Morris dominates from the start in 50-10 win over Kaneland

MORRIS — It didn’t take long Friday night for Morris to establish the tone in a 50-10 Interstate Eight Conference win over Kaneland.

The Knights received the opening kickoff, but the Morris defense forced a three-and-out, taking over at its own 36. On the seventh play of the drive, Morris quarterback Brady Varner (9 of 14, 174 yards, two TDs) connected with Ethan Mumbrue (four catches, 85 yards, two TDs) for a 33-yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead after the first of Connor Ahearn’s six extra points.

Morris’ Caleb Walton intercepted a pass on the Kights’ next drive and returned it to the 9. On fourth-and-goal, Varner snuck in from a yard out for a 14-0 lead with 4:43 still to play in the first quarter. After another punt, Morris took over at its own 42. On third-and-1, Caeden Curran broke through the line for a 49-yard touchdown to put Morris (4-1, 2-0) ahead 21-0 and the rout was on. Curran finished with 140 yards and three TDs on 21 carries.

“We knew we had to pound the ball tonight,” Curran said. “This was a big game for us. An undefeated 6A team coming in here, it’s Corn Festival in town. It was big for us to come out hot the way we did.

“Our offensive line was great all night, especially the left side. Brogan Kjellesvik at tackle, Brady Hibner at guard and the wing back, Ryan Shear. I love running behind Ryan. I just follow him and cut off of his blocks. It’s also big to have both parts of the offense working. The way we were throwing the ball, they couldn’t load the box and it made it easier for me to run.”

Morris forced another punt as a Hayden Hutchcraft sack put the Knights behind the sticks. Starting at the Kaneland 38, Morris got a first down at the 10 on a defensive pass interference penalty before Curran bulled in from 10 yards out for a 28-0 lead with 10:39 left in the first half.

Kaneland (4-1, 1-1) got its first break of the game later in the quarter when Jackson Little intercepted a pass and returned it to the Morris 10. The Morris defense was stout and forced a 25-yard field goal by Sam Bruno to get the Knights on the board at 28-3.

“We got off to a bad start,” Kaneland coach Mike Thorgesen said. “Morris is a very good football team with a good offense. We put ourselves in a tough spot getting behind 14 in just a few minutes.

“We have started strong all season, but we didn’t tonight. You can’t do that against a team like Morris, especially on their own field. We just have to bounce back and get better for next week [against undefeated Sycamore].”

Morris answered with a nine-play, 80-yard drive that featured a 37-yard pass from Varner to Jack Wheeler before Curran scored from five yards out. Kaneland took a bit of momentum into the locker room when the Knights scored on a 49-yard pass play from Chase Kruckenberg to Dylan Sanaugustin with 0:13 to go until halftime and Morris took a 35-10 lead at the break.

“This was our best all-around game of the year,” Morris coach Alan Thorson said. “The offense was firing on all cylinders, the defense, I loved seeing how they played, and we scored a special teams touchdown. We knew the screen was coming on their touchdown, but give credit to their guys. They made a good play.

“We challenged the guys to play to their potential this week, and I think they showed exactly what kind of potential they have. The next step is to do it consistently.”

Morris salted the game away in the third. Varner hit Mumbrue with a 39-yard touchdown midway through the period, and, as the quarter was coming to a close, Steven Wagner returned a punt 52 yards for a touchdown and the two-point conversion shut the door and invoked the running clock with :26 left in the third.

“Our offensive line did a real nice job tonight, and Caeden Curran runs angry,” Thorson said. “Brady Varner is getting better each week and becoming more comfortable with his receivers. We have a lot of weapons and we showed it tonight.”