Junior High Football Begins Season 2-0!
By: Carter Brabec, a freshman at Leigh High School
The 2021 Junior High Clarkson-Leigh football team consists of 21 players.
They are led by head coach Mr. Jeff Korus and the two assistant coaches Mr. Jorge Gomez and Mr. Tony Horacek.
They recently began their season by battling the Stanton Mustangs on September 7, winning 30-24 on a drive in the final minutes of the game.
“I think we played hard and made a good comeback in the second half of the Stanton game, which resulted in a solid win,” eighth-grader Kyle McMullin said.
“Going up with 15 seconds in the game was exciting,” Head Coach Korus said. “Many players contributed to this victory, and we knew it would be a tough game after last year’s thumping. Stanton had a good fullback who was tough to tackle, but once we figured out how to tackle lower, he was not a factor. The defense shut them out in the second half.”
Next, the Patriots played East Butler on September 13 on their home field. Against the Tigers, they won 42-14, starting their season 2-0!
“East Butler was a new team on our schedule this year, so preparing for them was a bit of a mystery,” Coach Korus said. “The first half was back and forth, and tackling was an issue early on, but we corrected our mistakes and again held them out of the end zone after halftime, which allowed us to build a lead.”
Coach Korus is excited about this year’s junior high squad.
“We have a lot of experience back from last year, and we adjusted our offense based on our personnel and have been working on skills that were lacking last year. Our players this year have good attitudes and excellent work ethic.”
McMullin agrees that the season is off to a bright start.
“I think if we stay focused and keep working hard, we can have a good season,” he said.
Final Scores:
Clarkson-Leigh 30
Stanton Mustang 24
Clarkson-Leigh 42
East Butler 14