61-0 win over Beckman boosts Bulldogs’ confidence heading into postseason
Sophomore quarterback Zach Driscoll completed seven of 11 passes for 258 yards and threw three touchdowns in the win over Beckman Catholic. (Photos by Audrey Posten)
Cole Allert and Brock Hackett were part of the MFL MarMac defense that held the Blazers to just 10 yards of total offense, including negative rushing yards.
Karter Decker accounted for 135 yards of total offense, including a game-opening 62-yard touchdown reception and scoring runs of 50 and 12 yards.
Tight end Kade McElwaine hauled in a 65-yard touchdown. He also led the team in tackles.
Wyatt Powell brings down a Blazer runner in Friday's dominant victory.
Fullback Carver Blietz-Bentien ran for 107 yards on five carries, with two touchdowns—one for 35 yards and the other 60.
Brandon Christofferson caught a 59-yard touchdown pass in the Bulldog win.
By Audrey Posten, Times-Register
The MFL MarMac football team blasted Beckman Catholic 61-0 in the Oct. 14 regular season finale. The win improved the Bulldogs—who clinched the district title the week prior—to a perfect 5-0 in district play and 7-1 overall.
The Blazers were district champs a year ago and ousted MFL MarMac from the playoffs, making Friday’s domination even more meaningful.
“Could you tell our guys wanted this game pretty bad? This is a game we circled on our calendar since last season got over,” said head coach Dan Anderson.
MFL MarMac’s offensive outpouring included seven touchdowns of 35 yards or more. Running back Wyatt Powell caught one for 69 yards, while tight end Kade McElwaine and wide receiver Brandon Christofferson had respective 65- and 59-yard grabs.
Fullback Carver Blietz-Bentien ran for 107 yards on five carries, with two touchdowns—one for 35 yards and the other 60. Wing back Karter Decker accounted for 135 yards of total offense, including a game-opening 62-yard touchdown reception and scoring runs of 50 and 12 yards. Quinn McGeough added a two-yard TD.
“We game planned around their defense and how they wanted to defend us, and we saw things on film. They were going to take away our sweep with Powell. We ran that maybe three or four times tonight. That’s it,” said Anderson. “So we took some shots down the field. We were hitting some big passes.”
“We did that for a couple reasons,” he continued. “One, they were going to give it to us because they were doing a lot of man coverage. Two, we want anybody watching this film to say, ‘Back up, because the Bulldogs can throw it deep.’”
Sophomore quarterback Zach Driscoll completed seven of 11 passes for a school record-setting 258 yards. He threw three touchdowns, while Blietz-Bentien added a 65-yard touchdown pass.
The night was special for Driscoll, who took over as starting quarterback just this season.
“It feels amazing,” he said. “I’ve got to give my line big credit for giving me time and my receivers for running crisp routes and catching the ball. I’m also thankful for my coaches who helped me get better each week.”
Anderson is proud of the growth Driscoll has shown. The early season focus was simply to manage the game and hand the ball off to Powell, Blietz-Bentien and Decker. Now, the sophomore is flexing his muscles.
“Now, he’s got some games under his belt and he’s cutting ‘em loose. He made some good decisions out there—didn’t throw any bad balls tonight. He showed he can throw the ball down the field, and those receivers were catching the ball. We had six or seven different guys score touchdowns. Pretty amazing the distribution of the ball,” Anderson said.
This success was complemented by the Bulldog defense, which allowed the Blazers just 10 yards of total offense. Beckman ran the ball 23 times, resulting in -30 yards, and the quarterback was sacked twice. Decker and Elias Hatt also snagged interceptions.
Kade McElwaine led MFL MarMac with 18.5 total tackles. Six were for a loss, which Anderson said broke the school’s single game record. Blietz-Bentien finished the night with 7.5 tackles, while Powell tallied 6.5 and Austin Schlee 5.5. Other leaders included Cole Allert with 4 and Brock Hackett with 3.5.
Following the game, Anderson’s only critique was the amount of penalties MFL MarMac had.
“Some of those are going to happen because you’re so aggressive and flying around,” he said. “But we’ve got to clean that stuff up because that can really nip you and cost you your season in a playoff game. Now, it’s win and keep going, lose and it’s done. There’s no tomorrow if we lose.”
Anderson called the playoffs a new season.
“Everybody who’s in the playoffs is a good football team. Every week we play, that field gets cut in half. It gets tougher and tougher,” he said. “But we’ve done enough after the New Hampton game of getting better every week. We’re a dangerous team, when you can throw the ball and run the ball and play fast on defense. We won’t back down to anybody. These guys have big goals and they want to reach them.”
Friday’s win only helped prepare the team more, noted Driscoll.
“It gives us a real big boost of confidence, a good feeling going into the playoffs,” he said.
MFL MarMac, the winner of Class 1A - District 4, will host 5-3 Durant, the fourth place team in District 5, in the postseason opener this Friday, Oct. 21. The game will start at 7 p.m. in Monona.
