By Patrick Z McGavin- Photos by Jenn-Anne Gledhill
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MOOSEHEART— The spirit and desire of the Tri City Chargers 10U squad was overflowing and abundant, pushed higher by the pageantry and natural enthusiasm surrounding Homecoming.
The team put their hearts on the line.
“We played hard, and the guys tried,” wingback Teddy Nanak said. “We just need to get better with our blocking and make the holes that give the running backs a chance.”
Those hopes and dreams were dashed by a devastating early turnover that foreshadowed the larger team struggles to establish a consistent offensive rhythm.
The early turnover and the offensive struggles yielded a 14-0 loss against the Lyons Football Club Tigers in Bill George Youth Football League action at Mooseheart on Sunday, October 5.
“We have a very young team, they’re all 10-years old, but we have seven or eight kids who are in their first year of playing tackle,” coach Joshua Feagans said. “We’ve struggled with consistency this year.
“We’ve had some really good games where we blocked and tackled well. We’ve had other games where we just were very inconsistent. I think today was a good example of that.”
The Chargers have worked hard to develop and find their offensive identity with the power running game of Brayden Pinela and the slashing style of Duke Schreiber and Nanak.
The team found itself in an immediate hole as the LTC ripped off some chunk yards on its opening possession. The Tigers went up 6-0 following a 35-yard touchdown run.
“We had the original play originally pretty well contained, but then he went the other way, and we lost our backside containment and they scored,” Feagans said.
Slow starts are not insurmountable.
The early difficulties slowing the Tigers’ attack were magnified by an interception thrown by the Chargers on the second play from scrimmage.
The Tigers returned it 29 yards for their second touchdown less than six minutes into the game.
That was the downside. The bright light was the Chargers rallied and showed toughness and spirit the balance of the game, denying the Tigers any additional points.
The defense conceded a bit. Linebacker Asher Anderson had a big second quarter fumble recovery, and defensive end Logan Leonhardt was a one-man wrecking crew.
He finished with five tackles, two for losses.
The defense kept the team’s hopes alive, with the belief the offense might finally get untracked and find a way to the end zone. It never happened.
The team shook off the daze and confusion from the slow start, and asserted their own will and order against the Tigers. The early turnover presaged larger problems of sustaining drives or the inability of creating explosive plays.
The team managed just 20 yards on 11 plays from scrimmage across its first four series. The Chargers could not create a first down. The second and third possessions ended on downs.
“We need to improve in all phases, with our blocking and tackling, and staying hard with our blocks to get the hole where we need to run at,” quarterback Nicholas Therault said.
If the offense never entirely got on the right footing, the defense was up to the challenge.
Aside from the opening series, the players performed admirably, often tasked with their backs to the wall with the inability of the offense to move the ball.
Therault stepped up on defense with a fourth down sack that breathed some life and energy into the Chargers during the second half.
“I’m a linebacker, and I can blitz from any position,” he said. “I usually switch with my friend, Greyson Miller or Logan. They’re both good.
“I usually switch with them to get a good advantage.”
Anderson’s second quarter fumble recovery illustrated the decisive actions and efforts to get the team back into the game. As a linebacker and cornerback, he moves all over the field.
He showed great alertness in seizing the ball.
“I saw the fumble happening, and I was running towards the ball,” he said. “I thought the other guy might recover it, but then the ball popped out and I was able to fall on it.”
The defensive end Logan Leonhardt was the other standout. He is quick, powerful and blessed with an excellent first step. He often blew up the Tigers’ attack before they even had a chance to get out of the backfield.
“I’m technically a defensive end, but I get moved around a lot depending on what the other offense is doing out there,” Leonhardt said. “After that first series, I thought the defense did what it had to do.
“Now we just need to work on the passing game, and get our whole team healthy, work hard in our scrimmages and get our defense all the way to where it has to be.”
Pinela generated each of the Chargers’ first downs in the second half. His 18-yard run on the opening possession of the third quarter yielded the team’s longest play from scrimmage.
“I started to run outside, but then I thought there was a wide open hole on the left,” he said. “There was a guy there, but I was able to run around him.
“We played hard and we fought, but we had a hard time getting our blocks down today, and I couldn’t really run. I thought we did a pretty good job defensively. We just need to work on covering the other team’s passes.”
The promising start to the second half, and the chance to get back into the game ended with another turnover.
The final two possessions each ended on downs. Pinela generated the second first down with another strong run. Those moments were done in isolation, and too far and few in between.
Despite the setback, the mood and bond on the team remains unbreakable. Many of the players have been together the last four years.
The struggles the team experienced are temporary, they collectively believe. The effort never failed, and the team showed resilience to fight off the early deficit and remain emotionally dialed in.
Nobody ever got down on themselves.
Pinela ended with a team-best 27 yards on seven carries. Nanak rushed for 16 yards, and Therault had eight yards. Schreiber also ended up with positive yards.
Not all was lost.
“I think the passing plays were really good,” Therault said. “We were explosive, and the receivers were doing the routes they were supposed to run.
“Their defense just stopped us.”
Despite the Homecoming loss, the Tri City Chargers had many standout contributors in the hard-fought game. Their members were Elliot Chandler, Benjamin Kiro, Angelo Mercado, Cole Arsenault, Henry Nolan, Jack Sandbothe, Grayson Feagans, Ashton Deliman, Jack Thompson, Vincent Volpe, Eli Mols and Cole Synan.
