Cougars shut down J-Hawks in Joliet

In overwhelming fashion, the Columbus Cougars defeated the J-Hawks in Joliet on Oct. 9 and raised the seasonal salutation, “Welcome to 11-man football.”
Senior running back Kiefer McKay led through the air with 135 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Senior running back Karl Berg led on the ground with 111 rushing yards on 13 carries and two touchdowns. Junior running back EJ Daniels contributed another rushing touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
“Defensively, we were stingy for most of the night, but we got gashed on a handful of big runs,” Columbus head coach Blake Hoge said. “Kiefer and Chaz Krone led in tackles, with Kiefer tallying seven solos and two assists and Chaz with six solos and nine assists. A couple of new faces were also able to contribute tackles in Connor Solomon and Cody Wegner.”
The Cougar offense posted a unique statistic following a touchdown in the second quarter.
“Kiefer became the first person besides Tanner Osborne to complete a pass for us,” Hoge said. “On a bobbled point-after attempt, Kiefer scrambled about, finding Jack Gray in the front of the end zone for the conversion.”
Another first for the offense – this one not in the positive column – was the Cougars’ first interception of the year.
“Overall, we’ve done a tremendous job holding onto the ball – something we’ll have to continue going forward,” Hoge said.
Columbus gained 292 yards to Joliet’s 188 on 39 plays compared to Joliet’s 58. Cougar receptions totaled 135 yards to the J-Hawks’ three, while the Cougar ground game totaled 157 yards to the J-Hawks’ 185.
The Cougars are now 2-0 in conference and 4-2 overall. Next up is a home conference game against the Big Timber Sheepherders on Friday, Oct. 16.
“We played well against Joliet, but we’re still looking to take that next step,” Hoge said. “Big Timber is our next opportunity to test what sort of team we are when they come into town next Friday for Senior Night. This game has huge playoff implications. We’ll be looking for a great week of practice and for a few guys to really step it up as we near the end of the regular season.”

Columbus 42, Joliet 0
Columbus 14 15 0 13 - 42
Joliet 0 0 0 0 - 0
Col: Kiefer McKay 30 yard pass from Tanner Osborne (Osborne kick)
Col: Karl Berg 9 yard run (Osborne kick)
Col: McKay 36 yard pass from Osborne (Jack Gray pass from McKay)
Col: Karl Berg 21 yard run (Osborne kick)
Col: McKay 44 yard pass from Osborne (Osborne kick)
Col: EJ Daniels 10 yard run (Osborne kick)