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Explosive Mountie attack tough to defend for NP
ROACHDALE — North Putnam coach Sam Carnes knew that visiting Southmont had a lot of offensive weapons and that stopping the Mounties would be tough.
He was correct, as the visitors racked up seven touchdowns in recording a 49-27 win over the Cougars.
“We knew they were an option team with all the abilities to throw off of it,” he said. “It’s tough when you have to worry about playing assignment football off the option. They have some pretty fast plays.”
Southmont quarterback Hunter Chadwick made great use of the “bubble screen” early and often, throwing passes to receivers just behind the line of scrimmage and letting them run.
“We wanted numbers in the box, and we wanted them to have to beat us with the pass,” Carnes said. “We got outnumbered outside, and made an adjustment at halftime — but it was too late at that point.”
The Cougars had their first drive stop in Mountie territory on downs, and then saw the Mounties get on the scoreboard for a 7-0 lead.
Ethan Christy took the next play from scrimmage 69 yards for a score, but the Mounties answered with another TD pass and a 14-6 lead.
Southmont scored three touchdowns in the second period, to just one for the Cougars, and led 35-13 at the half.
The Cougars did not quit, though, and did not allow a third-period point while adding a four-yard run by quarterback Hayden Rudes with seven minutes left in the quarter to cut the gap to 35-20.
After forcing Southmont to punt, North Putnam drove to the Mountie 17 and looked to be primed for a score that would cut the deficit to one score.
The sure-handed Rudes went back to pass on first down, and the ball slipped out of his hands. The Mounties recovered, and the Cougars lost a great opportunity.
“That was the dagger,” Carnes agreed.
The Mounties added another score with 1:10 left, but — keyed by a 57-yard run by Christy — the Cougars added a final score by Rudes on an 8-yard run with 19.9 seconds left.
Christy finished with 216 yards on 19 carries, as the Cougars amassed 281 yards.
The Mounties had 292 yards on 41 carries, and the teams were nearly identical in total passing yards.
The Cougars fell to 0-2 with the loss, but Carnes still saw improvement from the first week to the second.
“We thought we would be able to run the ball better this week,” he said. “It was progress for us. The great part about Indiana high school football is that you don’t have to be the best team in the state until October.
“We are growing, and if the kids continue to buy in and believe we can be a great team,” he said. “We have great coaches and great kids.
Southmont 14 21 0 14 — 49
North Putnam 6 7 7 7 — 27
S —Nunemaker 20 pass from Chadwick (Rosas kick)
NP — Christy 69 run (run failed)
S — Nunemaker 25 pass from Chadwick (Rosas kick)\
S — VanCleave 1 run (Rosas kick)
NP — Rudes 4 run (Bell kick)
S — VanCleave 8 run (Rosas kick)
S — Nunemaker 10 run (Rosas kick)
NP — Rudes 4 run (Bell kick)
S — Chadwick 7 run (Rosas kick)
S — Chadwick 7 run (Rosas kick)
NP — Rudes 8 run (Bell kick)
S NP
First downs 19 15
Rushes-yards 41-292 27-281
Passing 13-13-0 8-19-0
Passing yards 153 149
Penalties-yds 7-70 4-25
Punts-avg. 2-27.5 1-29
Individual statistics
Rushing — Southmont: VanCleave 20-123, Chadwick 11-74, Nunemaker 6-50, Burks 4-45; North Putnam: Christy 19-216, Rudes 7-54, Murray 1-11.
Passing — Southmont: Chadwick 13-13-0 153; North Putnam: Rudes 8-19-0 149.
Receiving — Nunemaker 7-93, Burks 3-29, Bushong 1-15, Wininger 1-11, VanCleave 1-5; North Putnam: Binnion 2-10, Murray 1-12, Alexander 1-29, Christy 2-20, Tennis 1-9, Bell 1-69.