2007 Football: Bulldogs hope to make Wolverines blink in Friday’s key GRC showdown

"Maysville is a physical ball team," said GHS head coach Mark Cole. "They always have been and this year is no different," he added. "Both teams are going to line up and be very aggressive and very physical. The team that blinks first will give up that advantage. It will be a game won by grit, will power and determination."

The Wolverines are arguably the most-improved team in the GRC, as witnessed by the fact that they have already won more games than they did a year ago. Coach Cole sees clear reasons Maysville’s improvement.

"The first thing is age," he begins. "Last year they had only one senior on the team, so the boys have grown up some. The second is they run an offensive system. In the past, they have been all over the page and the kids had no consistency," he stated. "Coach O’Connor has brought in an offensive philosophy and the kids have learned it. They know what their identity is."

Panthers no match

Gallatin built an insurmountable 34-0 lead before Polo got on the board by way of a Charlie Boruch quarterback plunge with 2/10 of a second left in the half. Stephen Wood scored three times in the opening quarter on runs of 14, 27 and 72 yards, and Andy Ward converted twice for scores of 12 yards in length.

Derrick Teel made a couple of good catches on Gallatin’s initial touchdown drive. Kevin Chadwick also caught a pair of passes to set up touchdowns.

Two of Gallatin’s first half touchdowns were set up by Panther turnovers. The Bulldogs’s opening TD of the third quarter came by way of a Jon Brown fumble recovery and 40-yard run to the end zone.

Polo added a third quarter touchdown on a Boruch run, and Cody Drew booted a 31-yard field goal with 7.4 seconds remaining.

It was another banner night for Wood. In addition to four touchdowns that boosted his season total to 17, he rushed for a career-high 282 yards to put himself on the threshold of 1,000 for the season. He enters Friday night’s contest needing 44 yards on the ground to become Gallatin’s only 3-year, 1,000-yard rusher.

Gallatin’s offensive line dominated again in a conference matchup, and allowed GHS runners to wrack up 421 rushing yards against the Panthers, as well as Ward’s total of 63 yards through the air.

Gallatin’s kicking game showed big improvement as Corey Lee successfully added six of seven PATs.

Gallatin 48, Polo 15

Scoring Summary

Gal: Wood 14 yd. run (Lee kick).

Gal: Wood 27 yd. run (Lee kick).

Gal: Wood 72 yd. run (Lee kick).

Gal: Ward 12 yd. run (kick failed).

Gal: Ward 12 yd. run (Lee kick).

Pol: Boruch 1 yd. run (conversion failed).

Gal: Brown 40 yd. fumble return (Lee kick).

Pol: Boruch 1 yd. run (conversion failed).

Gal: Wood 61 yd. run (Lee kick).

Pol: Drew 31 yd. field goal.

GHS Offensive Leaders

Rushing: Wood 9 carries for 282 yds., 4 touchdowns; Ward 11 carries for 85 yards, 2 touchdowns; Croy 11 carries for 54 yards. Passing: Ward 5-of-8 for 63 yards, Int. Receiving: Chadwick 2 catches for 47 yards, Teel 3 catches for 16 yards.

GRC Standings — Week 5

Sept. 28 Results

Gallatin 48, Polo 15

Princeton 46, King City 6

Maysville 36, Hamilton 13

S. Harrison 35, Mid-Buchanan 6

Albany 52, Tarkio 14

Oct. 5 Schedule

Maysville at Gallatin

Hamilton at Tarkio

Princeton at Trenton

S. Harrison at King City

Polo at Albany

Missouri Class 1 Poll

Last Week’s Results

Orrick over Windsor, 50-14

Marionville over Skyline, 56-20

Gallatin over Polo, 48-15

Hayti over Charleston, 39-20

Tipton over Cole Camp, 34-0

Concordia over Santa Fe, 40-14

S. Harrison over Mid-Buchanan, 35-6

Princeton over King City, 46-16

Thayer over Cabool, 34-21

Paris over Westran, 42-21