NewsTribune Football Notebook: Fieldcrest coach Nick Meyer earns first win

Walking through the handshake line after Friday’s game, Fieldcrest coach Nick Meyer soaked in the scene following his first career coaching victory at his alma mater.

“It meant a lot,” said Meyer, who is in his second year leading the Knights. “It didn’t really sink in until after the game going through the handshake line. I looked around and saw a lot of guys I played with or guys I watched play and the guys who coach with me. It felt so great for the community.

“It was a hot game, but you wouldn’t know it. The fans were there right until the very end.”

When the Knights held on to beat Dwight 20-19, it wasn’t just a milestone win for Meyer.

It was an important win for the program as well, as it snapped a 17-game on-field losing streak for the Knights.

Fieldcrest’s last victory was a 45-14 win over El Paso-Gridley on April 9, 2021.

“We told the kids it was the culmination of two years of hard work and buying into the system that was maybe unfamiliar to them,” Meyer said. “They committed to the process.

“It’s good to get a win. It’s hard to get a win in football. For them, it shows what we’re doing can work. It was by no means a perfect game, but an ugly win is still a win, and we’ll take it. It lets the kids know, ‘Hey, we worked hard for this, we earned this.’

“It was good to finally see on the scoreboard that we came out on top. We have to keep working hard the next eight weeks. It will not be easy.”

The Knights built a 20-0 lead as Eddie Lorton scored three rushing touchdowns. Dwight got on the board with 34.9 seconds left in the third quarter and scored two more touchdowns.

The Trojans went for a two-point conversion after scoring with 1:22 left, but the Knights stopped the attempt then ran out the clock.

“We did a good job of establishing the run,” Meyer said. “It starts up front and ends up front. The defense had a really good first half. Then fatigue kind of set in.

“I think it was just not giving up. We haven’t had a lot of success in recent history, so when they’re driving three straight times, you just hope they’re not going to fold, and you hope the kids fight for each other, and they did that. It was great for the kids to see as long as they keep battling for four quarters, good things can happen. It was good for the kids to finish like that.”

Dealing with the heat

Teams across the state dealt with high temperatures during Friday’s season openers.

Several players on both teams suffered cramps during La Salle-Peru’s 34-14 win over United Township in East Moline.

Despite the weather, senior Brady Romagnoli managed to be a workhorse running back for the Cavaliers.

“Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate and eat salt,” Romagnoli said about what it takes to stay on the field during hot weather.

Romagnoli ran for 157 yards and two touchdowns in the win.

“The first half it felt like I was a little bit tired,” Romagnoli said. “Once it started cooling down, I felt better. I started running harder. I felt more loose.”

Sick of losing

Last fall, Bureau Valley won in Week 2, then lost its final seven games to finish 1-8 for the Storm’s sixth consecutive losing season.

The Storm got off to a strong start to the 2023 season with a 26-7 win over Erie-Prophetstown on Friday.

Elijah Endress ran for two touchdowns and caught a touchdown pass, while the Storm defense pitched a shutout in the second half.

“I think we’re just sick of losing,” Endress said. “It was kind of the breaking point where we’re not going to get pounded this whole season or every single year. We really wanted it more than them.”

No longer a secret

Last season, Casey Etheridge got 27 carries as he got time during Princeton’s blowout victories. He finished with 204 yards and two touchdowns.

With his limited duty last fall, Etheridge was somewhat of an unknown commodity entering this season, at least to opposing teams.

The sophomore is no longer a secret to anybody.

In the Tigers’ 40-0 win at Monmouth-Roseville on Friday, Etheridge ran for a 42-yard touchdown on Princeton’s first play from scrimmage and went on to finish with 234 yards and four TDs.

“I knew what we had, but I don’t know if a lot of other teams did,” Princeton coach Ryan Pearson said. “We knew he was going to have this kind of night. We just kept it quiet.”

First trip to the end zone

Linemen don’t often get to experience scoring a touchdown, but Amboy-LaMoille-Ohio junior lineman Caleb Shugars took the ball to the house in the Clippers’ 46-0 rout of Unity Christian in Friday’s opener.

Vincent Zembrzuski, a Clippers senior from Ohio, blocked a punt 90 seconds into the game. Shugars picked it up at the 19-yard line and took it down the sideline for Amboy’s first points of the season and his first career touchdown.

“Zembrzuski blocked it, and I saw [teammate Caleb] Yanos going for it,” Shugars said. “I just wanted to get it picked up. I was about to fall, and he picked me up – that’s what teammates do, they keep you up – and I just ran it in. It felt great. It felt absolutely amazing.”

Improved defense

Last fall, Hall gave up 35.5 points per game and allowed four teams to score 40 points or more.

With Nick Hanck serving as defensive coordinator for the second year in a row, the Red Devils hope to show improvement this season.

Hall’s defense got off to a solid start in Friday’s 20-14 loss at Orion. Last fall, the Red Devils gave up 42 points to the Chargers in a season-opening loss.

Hall only gave up 20 points or less in two games last season.

“I thought Coach Nick Hanck had a great defensive scheme going in, and the kids executed it,” Hall coach Randy Tieman said. “That’s a whole year under the same coach and running his system. The kids know it now, and they know what to do.

“We’re going to be a lot better defensively than we were last year.”

Starting strong

St. Bede earned a statement win to start the season with a 34-25 victory over Tuscola.

Tuscola, which owns the third most wins in state history, two state titles and four runner-up finishes, was ranked No. 6 in the preseason Associated Press Class 1A poll after reaching the quarterfinals in 2022.

The Bruins, who won their fourth consecutive season opener, were in the others receiving votes category.

Quarterback Max Bray shined in his debut with the Bruins after transferring from Aurora Christian. He completed 15 of 22 passes for 158 yards and a touchdowns and ran for 215 yards and three TDs on 22 carries.

Alex Ankiewicz caught a 12-yard TD pass from Bray and Halden Hueneburg ran for a 10-yard score. Evan Entrican broke up a fourth down pass late to help the Bruins seal the win.

“This is a huge win,” Entrican said.

- Shaw Media writers Kevin Hieronymus, Dan Wussow, Cody Cutter, Brandon LaChance and Jared Bell contributed to this notebook