The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
A sluggish offensive start coupled with a rash of untimely injuries took away any hope the host Illini West Chargers had of pulling off the upset against the visiting third ranked Farmington Farmers last Friday night.
The resulting 35 – 0 loss dropped the Chargers to 2-2 on the season and looking for answers after the excitement of their big 2-0 start to the 2025 campaign.
The Farmers led 28 – 0 at the half as the Charger offense was hampered by missed blocks, blown assignments and injuries to key personnel.
The Chargers would only net 128 yards of total offense on the night.
The Charger defense also found the going tough as poor field position and too much time on the field led to four Farmington touchdowns in the first half.
The injuries continued to pile up after halftime as the Chargers were down to their 4th option at QB and their 5th option at punter.
The Charger defense battled valiantly to keep the 3rd ranked Farmers to only a single 2nd half touchdown, but the loss still stings after the hope of the season’s 2-0 start.
Offensively, the Charger run game produced 92 yards on 34 carries. Senior tailback Isaiah Knotts fought his way to 53 tough yards on 16 carries.
The other Charger runners included Izik Jones (15 yards), Jackson Steinkamp (15 yards), Liam Murphy (11 yards), Ethan Carlisle (3 yards) and Caleb Schreacke (2 yards).
Carlisle and Murphy combined to complete 5 of 8 pass attempts, but for only 38 yards. Schreacke (14 yards), Murphy (19 yards) and Myles Neff (5 yards) produced the receiving end of the passing combinations.
Defensively, the tackle chart was very spread out with Knotts, Bryson Cruz and Reed Schaefer each finishing with 4 stops. Steinkamp, Schreacke and Austin Cramer had 3 stops each.
Others on the tackle chart included Keagen Walker, Myles Neff, Jackson VanFleet, Chase Yelton, Isaiah Geissler, Tanner Stonger, Josiah Sturlic, Draiden Heath and Nelson Anderson.
Neff also had an interception to stop a Farmington drive in the second half.
The Chargers will return to action this coming Friday night when they host the West Hancock Titans in a pivotal match-up of bitter Hancock County foes.
The Titans come in at 1-3, but anxious to upset the Chargers on their push to a play-off bid.
This game will be played at Illini West’s Fuzz Berges Field with kick-off set for 7:00pm,