By Dan Truttschel
Sports Correspondent
Even with three of its key performers from last year’s state runner-up squad now in college, the Big Foot football team didn’t miss a beat Friday night.
And once again, it was a Southern Lakes Conference squad that felt the pain.
Big Foot scored three first-quarter touchdowns and never looked back in a dominating 38-0 non-conference win at Westosha Central.
The Chiefs, who enter the season with six straight Rock Valley Conference titles to their credit, put together a strong opening effort, coach Rodney Wedig said.
“I thought we really got after them right away on defense and got their offense frustrated,” he said. “We held them to (minus) six yards in their first two possessions and forced a turnover. The ball did not cross midfield until the second quarter.
“We were aggressive early and got them out of their game. Then we just kept attacking and played assignment football.”
Senior Tim Long gave Big Foot its first points of 2013 on a 2-yard run in the first quarter, followed by touchdown runs of 6 and 2 yards by junior Brandon Hausner and Brett Morris.
Two more scores in the second quarter put the game out of reach for the Falcons.
Long reached paydirt again, this time on a 1-yard run, followed by a 26-yard scoring strike from Morris to Chandler Hehr.
The Chiefs closed out the scoring in the fourth quarter on a 26-yard field goal by senior Ian Gallagher.
For the game, Morris completed 17 of 26 attempts for 242 yards in his first-ever varsity start at quarterback.
Not a bad debut, Wedig said.
“Brett had a great game,” he said. “They did a pretty good job of making us earn every inch in the running game. We were forced into several third and longs but were able to convert through the air.”
Wedig said he gets a sense that teams are making a strong effort to stop the read-option offense – and that was apparent Friday night.
“The buzz all year was how to build a defense to stop it,” he said. “Westosha did a pretty good job of stopping our base stuff.”
Hausner led the rushing attack with 47 yards on nine carries, followed by Morris with 38 yards on five carries and Long with 35 yards on 10 carries.
Gus Wedig also enjoyed a big night on both sides of the ball, as he caught six passes for 104 yards and also led the team in tackles with eight.
“He has worked very hard this off-season,” Rodney Wedig said. “He increased his strength and speed. He gives Brett a big target to throw to, and he has always had a nose for the ball on defense.”
Hehr added three receptions for 45 yards. Other defensive leaders for Big Foot were Daniel Pearce with five and Quin Dixon, Long and Michael Heidenreich each with four.
In the first weekly poll of the season released Tuesday by the Wisconsin Sports Network, Big Foot and Somerset are tied at the top of the Division 4 rankings. Somerset beat the Chiefs 35-33 in last year’s state championship contest.
Big challenge ahead
The Chiefs continue their two-game tour of the SLC this week Friday when they host Delavan-Darien in a 7 p.m. non-conference contest.
Delavan and East Troy made a little state history last week when the Comets out-slugged the Trojans 70-52 – the second most total points scored in state football history.
That final score certainly got Wedig’s attention as he and his coaching staff began to prepare for the matchup.
“Well, this is the first time we are facing a team averaging 70 points per game,” he said. “Their quarterback is very good, athletic, elusive and throws a nice ball.
“They have speed and athleticism that is pretty scary from a defensive standpoint. To stay with them, we need to force some turnovers and hopefully get a couple stops early to give our offense a chance.”
