Scorch

RED DEVILS SCORCH THE FREEMAN FALCONS
By Annie Brabec

    The setting sun, a cool October breeze, and cheering fans made the perfect scene for Clarkson's first round, home playoff game.  The Red Devils were ready for anything.  The playing field was full of action-packed excitement, even until the very last second.  Throughout the game, Clarkson played at the top of their game, making it exceedingly difficult for the Freeman Falcons to score.  By the end of the night, the Red Devils had burned up all of the Falcons energy in a 64-6 victory.
    The Falcons had anticipated the Red Devil offense to run the ball more than pass it, so they prepared against the run by stacking their defensive line.  Clarkson's quarterback, Eric Brabec noticed this and took advantage by calling his team to audible.  This opened up the field for Brabec to pass to Brandon Dinslage, who finished off the play by running 65 yards and scoring the first touchdown of the game for the Red Devils.  Minutes later, the Red Devil's Corbin Hamernik caught a pass by Brabec for 27 yards and ran in for another touchdown.  Brandon Dinslage added two points on the conversion.  While the Falcons held the ball on offense, the Clarkson defensive line worked their tails off to hold the line and push the Falcon offense back and into their own territory.  The Red Devils also showed the Falcons that they could run the ball when Brabec ran 29 yards and Michael Koniced ran 19 yards, both for touchdowns.  The score stood at 26-0 at the end of the first quarter.
    For the Falcons, the Red Devils' defense was impenetrable.  It seemed that no matter what plays the Falcons called, the Red Devils were there to stop them, and often for a loss on the play.  Coach Clarkson commented, "We just came out with a lot of emotion and that really got us going.  We also out-muscled them a little bit.  I was proud of our guys for that."
    The second quarter started with great anticipation by the players and fans.  The Falcon defense was unable to catch Michael Konicek as he ran 48 yards for a touchdown, and Corbin Hamernik as he received a pass for the conversion.  Once again, Michael Konicek had an edge on the Falcon defense and ran 21 yards for another touchdown.  Brandon Dinslage ran in for another conversion for the Red Devils.  By halftime the Red Devil's score was unanswered by the Falcons at 42-0.  Halftime entertainment at this first round playoff game was provided by the Clarkson Dance Team, the Red Devil Flames.
    The starting Red Devils team played only a few minutes into the second half, until Brandon Dinslage faked a run to the inside and ran the opposite side, untouched, for a 49-yard touchdown.  Afterwards, the Red Devils' second string was sent in to take over for the starters.  The second string did a fantastic job holding the Falcons to zero points in the third quarter, ending 48-0.  The Red Devil team quickly mastered their opponent.  Backup Red Devil quarterback, Brian Steffensmeier confidently passed throughout the fourth quarter.  One pass was received by Tim Prokopec for 17 yards and a touchdown.  Brian Steffensmeier threw another successful pass to Mark Vrbicky for the conversion.  The Freeman Falcons' only touchdown came easy for them when a 44-yard run and a Red Devil penalty gave the Falcons excellent scoring position.  Without hesitation, Freeman quarterback, Ryan Busboom ran 3 yards for the touchdown.  With less than two minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Red Devils' Jordan Gall ran 8 yards for the final touchdown of the game, and the conversion.  Lineman Jonathan Bos, and Eric Brabec led the Red Devils in tackles against the Falcons with eleven each.
    Congratulations Red Devil football team on your first round playoff victory!  The Red Devils' second round playoff game will be in Clarkson on October 31, at 6:00, versus Bruning-Davenport.  Please come and cheer on the Clarkson Red Devil football team for another playoff victory.


(from The Colfax County Press, 10/31/07)