April 18, 2024

Cardinals, Bluejays square off in district play

Pregame Outlook —

By Jocelyn Sheets

Getting back to doing what they do the best offensively has been the focus for Newton High’s Cardinals this week in practices. The Cardinals use their quickness to run on the edge with running backs like senior Tristan Peters (25). Newton hosts Bondurant-Farrar Friday at H.A. Lynn Stadium in Class 3A District 3 play. (Jocelyn Sheet)

There’s no secrets going into Week 8 of the Iowa high school football season. Teams know what other teams do best. Teams know what is at stake.

Newton High’s Cardinals know what is at stake in their final home game of the regular season Friday night. The Cardinals know Bondurant-Farrar’s BlueJays come into the Class 3A District 6 contest with the leading rusher in Class 3A.

“There’s no secret who is getting the football on offense. They’ve been able to run the ball against every team they’ve played, so you know they do it well,” said Ed Ergenbright, Cardinal head coach. “The best way to limit him and their offense comes down to our offense. We hang onto the football, move the football and score.”

It is Senior Night for Newton at H.A. Lynn Stadium. Kickoff is 7:30 p.m.

Newton, Grinnell and Ballard each go into Friday night’s games tied at 3-1 in District 6 games. Newton has wins over both Grinnell and Ballard. Bondurant-Farrar is at 3-2 followed by Gilbert at 2-2, Benton at 1-4 and Nevada at 0-4. The top four teams from the district move into the 3A playoffs.

“We have to win our final two games to win the district title. The kids know what is at stake,” Ergenbright said. “I’m very proud of how our guys have responded after that loss to Pella. They’ve come back this week with good attitudes and ready to work.”

Grant Peterson, Bondurant-Farrar’s senior running back, leads 3A in rushing with 1,742 yards on 202 carries. Peterson averages 8.6 yards a carry and has scored 18 touchdowns. He also is the BlueJays’ leading receiver, 11 catches for 201 yards and two touchdowns.

As a team, Newton has 1,712 rushing yards. The Cardinals utilize five running backs along with their quarterback and top receiver to run the football. They also have 756 yards in the passing department.

“We did add some things to our offense, but we have to execute offensively. We have to take advantage of every opportunity to score points,” Ergenbright said.

Ergenbright said if the Cardinals are controlling the line of scrimmage offensively, it helps the team defensively. He said Newton’s defense has been on the field “way too long at times this season because of turnovers or lack of movement by our offense.”

Limiting yards after contact has been a big focus for the defense. Ergenbright said the Cardinal defensive players have to tackle better.

“We talked about if we were going to allow the loss to Pella define us or get back to what we do well. It appears the guys are ready to get our mojo going again,” Ergenbright said.

The Cardinals get senior Wes Streeter back to play on the offensive and defensive line after he missed three weeks of action. Senior linebacker Brett Wolf is out with a health issue this week.

Contact Sports Editor Jocelyn Sheets at (641) 792-3121 Ext. 6535 or jsheets@newtondailynews.com.