After having suffered a humiliating loss the previous week at ECS, the MUS varsity football team needed a good performance this past Friday night to keep their goal of making another playoff run in reach. Against the undefeated Wooddale Cardinals, the Owls got such a performance as they jumped out early on the overmatched Cardinals and cruised to a 38-12 home victory to even their record at 2-2.
MUS took the opening possession from midfield and began a long, grueling drive that set a tone. The Owls used 13 plays but were finally held on third down, so Ben Tacker was beckoned and got MUS on the board with a 23-yard field goal, culminating the 6:41 drive.
The Owls had several opportunities to build a larger lead, but they could not take advantage of several Cardinal mistakes.
Tacker missed two straight long field goals as the MUS offense could not find the endzone following a Wooddale turnover and a defensive stand. But the Owl special teams bailed the offense out as sophomore Logan Welch recovered a bad snap on a Wooddale punt in the endzone for a touchdown. The Tacker PAT extended the lead to 10-0.
Wooddale got on the board late in the first half as RB Johnathan Lane went in for a score from 7 yards out to finish off an impressive 18-play, 73-yard drive that amassed 5:37 following the Owl score. The two-point conversion was no good as the Cardinals cut the lead to 10-6.
But MUS retook the momentum right before the half on a 3-play drive following a Donnie Malmo interception in Wooddale territory. QB John Conrad McCrary found WR John David Lawhorn from 21-yards out for the touchdown with 1:03 remaining in the half. Tacker's extra point gave the Owls the 17-6 halftime advantage.
MUS had established themselves in the first half through the air to build their lead. McCrary was 12-21 for 206 yards while Lawhorn had 7 catches for 147 yards. But to salt away the victory, the Owls would have to find a running game, a goal they did not establish in the first half, tallying minus-1 net rushing yards.
While they did not run up and down the field in the second stanza, MUS did improve their rushing attack in the second half to work on the clock and cruise to victory.
MUS added two more scores in the third quarter to increase their lead. First, on their first second-half possession, the Owls used a 11-play drive to score as McCrary snuck in from 1-yard out, and Tacker did his job to give MUS the 24-6 lead.
And Lawhorn got his second touchdown of the game on a 5-yard reception from McCrary at the end of the quarter to add another six points to the lead.
Wooddale did not give up, however, as the Owls got some valuable time for some reserves. Following a Rob Park interception that was returned to the MUS 7-yard line, QB Antonio Harts found receiver Christopher Williams for 7 yards and six points. Harts' two-point conversion pass failed as the Cardinals cut the lead to 31-12.
But MUS added one more touchdown late to finish off the scoring. Park found back Kane Alber across the middle, and Alber scrambled into the endzone for the 25-yard touchdown. Tacker's PAT gave MUS the 38-12 victory.
The Owls put together a solid effort as they amassed 398 total yards, including 118 net rushing yards. Sophomore Whit Cox led MUS in rushing with 57 yards on 9 carries. After minus-1 yards in the first half, the 118-yard total is very impressive.
And the passing game looked solid as well as Owl quarterbacks combined for 17-28 passing for 280 yards. Lawhorn was once again the favorite receiver as he caught two touchdown passes and tallied 152 total yards on 8 catches.
The MUS defense also performed well after a shaky outing against ECS. They gave up only 124 total yards, including 4-19 passing for 51 total yards and two interceptions. The Owls will need similar efforts to be successful in upcoming games.
MUS opens conference play this Friday night with a home game against Father Ryan (1-3). Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.