It goes without saying that the B-B-E Jaguars football team will have their hands full on Wednesday night when Upsala/Swanville Area comes to town for the Week Eight match up. The USA Patriots are stinging from two straight defeats after starting the season 5-0 with eyes set on a district title.
Kickoff at home (B-B-E high school) is at 7 p.m., so be sure to bring your family and neighbors to come cheer on the Jaguars!
Additional scouting information will be posted on Wednesday.
**Players to watch on USA's team:
1. Senior running back Simon Bryce - Bryce is a terrific running back and can catch the ball in clutch situations. He is a very similar playmaker as our Adam Jaeger. Bryce ran in the first two touchdowns of USA's 24-14 win over K-M-S in Week Three on his way to a total of 153 rushing yards on 31 carries.
2. Junior quarterback Jorgan Kiley - Kiley passed for 153 yards against Kimball in their 31-16 loss during Week Six. Kiley scored the game's final touchdown on a one-yard run in Week Three when USA beat K-M-S in Swanville. Against K-M-S, Kiley connected with his receivers four times on 10 attempts for a total of 40 passing yards.
3. Senior running back Dalton Louden - he had 11 carries for 74 yards against Kimball; against K-M-S, Louden had 54 yards on 15 carries.
4. Junior wide receiver Alex Theischafer - he had nine catches for 98 yards against Kimball.
USA has the potential to be a great defensive team. They held K-M-S's Dylan Rudningen to just 37 yards on six carries in their 24-14 win over the Fighting Saints in Week Three. USA rushed for 243 yards that night in Swanville, and they were also aided by two fumble recoveries and one interception (Louden).
5. Senior running back Lawrence Mettler - with USA down 18-8 heading into the fourth quarter, Mettler scored on a 22-yard touchdown, which was followed by a Kiley pass to Bryce for two points to make it 18-16.
The following question has been asked dozens of times in the last couple of weeks: how did Kimball beat USA? Well, for starters, Kimball Area has a new head coach, John Benson, and he is a dreamer and a believer. He has his guys truly fired up this season, and beating USA has been one of the benefits. The monkey of four years of winless seasons has been tossed to the curb.
The Cubs scored twice in the first quarter to go up 12-0. Then ahead 12-8, Kimball truck again before halftime to lead 18-8 at the half.
USA scored a 22-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter with a two-point conversion to make it 18-16, but the Cubs answered right back with a touchdown to go up 24-16. USA's Kiley then threw an interception on their next series, and it was returned for a touchdown with 2:27 left in the game to salt the historic win that snapped a 40+ game losing streak dating back to October 2012.