There Fullerton sits. In the middle of the state. In a tough Class D-1 district having moved up from Class D-2 last year, with only 20 boys out for football. Unranked, yet still undefeated after a 58-14 win over Clarkson/Leigh on Friday night.
Maybe things will change come Monday when the rankings come out. Maybe they should.
The Warriors get football that’s for sure. They put that on full display last night at home against a Patriot team that came in 3-1. They left with a reality check.
Fullerton is old-school in a fun sort of way. They like to just line up and beat you with five good linemen — two of which they call tight end on the roster and two more who are brothers, Cole and Tyler Prososki.
“It’s starts with those guys,” Fullerton running back Garrett Sonderup told me last night of his line that also includes Trevor Conway, Gage Horacek and Tyson Hellbusch. “They haven’t always been this big.” Tyler Prososki is near 6-5 and 270 pounds. And, he’s a freshman.
And, while the line includes just one senior — Horacek — the experience and the glue for the Warriors is with Sonderup, the senior tailback and Seth Wetovick, a senior fullback. They scored all of the Fullerton touchdowns on Friday night. Quarterback Will Meyer is a junior.
“We’ve had good leadership from Garrett and Gage and Seth,” Warrior coach Ryan Haughton told us on Wednesday during Prep Huddle Live. “We are into the grinder part of our schedule right now.”
Sonderup showed why he might be one of the best running back/linebacker combos in 8-man early before official kickoff time on Friday. The game got going at 6:53 and before 7:00, after a quick defensive stop, Sonderup had his first of six touchdowns on a 29-yard scamper on fourth-and-2.
He didn’t stop. They kept coming. 48 yards. A Clarkson/Leigh touchdown to cut it to 16-6, then a 74-yard kickoff return. 22-6. The second quarter. 36 yards. Two yards and a 36-6 halftime lead.
“We really talked all week about getting off to a fast start,” Haughton said. “And, we’ve been really fortunate this year to score on special teams and defense. That can take the wind out of the other teams sails.”
No let up after halftime. A 59-yard run that should have been a 3-yard loss got the clock running at 10:33 mark of the second half as Sonderup ran for 263 yards on 19 carries.
It’s about time somebody took notice.
Let’s Rewind
Strong takes over; leads North past Central
Lincoln East rolls past Kearney
No. 1 Cardinals run past Pierce
Battle Creek solidifies stance in C2
Big second quarter stands up for GACC
BDS blanks Diller-Odell in ratings showdown
Parting shot
It had to stop they said. There was no way that Sutton’s Noah Johnson could keep up the pace. Think again. At the end of a very tough week in the Sutton community, Johnson gave the Mustang fans a reason to smile with his 35-carry, 240-yard performance against defending state champion Doniphan-Trumbull. Sutton moved to 6-0 in the 34-0 win. The October 17 showdown with Hastings St. Cecilia for a likely district title looms ahead.
Saying Goodbye
Heaven gained two good ones this week in Brad Fossberg and Blake Smith. Two guys that certainly impacted my career in media.
Fossberg’s battle with cancer ended last Saturday. He was the long-time sports and news director for KRGI in Grand Island and always willing talk sports when we shared an assignment. A true mentor to those in the business and he didn’t care what medium.
Smith, the husband to Sutton girls basketball coach Monica Smith, was gone too soon, the result of a car accident on Monday morning. He was a going to be a freshman in 1998 when I arrived in Sutton, fresh out of college. Not a clue in the world what I was doing. He and his freshmen buddies were kind enough to play some really good baseball both summers I was there. By the time they left Sutton in 2002, they advanced all the way to the state finals in basketball in 2002. I remember Blake as a tough, unassuming pitcher. Quiet, but a guy you could count on. Every team needs a few Blake Smith’s, I am pretty sure of that.
