Tiger football falls prey to Clarke, drops to 0-3

A lack of consistency and, at times, effort helped contribute to the Red Oak Tigers falling to the Clarke Indians 34-27 in Red Oak Friday, Sept. 13.
However, Tiger Head Coach, Ryan Gelber, said the Tigers did a great job on making plays and responding, despite having a few players out of position.
“We were able to get a couple things going and we stayed true to our techniques,” Gelber said. “We had good moments, but we had times when we got stuck in a rut or made a mistake and we need to do a better job at staying on track.”
Tiger Justin McCunn led in tackles with 16, followed by Carter Maynes, eight; Austin Johnson and Andrew Shipley, five each; Jacob Athen and Bruce Lukehart, 4.5; Dawson Bond, Jake Echternach with 2.5 and Kyndal Kells, Chase Sandholm and Breckin Weston with one each.
McCunn was also the leader in receiving yards, with three catches for 77 yards and one touch down. Bond had two receptions for six yards.
In rushing yards, Echternach ran the ball seven times for 106 yards; Athen eight times for 61 yards; McCunn, twice for 57 yards; and Maynes, 32 yards on seven carries.
Overall, the Tigers had possession of the ball for about 25 minutes and had 59 total tackles, 14 first downs, 81 passing yards, three penalties, and one fumble.
“Justin McCunn is one of the most workmanlike athletes I’ve ever been around,” said Gelber. “He works extraordinarily hard and it shows when he plays. He uses great technique and is incredibly driven.”
Gelber added, Echternach has improved greatly over the summer and he is impressed with his abilities.
“He will continue to be a major factor for us and we are excited to really get him going,” said Gelber.
As for Maynes, Gelber said he is not one to shy away from contact, which is a “really fun thing to have in your system.”
The Clarke Indians had 21 first downs, 32 passing yards, one fumble, four penalties and a time of possession of roughly 33 minutes.
“Clarke has several talented athletes, which is why their offense can be so effective,” commented Gelber.

“Obviously their run game was somewhat problematic for us and it is because of their athletes as options.”
Treynor travels to Red Oak Friday, Sept. 20 for a 7 p.m. kickoff. Gelber said the Cardinals are a talented athletic team with size.
“They are well coached and can make big plays,” Gelber said. “We are going to have to have a great week of preparation and really work on our physicality and consistency.”