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Crash and burn

Posted by: Tony Bleill

Saturday, September 20, 2008 12:23 AM

The showdown at Tommy Stewart Field on Friday between Bloomington and upstart Champaign Central was a dandy game ... for two quarters. For Central, the second half was ugly.

The Purple Raiders ran away to a 24-7 victory, somewhat misleading because the Maroons had a 7-3 lead with 90 seconds to play until halftime. But then a fourth-down play went awry, Bloomington scored in the final seconds of the half, and the Maroons were never the same.

Afterward, Central's Jace Tennant and coach Dave Jacobs felt the Maroons lost their composure, and I wouldn't disagree. A series of mistakes caused some "chirping," as Tennant called it, on the Central sideline, and those things can undermine a team's effort quickly. Jacobs promised that he'd fix it right away, and if that happens, there's reason to remain optimistic if you're a Central fan. There's talent on this team; it is young talent, though, and immaturity sometimes rears its ugly head. That's what happened Friday.

Other thoughts:

--Bloomington did a remarkable job against Central star Denzel Stewart, who rushed for just 33 yards. The Purple Raiders prevented Stewart from using his speed to get to the edge, which is how he gets a large chunk of his yardage. Once Stewart reaches the corner and turns upfield, you're dead. Against Bloomington, he had no run longer than 12 yards, and 12 of his carries went for 2 yards or less.

--Central quarterback Doug Kyrouac was impressive early, hitting his first nine passes as Central's offense got moving in the air. Kyrouac was 5 for 5 on Central's scoring drive in the second quarter, which produced a 7-3 lead. But Bloomington was able to pressure him in the second half, and Kyrouac completed 7 of 12 with two interceptions after halftime. He was sacked four times in the second half, losing a fumble on one.

--I asked Bloomington coach Rigo Schmelzer afterward to assess the top of the Big 12, and he had some interesting comments. He praised the work being done by upstarts Central, Danville and MacArthur, but he stopped short of a full endorsement, making sure to note that some teams have played a tougher schedule than others.

Fair point. But while Bloomington and Normal Community have been the league's dominant heavyweights for a decade, there's little doubt the others are gaining on them. This isn't a vintage Bloomington team, even with all of its pieces intact. The same holds true for Community, under the direction of a first-year coach. Danville and Central have a ton of juniors, and both of those teams should be awfully tough in 2009. I'm not suggesting there's a "changing of the guard" going on in the Big 12; Bloomington and Community remain the teams to beat. But there might be addition "guards" in the running soon ...

--I know I've mentioned this before, but it's worth repeating. Central cornerback Jordan Johnson is really, really, really good. If he's not an All-Area player, The News-Gazette shouldn't bother publishing an All-Area team.

--Back on Wednesday. Until then, enjoy the weekend.