Mohawk routs New Brighton

By RON PONIEWASZ JR.

rponiewasz@ncnewsonline.com

A strong ground game is vital to succeed in the Midwestern Athletic Conference.

Through two weeks, Mohawk has displayed a sound ability to run the ball.

The Warriors rolled up 382 rushing yards and boasted two 100-yard rushers in cruising to an easy 51-14 victory over New Brighton last night.

The second half was played under the mercy rule as Mohawk built a 44-7 halftime bulge.

“(The running game) is a necessity in this conference,” Warriors coach Jason Long said. “You have to get low and you have to move the ball; you have to move your man and we’re going to need to be able to run the ball.

“All of these teams in this conference have great athletes.”

Last week, the Warriors (1-1 MAC, 1-1 overall) recorded 129 rushing yards in a 36-8 loss to Center.

The win was also vital for Mohawk to avoid a big deficit to climb out of in the conference.

“This was as early of a must-win as any team could have,” Long said. “I was real proud of how our boys played.”

Travis Schubert registered a game-best 155 yards on the ground on 15 carries with two touchdowns. He had a 55-yard touchdown run called back.

“It’s all in the line,” Schubert said. “They create the holes and I just do what I can to get through them.

“The line is doing a great job creating everything we need. It’s a big part of our offense.”

Said Long, “Travis gave a great effort. He’s a very good athlete. He’s big, strong and fast. That’s the type of effort we expect to get from him.”

Schubert got the Warriors on the board with a 27-yard scamper in the first quarter. The Lions (0-2, 0-2) appeared poised to hang with the hosts when Trey Hall dashed 68 yards on a counter for a score to knot the count at 7.

Mohawk got two more rushing touchdowns to close the opening quarter and the rout was on.

“They played very well and they beat us off the ball,” New Brighton coach Mitch Carver said. “Defensively we couldn’t stop them.

“We’re a little undersized on defense and we just didn’t execute.”

Schubert did his damage in the first half. The only action he saw in the second half was on the team’s lone punt which he booted 41 yards and he converted an extra point.

Justin Upham complemented Schubert’s effort with 122 rushing yards on just nine carries. Upham amassed 69 of his yards in the third quarter with a 38-yard scoring run before resting in the final frame.

Colin Bredl and Michael Henry each scored a touchdown and recorded an interception.

Lions quarterback Brent Hartwick had a tough night, going 2 for 15 with three interceptions and 30 yards through the air. He had a pair of critical drops when his receivers had at least two steps on the nearest defender.

“The one time we had our young guys in and that’s going to happen,” Long said of the receivers getting open deep. “The other time was a little bit of a miscommunication in the secondary.”

Said Carver, “Hartwick is learning. He didn’t have any snaps at the varsity level last year, but he’s got a strong arm.”

The Warriors’ defense had a hard time corralling New Brighton freshman running back Trey Hall. Hall rolled up 145 yards on 11 carries.

“I was happy with how physical we played, we just have to tackle better,” Long said. “He’s an outstanding football player and I don’t want to take anything away from him, but I would like to improve our tackling for sure.”

Mohawk returns to MAC action at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Riverside.

NEW BRIGHTON MOHAWK

5 First downs 16

167 Yards Rushing 388

23 Yards Lost 6

144 Net Rushing 382

15 Passes Attempted 6

2 Passes Completed 2

3 Passes Intercepted 0

30 Yards Passing 33

174 Total Yards 415

2-1 Fumbles-Lost 1-1

1-28 Punts-Average 1-41

2-10 Penalties-Yards 6-60

NEW BRIGHTON 7 0 7 0 — 14

MOHAWK 22 22 7 0 — 51

Scoring plays

MOHAWK — Travis Schubert, 27-yard run (Schubert run).

NEW BRIGHTON — Trey Hall, 68-yard run (Nate Johnson kick).

MOHAWK — Colin Bredl, 3-yard run (Evan Degaton kick).

MOHAWK — Degaton, 3-yard run (pass failed).

MOHAWK — Michael Henry, 15-yard pass from Seth Powell (Justin Upham run).

MOHAWK — Johnny Beatty, 6-yard run (run failed).

MOHAWK — Schubert, 19-yard run (Upham run).

MOHAWK — Upham, 38-yard run (Schubert kick).

NEW BRIGHTON — D.J. Pearson, 9-yard pass from Brent Hartwick (Johnson kick).