By Todd Fertig
TopSports.news
Silver Lake senior Blake Redmond set the tone for a wild first half of football Friday night when he took the opening kickoff 85 yards for a touchdown.
The Eagles went on to hold on to defeat visitor Riley County, 40-24, with Silver Lake avenging a first-round loss to the Falcons in the 2022 Class 2A playoffs.
Blake Redmond
Tanner Martin
The two teams lit up the scoreboard in the first 21 minutes of play, with Silver Lake clinging to a 26-18 advantage. By that point, Redmond had already found paydirt on a reception and a run from scrimmage to go with his kickoff return.
But every time the Eagles seemed to distance themselves from the Falcons, the visitors responded.
A safety, followed by touchdowns on the ground and through the air by Riley County quarterback Eli Harmison kept the game close.
“We prepared for what they were going to do, but we would like to take care of stopping the pass a little bit better,” said Silver Lake second-year head coach Logan Pegram.
To open the second half, Riley County marched 67 yards in 7:30 to pull to within 26-24. But with the ball in the red zone and a chance to take the lead, Harmison was picked off by Silver Lake defensive back Eli Barnes to preserve the Eagle lead.
Two plays later, Redmond added a fourth score of the game, racing 38 yards to pad the Silver Lake lead.
On the game, Silver Lake senior quarterback Tanner Martin rushed for 125 yards and two touchdowns and passed for 133 yards and another score.
“We have a lot of guys returning who have played multiple years, and it really does show when we’re out there,” Redmond said of the Eagles’ senior leaders. “It felt amazing coming in the locker room and celebrating being 1-0. Our first five games are going to be tough games, so it’s great to get off to a good start.”
Pegram reflected on the difference between his second season as head coach and his first, in which the Eagles went 6-3.
“I think we’re coaching better,” Pegram said. “We have a big nucleus back, so it’s nice to get to know them and what makes them tick. And I think, to a T, all our assistant coaches bought in to what we’re doing and are coaching their butts off. It’s been awesome.
“We’ve got a great group of kids. We’ve just got to get back to being the Silver Lake that we’ve always been, having fun, doing it together, and doing it for our community.”
Pegram apparently knows a little about coaching special teams.
“We were sitting in our meeting before the game and coach was like “Guys, we bring things to the future, ok. We’re going to take the opening kickoff back to the house.' And that’s exactly what we did,” Redmond said.
The all-purpose star Redmond finished the game with 60 yards rushing and 33 yards receiving on just 12 touches, not counting the kickoff return for a score.
Harmison threw for 213 yards and a touchdown while rushing for two more scores for Riley County. Falcon tailback Sam Allen battered his way to 97 yards on 16 carries. Riley County receiver Jace Woodard bedeviled the Silver Lake pass defense with seven catches for 130 yards.
SILVER LAKE 40, RILEY COUNTY 24
Riley County (0-1, 0-1) 10 8 6 0 -- 24
Silver Lake (1-0, 1-0) 13 13 7 7 -- 40
Silver Lake – Redmond 85 kickoff return (Schooler kick)
Riley County – Safety
Riley County – J. Woodard 32 pass from Harmison (J. Woodard pass from Harmison)
Silver Lake – Martin 3 run (kick failed)
Silver Lake – Redmond 13 pass from Martin (Schooler kick)
Riley County – Harmison 3 run (Davis pass from Harmison)
Silver Lake – Redmond 7 run (kick failed)
Riley County – Harmison 1 run (pass failed)
Silver Lake – Redmond 38 run (Schooler kick)
Silver Lake – Martin 26 run (Schooler kick)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing – Riley County: Harmison 19-19, Allen 16-97, J. Woodard 1-3, Davis 2-3, Woodward 1-4. Silver Lake: Martin 17-125, Redmond 9-60, Renfro 4-8.
Passing – Riley County: Harmison 13-28-2 213 yards. Silver Lake: Martin 12-23-1 133 yards.
Receiving – Riley County: J. Woodard 7-130, Lambert 4-68, Davis 1-6, Allen 1-9. Silver Lake: Redmond 3-33, Rollenhagen 3-34, Deiter 1-15, Johnson 1-9, Renfro 1-9, Cathcart1-16, Barnes 2-17.
Punting – Riley County: Woodward 3-31.7. Silver Lake: Martin 35.5.
