Exira-EHK returns from one-hour weather delay and pounds CRB into submission with big 49-12 victory
By Drew Herron - NT Sports Editor / Oct. 5, 2013
EXIRA – The Spartans’ Homecoming game Friday night delivered a lot of the unexpected.
For starters, kickoff was moved up an hour in an attempt to complete the game ahead of moving pockets of severe weather blanketing Southwest Iowa. That didn’t completely work as nearby lightning strikes at the end of the third quarter delayed the start of the fourth by more than an hour.
And once play resumed on a wet field 65 minutes later, perhaps the most surprising thing unfolded…Coon Rapids-Bayard figuratively failed to show up and Exira-EHK completely spanked them, turning a game that once teetered on a razor’s edge into a continuous clock blowout.
So, another unbeaten and Top 10 ranked team bites the dust at the hands of Exira-EHK, this time the Spartans prevailing 49-12 over No. 7-ranked CRB.
“I don’t know what happened, but when they came out of the weight room (after the delay), they were a different team,” Exira-EHK head coach Tom Petersen said. “The eyes were different. I thought before the game, the kids were lethargic and not ready to go, and it carried over into the first half. But coming out of that room, there was something different about them, they sure were ready to go in the fourth quarter.”
At the end of three, Exira-EHK seemed to have the upper hand, holding a 35-12 lead before the weather delay kicked in.
But once play resumed, CRB carried a defeated demeanor, and Exira-EHK kept the pressure on in what amounted to a lopsided final score.
The Spartans defense forced back-to-back turnovers on downs at the beginning of the fourth quarter, and both led quickly to Exira-EHK touchdowns.
In the first half, CRB was able to keep a leash on Exira-EHK, and matched their physicality. As the game wore on, the Crusaders wore down, and the Spartans’ hits kept coming.
“We always try to emphasize physicality for four quarters, and our kids were physical for the most part,” coach Petersen says. “It was a physical game, but that is how it has to be if we are to be successful.”
Spartans’ junior quarterback Drew Peppers scored touchdowns on runs of 46, 15, 24, 43 and five yards to finish with five total scores, and racked up 232 yards rushing on 24 carries.
Trey Sander carried the ball 11 times for 94 yards and two touchdowns as well for the Spartans.
Friday night’s victory is the third time this season and second time in as many weeks Exira-EHK has faced an unbeaten and ranked opponent. In all three contests, the Spartans have distinctly prevailed as they’ve now sewn up a third straight district title.
“It’s a good win for us, but it’s not going to get any easier,” coach Petersen says. “We’re going next week to 6-1 Southwest Valley, so I told the guys they can enjoy this one until midnight and then…see you on Sunday.”
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