HANCOCK COUNTY — Opening night didn’t quite go as planned for three area high school football programs.
Class 4A No. 3 Mt. Vernon, 5A No. 4 New Palestine and 5A Greenfield-Central each suffered first-week setbacks this past Friday, while unranked 2A Eastern Hancock won over Alexandria on the road with a strong, balanced attack on offense.
For Week 2, three of Hancock County’s four teams are at home, including Eastern Hancock, Greenfield-Central and Mt. Vernon. The two latter will defend their home fields for a second straight week in search of wins.
Meanwhile, the Royals will look to keep the momentum going for their home opener against North Decatur.
Here’s a breakdown of each match-up entering Friday night.
Franklin (0-1) at Mt. Vernon (0-1)
Game time: 7 p.m. at Mt. Vernon
Coaches: Chris Coll, 14-27 in 5th year at Franklin, 93-70 in 16th year overall. Vince Lidy, 0-1 in 1st year at Mt. Vernon.
Last game: Franklin lost to Danville, 20-13. Mt. Vernon lost to Noblesville, 57-36.
Series info: Franklin owns a 2-0 series lead in the past 35 years and won the last meeting in 1988.
What we learned: One game doesn’t define a season, but for the Mt. Vernon Marauders, the visiting 6A Noblesville Millers revealed a key area of concern, namely rush defense.
The Millers flipped a 22-7 deficit into a 57-36 victory last week behind 43 unanswered points and a very efficient rushing attack within head coach Dave Sharpe’s system. Noblesville amassed 588 yards rushing with seven touchdowns to overwhelm the Marauders.
Mt. Vernon first-year head coach Vince Lidy and his coaching staff rolled out several defensive fronts to slow down the Millers, but there was no stopping sophomore Logan Shoffner, who finished with 354 yards and four rushing TDs.
The Millers scored on multiple long runs, including a 91-yarder by Shoffner and a 72-yarder from Brayan Gomez Sanchez, who racked up 118 yards overall.
Up front, the Millers posed tremendous size on both sides, and it led to only 81 yards rushing for the Marauders’ offense.
The passing game and defense handed the hosts a quick 15-0 lead in the game’s first 40 seconds, but after a 61-yard scoring drive capped by senior running back Keagan La Belle’s 7-yard TD run to make it 22-7, Mt. Vernon struggled to keep pace.
Quarterback Gehrig Slunaker passed for 307 yards and three TDs, but the Marauders will need to find consistency on defense to give their offense a chance to find its rhythm.
New Palestine (0-1) at Brebeuf Jesuit (1-0)
Game time: 7:30 p.m. at Wilhelm Field
Coaches: Kyle Ralph, 96-7 in 9th year at New Palestine. Matt Geske, 6-5 in 2nd year at Brebeuf Jesuit.
Last outing: New Palestine lost to Decatur Central, 31-29. Brebeuf Jesuit defeated Indianapolis Chatard, 24-19.
Series info: New Palestine holds a 2-0 advantage in the series the past 35 years and won the last meeting, 28-8, on Aug. 28, 2020.
What we learned: Though the New Palestine Dragons lost their season opener for the first time since 2012, they don’t quit.
The visiting Dragons led host Decatur Central 14-3 in the first quarter before falling behind 31-17 by halftime. However, the Dragons’ Red Rage defense kept the Hawks silent in the second half and the offense, even without starting quarterback Damon Hockett, nearly clawed back.
Grayson Thomas led the rushing attack with 140 yards and two touchdowns for the Dragons, while Hockett passed for 120 yards and an interception.
On paper, the Dragons dominated the Hawks, outgaining their opponents 470-225 despite losing 31-29.
Backup quarterback Eian Roudebush took over for Hockett in the second half due to an injury, which may sideline the signal caller for some time.
Roudebush filled in admirably, passing for 84 yards on 3 of 6 attempts for a touchdown and an interception. He rushed for 47 yards, which bodes well as Hockett added 59 yards and a score on the ground, including a 47-yarder for the Dragons’ first TD of the game.
Blaine Nunnally led the receiving corp with 67 yards and a touchdown that measured 48 yards from Roudebush in the fourth quarter.
The New Pal defense recorded two sacks, both by Michael Thacker, and a forced fumble from Madix Johnson, so it’s not time to count out the Dragons just yet.
North Decatur (0-0) at Eastern Hancock (1-0)
Game time: 7 p.m. Knarr Field
Coaches: Steve Stirn, 46-24 in 7th year at North Decatur, 133-73 in 19th year overall. Phil Morris, 1-0 in 1st year at Eastern Hancock, 24-37 in 7th year overall.
Last outing: Eastern Hancock defeated Alexandria, 37-27.
Series info: Eastern Hancock holds an 8-7 series advantage the past 35 years and won the last meeting, 38-21, on Sept. 22, 2017.
What we learned: The Eastern Hancock Royals aren’t tipping the scales, they’re balancing them.
In head coach Phil Morris’ Royals debut, his team not only won, it was nearly identical in both passing and rushing overall.
Senior quarterback Houston Swan threw for 228 yards, completing 12 of 23 passing attempts for three touchdowns and two interceptions.
Meanwhile, the backfield accounted for 229 yards and two rushing touchdowns for a harmonic blend offensively.
Cole Rainbolt, once, again proved a versatile threat, rushing for 111 yards and two TDs. The senior’s longest run spanned 24 yards. He added 53 receiving yards on five receptions.
Senior Landon O’Neal, however, broke out with 141 yards on four catches and three touchdowns.
The defense racked up 46 total tackles with junior Kain Sotelo (five tackles), senior Chase Riggs (five) and sophomore Logan Hoskins (seven) leading the way.
The Royals are finally at home after opening on the road, so they will be more than motivated to go for 2-0 by night’s end.
Phalen Academy (0-1) at Greenfield-Central (0-1)
Game time: 7:30 p.m. at Myers Field
Coaches: Damian Givens, 2-4 in 2nd year at Phalen Academy. Travis Nolting, 5-15 in 3rd year at Greenfield, 65-43 in 11th year overall.
Last outing: Phalen Academy lost to Gary West, 35-12. Greenfield lost to Plainfield, 21-14.
Series info: This is the first meeting between both programs.
What we learned: The Greenfield-Central Cougars are hungry for a win after nearly achieving the feat last week at home.
Greenfield-Central hadn’t won a season opener since 2017, and last week, the Cougars rallied back from an early deficit to tie the game 14-all prior to Plainfield’s decisive fourth-quarter score.
The Cougars could bust out this week, if they can generate the same production between the tackles.
Greenfield-Central rushed for 203 yards overall, led by junior Brayden Herrell’s 77 yards and a touchdown. Brad Allen, a junior, finished with 32 yards, senior Joey Roland had 40 and junior quarterback Brodie Mayberry added 41.
Mayberry passed for 87 yards on 7 of 13 completions while running the option, so as the signal caller gets more comfortable, even bigger numbers could be on the horizon.
Phalen Academy is competing in its first full varsity season, which gives the Cougars a mild advantage. And, with competitors such as senior Rashawn Street (53 yards receiving) and senior Spencer Johnson (11 total tackles), this could be a big night for the hosts.
