Neukirch, Huntley roll by Jacobs to go 4-0
Even with getting just two days of practice to prepare for Friday's game gainst Jacobs due to a teacher's strike, Huntley took the field with something to prove. The Red Raiders pounded the football and the Golden Eagles as they went on to win big 36-0 in a Fox Valley Conference crossover, spoiling Jacobs' homecoming game.
This is the first time Huntley has been 4-0 to start a season since 2001 and the first time the Red Raiders have defeated Jacobs since Huntley switched to the Fox Valley Conference back in 2003, losing each of the first three meetings.
"(Huntley) really played well," Jacobs' coach Dean Schlueter said. "They overcame a lot this week and they outplayed us the whole game. They took it to us and you have to give them credit on how hard they played. I thought they just simply outplayed us."
The Red Raiders on both sides of the ball dominated the game in the early going. On each of its first four possessions Huntley was able to put the ball in the end zone. Senior running back Jordan Neukirch led the game with 166 yards rushing on 21 carriers. Neukirch also was responsible for 3 rushing touchdowns.
"You know they've been playing great all year and we're going to keep relying on them," Neukirch said of his offensive line. "Like I have said before they just push around people and create huge holes. Its really easy to run when you have a line like those guys."
Although Huntley put up 443 total yards offensively, it was the Red Raiders' defense that also stepped up not allowing the Golden Eagles (1-3) to score and only allowed 142-total yards of offense.
Putting pressure on Jacobs' quarterback Alec Star allowed Huntley to intercept the ball twice. The defense also recovered two fumbles and recorded a safety when Marcus Popenfoose tackled Jay Garfield in the end zone early in the fourth quarter.
"(Jacobs) was driving on us a little bit in the beginning so it just took us some time to get used to the way things were going," Nuekirch said. "This was a huge game for us beating Jacobs, our big rival since we were playing youth football. This is just a huge victory for us."