By Kevin Cunningham
Sports Correspondent
The phrase “three yards and a cloud of dust” has been made into a famous philosophy for offenses in the game of football, regardless of what level it is being played at. On Friday night, the Whitewater Whippets (1-6) hosted the Parkview Vikings (2-5) in its final home game of the season.
The three yards and a cloud of dust held true for both teams in this game, as they went on to both average 3.9 yards per carry throughout the night, and combined for 84 carries for 331 yards on the ground. After the first quarter had concluded, the Whippets led 14-0 thanks to two rushing touchdowns.
“Those first few drives were tone setters,” Whippets head coach Tom Grosinske said. “Our O-line had great push and our back ran hard, just the way we envisioned our ground game should go this season.”
Following the touchdowns by running backs Jimmy Duval and Ernie Magana, Parkview responded with a couple scores of its own in the second quarter. Entering halftime, the two teams were tied, 14-14.
After halftime, the third quarter went scoreless and while the Whippets couldn’t find its way on the ground, the Vikings were moving the ball on offense.
“[Their] ground game got going in the second half a bit, allowing them to sustain drives,” Grosinske said. “They were able to reach the second level more than we wanted them to and some unfortunate defensive penalties allowed drives to continue (…) For our offense, we didn’t have the same push as we had gotten early in the game and our passing game was uneven, which didn’t allow us to sustain drives.”
Parkview would then score the lone touchdown, through the air, in the fourth quarter and eventually winning the game, 20-14. Despite only scoring one touchdown on the ground, the Vikings totaled 229 yards on 58 carries. The Whippets also had a touchdown called back due to a penalty in that final quarter.
Throughout the night, the Vikings were able to control the game with its offense as the Whippets tried running as well, but only garnered 102 yards on its 26 carries. The Vikings’ Hunter Marshall led the way with his 27 carries going for 127 yards.
Whippets starting quarterback Daniel Fuller finished the game completing nine of his 16 passes for 180 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. Grosinske said he believes Fuller will take the opportunities to get better once the season comes to a close.
“Any time you have a sophomore at the quarterback position, you should expect some inconsistent play via coverage identification, mechanics, etc.,” Grosinske said. “He did have a better day throwing the ball. This offseason needs to be a big one for him. He is committed to getting better and better.”
The Whippets’ final matchup of the season comes at 7 p.m. on Friday against Palmyra-Eagle High School on the road. Both teams will enter the game at 1-7 overall. The Panthers are also coming off a close loss last week, losing to McFarland, 28-27, thanks to a missed two-point conversion at the end of the game.
“We would rather be playing in a higher-seeded contest which would also most likely mean we are prepping for the playoffs, but that isn’t what is in store for us,” Grosinske said. “For our seniors, most of them will never put pads on again, so the night will be bittersweet for many. Our goal is to make their final game experience of 2015 a sweet one by pulling out a victory.”
