OVFL: New look offence not enough for JV Hawkeyes

“Strong week of practice” those are the words Head Coach O’Connor preached last week after their loss to Toronto heading into their game against Cumberland. The Hawkeyes said they had a lot of respect for Cumberland and knew it would be a tough game. Unfortunately the Panthers were too much to handle for O’Connor and his squad now losers of two straight after last Saturday’s 66-36 loss to Cumberland.

Though the Hawkeyes scored 36 points the offense was only accountable for 14 of them. However, the unit still played well and is improving in every aspect of their game. RB Logan Bodley did what he does best notching another 100 yard game under his belt rushing the ball. He finished the day with 166 yards rushing on just 11 carries and also caught the ball 3 times for 46 yards. Garrett Arsenault got the start at QB after being called upon last week due to injury. He faired well completing 12 of his 21 passes for 146 yards and a touchdown pass to slotback Chris Mackey. The offense has played well all season but every week there are drastic changes to the lineup mainly due to injury that has hindered the units progression. “Both QB’s did what we asked them to do, in the end we stayed with what was working” said O’Connor.

The defence struggled greatly against the run again this week and it allowed the Panthers offense to move the ball effectively. Though the defence game up 66 points to their opposition they also recovered 3 fumbles for touchdowns making the score look more respectable. George Akers, Mitch LaPlaunt, and David Parent were the lucky ones to scoop up the ball and return it each for a major. If the Hawkeyes are going to get back into the win column they will need their defense to continue creating turnovers, as well as keeping the opposing team out of the endzone.

The team’s make up game is not yet scheduled so the JV Hawkeyes will not play again until next Saturday against Newmarket, which is also a team in disarray at 1-3. Another week of strong practice and getting key players back from injury may just be what the Hawkeyes need. I predict the Hawkeyes come back strong in all phases of the game winning 30-10 over Newmarket.