0 loss to Elgin in 2023. "That first half the defense was out there a lot. The thing is they didn’t do anything new. We practiced everything they did. Up front we didn’t have it. Second half was a totally different game. Our guys focused in on the things we were talking about. We moved the ball, but it’s the same thing that happened last week (in a 14-13 win at Hilltop). We’d move it and just couldn’t finish."
Who were the game leaders?
Harrison led Elgin with 115 yards on 16 carries, scoring a 3-yard touchdown. Brennon Luikart scored on TD runs of 15 and 12 yards, running nine times for 72 yards, while Gavin Rhodes scored a touchdown from 3 yards and had 63 yards on 12 carries. Jack Van Gundy ran 10 times for 55 yards as the Comets finished with 354 yards on the ground from 10 players.
Both teams lost a turnover, and both struggled with penalties, especially in the second half. Elgin had 10 penalties for 97 yards, and Ridgedale had eight for 78 yards.
Brayden Townsend paced Ridgedale with a 1-yard TD on a quarterback sneak midway through the fourth quarter, finishing with a team-high 29 rushing yards.
rmccurdy@gannett.com
419-610-0998
X @McMotorsport
Instagram @rob_mccurdy_star
This article originally appeared on Marion Star: 'We had to pound them in the throat': Elgin dominates first half of football on Friday
Most Popular
Comments / 0