By Adam Krebs
Editor@
www.themonroetimes.com
SOUTH WAYNE – It’s Week 1, the season is still young; keep your eye on the goal and get better every day. No cliche from the sports lexicon could console the Black Hawk-Warren Warriors after their last-gasp 28-20 home loss to Southwestern-East Dubuque on Aug. 23.
The WarCats opened the season with Zander Tierney returning the opening kickoff 88 yards for a touchdown, putting the Warriors under pressure early. BHW, the 2023 WIAA Division 7 runner-up, struggled throughout the half – and still went into the break trailing just 8-0.
“We were too cocky and underestimated them. We played better in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to get the job done,” said Warriors senior Owen Seffrood.
BHW’s first drive lasted 13 plays and 47 yards, but ended with a turnover on downs at the SWED 22. The Warriors’ next two drives resulted in -7 yards on offense and would have looked even worse if not for a botched punt. BHW finished the half with just 76 yards on offense and two turnovers on downs. SWED didn’t fare much better, limiting the WarCats to just 88 yards and one turnover on downs.
“We didn’t play well offensively in the first half,” said Warriors coach Desie Breadon. “Aside from a few big plays on defense, we played better defensively than offensively. Hats off to Southwestern, they made life difficult for us.”
At halftime, the BHW players faced a defining moment – the season was truly over for them. Piercen Mahoney got things going for BHW in the second half by running 55 yards for a score on the third play of the quarter. The Warriors failed on the 2-point conversion, a sign of things to come.
SWED didn’t miss its chance to score quickly when QB Aidan Colin ran into Brody Culbertson on a deep route for a 61-yard touchdown, cutting the difference back to eight points at 14-6.
The Warriors turned the slow progress into a competitive game and scored again on the next possession when Seffrood broke free on a counterattack from 25 yards out. He carried the ball on six of the attack’s seven plays.
Even though the 2-point conversion failed again, the Warriors realized that scoring points would be even more difficult in the final quarter. According to Breadon, key starting players were “dropping like flies” due to cramps.
“We looked like a circus because we were trying to figure out who was available and who was where,” Breadon said.
Seffrood said the problem lies “entirely with the players”.
“That’s something we can control. Coach preaches to control what we can control, and that’s what we can control — staying hydrated. I understand it’s summer and we’re in high school, but we need to know what we need to do to keep our bodies in shape,” Seffrood said. “That was a big first game and there’s no doubt we weren’t prepared.”
After a 74-yard touchdown by Tierney against a beleaguered secondary, the Warriors trailed 20-12 with 6:16 left, and Breadon wondered which of his healthy players was ready to carry the load.
“The coach asked who would be playmaker and I knew I had to step up,” Seffrood said.
He took the ensuing kickoff 80 yards into the end zone, getting away from several would-be tacklers thanks to timely evasive maneuvers, stiff arms, and sheer muscle and willpower. The score was nullified, however, by a block in the back of the play, forcing BHW to take snaps from the SWED 17-yard line. Five plays later—and more importantly, with more than two minutes on the clock—Seffrood scored on a hard-hitting 5-yard run. After a delay caused by a false start and two timeouts, Seffrood capped the comeback with a backdoor screen pass from Eli Schliem on the 2-point conversion to tie the score at 20-20 with 3:57 left in the fourth quarter.
“We got right back in the game and told them to finish it. Finish every play, finish every block, finish every tackle, finish the half and finish the game. That’s what we started doing, but then they caught us at the end,” Breadon said.
A failed onside kick and a last-minute penalty by BHW put SWED in a great position to run out the clock for BHW, but after just three plays, Podnar broke up a pass and intercepted it, giving the Warriors the ball back near the halfway line with just 2:04 left on the clock.
Could BHW pull off a thrilling comeback win? A three-and-out that included a deep, incomplete pass on third down got SWED the ball back after a punt with just 22 seconds left on the scoreboard. On the next snap, from his own 48-yard line, Colin narrowly avoided a sack but threw a fluttering pass into traffic further down the field. A miscommunication in the cluttered secondary landed Colin’s pass in the hands of Culbertson, who fought through a defensive pass interference flag (which was declined) and ran into the end zone with just 10 seconds left to score the game-winning touchdown.
“We were all cramping and the second team guys were there. Yes, they should know what they’re doing, but when we got back into the huddle, I told the second team, ‘That wasn’t your fault – that’s our fault. Why isn’t the first team there? Why aren’t the older guys doing what they’re supposed to be doing?’ One miscommunication on one play can change the whole game,” Seffrood said.
Seffrood finished the game with 129 yards rushing on 25 attempts and Mahoney rushed for 78 yards on seven carries. Mosley (5 carries, 12 yards), Schliem (7 carries, 3 yards) and Jacob Woodruff (4 carries, 0 yards) also ran the ball for the Warriors. Colin completed 6 of 10 passes for 184 yards.
The Warriors get back to work in the Heat this week, trying to figure out how to not only beat Big Foot (1-0) but also avoid beating themselves. The Chiefs picked up their first win in 18 games since Week 1 of 2022.
“The most important thing is that we learn from our mistakes and move on. The sky is not falling, the season is not over. Yes, we wanted to go undefeated, but that was just one goal (of many) throughout the season. I’ve said that from myself down to the weakest, skinniest freshman – we have to be ready to work on Monday. We have to bring our hard hats and be ready to work, because we’re not going to get it done,” Breadon said.
Seffrood added a caveat he has learned from 2023.
“Last year we lost pretty badly to Edgar in the state championships and they lost their Week 1 game – and it was close, one possession, just like ours. They went 13-1 and won a state title; and that’s what we’re focused on now,” Seffrood said.
