Knights shut out Tiger Cubs in second half for win

BRAZIL – With 13.8 seconds left in the second quarter of Friday night’s high school football game between Class 4A No. 13 Northview and visiting Greencastle, the Tiger Cubs pulled off the improbable to head into the locker room with a lead.

Freshman quarterback Cole Stephens, who had very little time to make a decision due to the Northview pass rush, spun out of trouble and threw a pass in the vicinity of wide receiver Brendle Brennan.

Draped on his right by Tyler Lee and on his left by Luke Marlow, Brennan was able to hold onto the ball through the double coverage and then planted his right foot into the ground and galloped into the end zone for a 42-yard touchdown, sending the visitors in front for the first time.

Greencastle receiver Brendle Brennan takes off after a reception Friday night against Northview.

For the Banner Graphic/MORGAN MERSHON

That turned out to be the final time Greencastle got to celebrate scoring, though, as Northview’s defense locked down the Tiger Cubs’ potent passing attack in the second half, which gave way for their offense to score 26 unanswered points, leading to a 43-21 victory.

“This was big. This was against a good team after dealing with a lot of adversity this week with how hot it was and having to change our normal routine and practice schedule. I know it was different for everybody – they had to deal with it too – but I think that might’ve had something to do with how we came out in the first half,” said Northview head coach Mark Raetz. “It was a good [win].”

So, what was the difference between the two halves of defense the Knights played? Not much, both head coaches noted.

Northview blitzed a little more, Raetz said, but for the most part, it was simply about having more energy and intensity with their movements and then executing when a play needed to be made.

“We got on our guys at halftime because even when we were blitzing in the first half, our guys were coming in at three-quarter speed. We told them, ‘When we call a blitz or a stunt, cut it loose and go.’ I think that made a difference. We were able to get to the quarterback better,” said Raetz.

Whatever it was, worked.

After giving up 21 points on 237 total yards in the first two quarters, Northview pitched a shutout in the second half while surrendering just 21 yards of total offense.

Greencastle possessed the ball five times in the third and fourth quarters. The outcome of those drives? Punt, punt, interception, turnover on downs, punt.

First-year head coach Dave Stephens credited Northview for making plays in the second half to keep his team off the scoreboard. He also noted that the Knights were much stronger on the offensive and defensive lines – an area the Tiger Cubs lost multiple starters before the game due to illness and then during the game due to exhaustion and cramping from the 100-degree temperatures – during the pivotal moments of the 26-point stretch that ultimately led to a win for the hosts.

“In the second half, we were dealing with a lot of cramps. We’ve been dealing with a lot of illness this week and were down a couple of starters, which is tough at a 2A school – we have some depth, but not a ton – and what really hurt was that it hit us at one position, which was the offensive and defensive line. I wish it would’ve been like a receiver, a tight end, a defensive back to spread it out, but it really hit our O-line and D-line really hard,” said Stephens. “It all ended up being a Jimmys and Joes thing. They were doing the same thing to us in the first half. They mixed in some different man looks and cover looks, but our game plan stayed the same in the second half... Ultimately, though, with the cramps and everything else, we weren’t going to overcome that, especially against a team that’s coached by someone like coach Raetz who’s teams are always so well-coached.”

Raetz echoed the sentiments of Stephens when asked about the way his offense was able to wear down Greencastle with its ground game that went for 389 yards and five touchdowns – Lee and quarterback Kyle Cottee accounted for two apiece while freshman DeMarius McLawyer scored the first of his career – on 50 carries.

“I thought we blocked better. We’ll have to watch the film, but we did not block well in the first half. They were packing it into the box, but we still had angles. Once we got that corrected, it worked better,” Raetz said of the run game.

And while the offense was able to bookend the team’s defensive stops in the second half with touchdowns, it was the lone score – not counting the team safety that saw Greencastle snap the ball through the back of its own end zone – on that side of the ball that put the game away.

With Greencastle trailing 29-21, the Tiger Cubs were searching for their first prolonged drive of the half and elected to go for it on 4th down despite the ball resting on their own side of the field.

Stephens was, again, pressured. And for the second time, he decided to throw the ball up for grabs. Unlike in the waning seconds of the second quarter though, it was intercepted by Lee, who stepped in front of the intended receiver and then weaved his way through traffic on his way to the end zone for a 44-yard pick-six to put the game out of reach.

“I was actually really worried because we had rolled our snap backs during our previous two PATs, and so it was still just a one-score game. I was not happy about that because it should’ve been a two-score game if we would’ve made one of those snaps, but that interception was big. It broke it open and kind of broke their will,” said Raetz of Lee’s pick-six.

Northview will hit the road Friday for its second straight Western Indiana Conference game of the season when the Knights will take on Sullivan.

Nv — Cottee 32 run (Lee run), 5:53 1Q

Gc — Huff 21 pass from Stephens (Williamson kick missed), 11:49 2Q

Nv — Cottee 85 run (Whitman kick), 11:34 2Q

Gc — Moore 64 run (Williamson kick), 11:19 2Q

Nv — Team Safety, 3:10 2Q

Gc — Brennan 42 pass from Stephens (Williamson pass from Stephens), :13.8 2Q

Nv — Lee 4 run (Whitman kick missed), 4:13 3Q

Nv — Lee 1 run (Whitman run failed), 9:57 4Q

Nv — Lee 44 interception return (Whitman kick), 7:21 4Q

Nv — McLawyer 1 run (Whitman kick), 3:15 4Q

Statistics

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing — Greencastle, Moore 14-114, Adams 3-7. Northview, Cottee 20-195, Lee 22-141, McLawyer 7-39, Perry 1-14.

Passing — Greencastle, Stephens 15-29-2 169. Northview, Cottee 1-4-0 14.

Receiving — Greencastle, Huff 5-45, Monroe 3-24, Williamson 4-40, Brennan 2-55, Moore 1-5. Northview, Perry 1-14.