Glenwood suffers second straight one-point setback

Glenwood’s Class 3A, District 8 opener against Atlantic Friday night was a game of missed opportunities.

Twice, the Rams came up empty-handed after driving the football inside the Atlantic 2 yard line and on two more occasions Glenwood failed to put points on the scoreboard after getting to the front door of the Trojan red zone. Couple the missed scoring chances with a failed extra-point conversion on the one touchdown they did score, the Rams came away with a 7-6 loss, their second straight one-point setback.

“I’m disappointed. I thought we played well in a lot of phases of the game, but in the end, we didn’t get it done.” Glenwood coach Cory Faust said. “There’s no one person to blame - we’ve got to get better as a team and I’ve got to coach them better.”

Faust was particularly frustrated with his offense’s five fumbles (two were lost). He dismissed wet playing conditions from rains earlier in the day as a possible reason for the fumbles.

“It’s wet for both teams - you have to handle the ball,” Faust said. “That’s part of the game. On Friday nights it gets wet a lot.”

Glenwood’s first turnover came late in the first quarter after a third-down, 35-yard pass completion from quarterback Kolten Wilwerding to wide receiver Connor Weis put the Rams in scoring position. A fumble, however, one minute later on the Trojan 2 yard line, quashed the scoring threat.

After turning back the Rams, Atlantic methodically marched the football 98 yards for the Trojans’ lone touchdown of the night. Quarterback Joey Walker capped the eight-minute drive with a 1-yard scoring plunge on fourth-and-goal.

The Rams looked like they were finally going to get on the scoreboard in the final minute of the first half after a 26-yard scamper by Josh Lee put the ball on the Trojan 16 yard line. A 4-yard run by Brogan Weddum on fourth-and-4 gave Glenwood another first down on the Trojan 6. From there, however, the Rams could only get as close as the 2 yard line as the Atlantic defense came up with a goal-line stand in the final seconds of the half.

Glenwood drove the ball inside the Atlantic 30 on the first possession of the second half, but another lost fumble after a pass completion ended that threat.

The Rams were moving the ball again on their next possession, but a sack of Wilwerding on fourth-and-8 at the Atlantic 29 stymied the drive.

The Trojans looked like they might add to their lead on the ensuing possession when Walker hooked up with Tristen Benn on a 35-yard pass that moved to the ball to the Glenwood 24. The Rams defense stiffened, however, and turned back the Trojans with a help of a quarterback sack by Isiah Carter and Austin Jarosz.

The defensive stand sparked the Glenwood offense to its only touchdown drive of the night, capped by a 7-yard run by Weddum. Glenwood failed to convert the game-tying extra point when the Rams’ holder was unable to cleanly field the snap and forced to roll out and throw a pass, which was knocked down by a Trojan defender.

The Rams would play most of the fourth quarter in their own territory as Atlantic milked the clock to preserve its second win of the season.

Statistically, Glenwood finished the night with 186 yards rushing and 88 passing.

Wilwerding rushed for 55 yards on 17 carries and threw for 88, completing 5-of-12 passes. Weddum rushed for 54 yards on 12 carries. The Rams’ top receivers were Weis with 43 yards on two catches and Mavrick Decker with 35 yards on a pair of receptions.

Defensively for Glenwood, Jarosz led the way with 12 tackles. Carter Von Essen recorded 10 tackles and Jon Stavas tallied eight.

Atlantic finished the game with 145 yards rushing and 40 passing. Walker gained 96 yards running and passed for 40.

The Rams, now 1-2 on the season, hope to bounce back this Friday night at Winterset before returning to Ram Memorial Field for a Sept. 26 homecoming matchup against Creston.

“You just keep grinding. Good teams and good programs come back from this kind of stuff,” Faust said.  “It’s just about continuous improvement, which is what we are about. Nothing’s really changed. We just have to give a better effort and let the chips fall where they may.”

Atlantic       00  07  00  00-7
Glenwood   00  00  06  00-6

ATL – Joey Walker, 1 run (Robert Bodine kick).
GLN – Brogan Weddum, 7 run (conversion failed).