Eudora varsity football falls to Nemaha Central 36-6

Silas Etter lines up at wide receiver. The Cardinals lost to Nemaha Central Friday 36-6.

BY CHRIS FORTUNE

Eudora varsity football dropped its first home game of the season to the Nemaha Central Thunder 36-6.

Cardinal fullback Brayden Beerbower scored the only touchdown of the night on the first drive of the game. The Cardinals could not keep up with the adjustments that Nemaha made on defense following the first drive.

Teammates celebrate as Brayden Beerbower scores a touchdown.

“They made adjustments on defense, and they are a championship team that made adjustments and we didn’t,” head coach Sean Hayden said. “I’m going to take that L. It’s my fault, and we’ll fix it.”

Nemaha Central won the 2A state title last year and finished with an 11-2 record.

Defensive play by both teams led to a low-scoring first half as Nemaha took a 7-6 lead at halftime.

The Cardinals couldn’t endure costly pass interference penalties in the second half, which extended Nemaha drives. In one instance, there was an interception by Eudora on an underthrown ball, but it was called back on a pass interference call. Nemaha was able to convert on a fourth down on the same drive and later score to take a 13-6 lead in the third quarter.

Eudora prepares to snap the ball. The Cardinals scored early in the game but could not keep up with adjustments made to the Thunder defense.

Eudora turnover woes in the fourth quarter resulted in Nemaha extending its lead. Nemaha did most of their damage on the ground with designed quarterback runs, which Eudora struggled to stop.

Cardinal running back Cael Lynch helped lead the rushing attack and made multiple individual tackles against Nemaha at the linebacker position.

“I can’t answer why our second half wasn’t as good as our first half,” Lynch said. “It’s definitely a team issue, not an individual issue.”

Fans watch as the Cardinals take the field. Families spaced 10 feet apart to maintain social distancing at the game.

The Cardinals move to 1-1 this season.

Up next, the Cardinals will play St. James Academy at 7 p.m. Friday at home.

Reach reporter Chris Fortune at eudoratimes@gmail.com.

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