August 23, 2017 at 4:30 p.m.
Hodags look to rebound vs. Hatchets
Hodags look to rebound vs. Hatchets
The Hodags will travel to Hatchet Field to take on Tomahawk with both teams looking for their first win of 2017.
Rhinelander enters the game off a 27-13 loss last Friday at Prescott in a game the Cardinals controlled in the second half. Prescott outgained Rhinelander 187-43 over the final 24 minutes and scored a couple of late touchdowns to put the game out of reach.
Hodag coach Chris Ferge said both sides of the football shared the blame for the team's second-half fizzle as the offensive and defensive lines tired.
"That's a total team effort in that regard," he said. "We did not make our opportunities we needed to, to stay up. We kept giving the ball back to our defense in a bad position. We needed to make plays. I thought our defense played pretty well throughout the game. We could have given up a lot more points and they stood up many times."
Ferge said he plans to expand the offensive and defensive line rotations to try to keep the team's two-way starters in the interior fresh as the game progresses.
Tomahawk, meanwhile, enters following a 24-0 loss on opening night at Shiocton, a perennial contender in the Central Wisconsin Eight Conference. Shiocton outgained Tomahawk 329-156 in the contest and held the Hatchets to eight first downs.
Ferge said Tomahawk, like Prescott, runs a Wing-T offense, but Tomahawk's version of the Wing-T is much different than the Hodags' Week 1 opponent.
"They definitely have their own brand," he said. "It's not the same thing. When you watch on film, you can see it. They'll run and throw with the quarterback a lot more than give to their different backs. From what I've seen, it's more of a two-back system where Prescott was given the ball to three or four different backs. They're trying to get to the outside with their quarterback a lot."
That quarterback, senior Easton Phalin, had a team-high 58 yards rushing on nine carries in the Week 1 loss and was 5 of 14 through the air for 35 yards and an interception. Running back Jake Ruid added another 31 yards on seven carries.
The Hatchets allowed 329 yards and gave up 16 first downs in last week's loss against Shiocton.
"They're a lot like us as far as not having great size, but I think they're strong and tough," Ferge said of Tomahawk's defense. "I think they're going to fill to the ball and we're going to have to make plays on them."
Friday night marks the first meeting between the teams since 2013. Tomahawk, a Great Northern Conference member in every other sport it offers, is part of the Marawood Conference for football. But the teams see each other during the 7-on-7 passing league in the summer and many of the players know one another from other sports, making Friday night's game a natural rivalry.
"When you live this close to a team, the kids all know each other," Ferge said. "They've grown up (playing) against each other. They've competed against each other in multiple sports. There's no secrets amongst everyone. Everyone knows everybody. It's going to come down to discipline and turnover, tackling and blocking."
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at jeremy@
rivernewsonline.com.
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