9-21-2024 1:06am

No Homecoming look ahead for Hononegah as they roll past Guilford 35-0

Hononegah Indian football team rolls over the Rockford Guilford Vikings 35-0 from Kelsey Field.

The Hononegah Indians have now won 14 NIC-10 games in a row after rolling over the Guilford Vikings 35-0 on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024.

Homecoming is a very eventful week for a high school football team: players getting everything set for the dance, parades, activities, schoolwork, and preparing for a game. Well, you can check off being prepared for the game.

Hononegah left little doubt that they were ready to go Friday night, as they began by scoring 14 points in the opening quarter. The first came through the air from junior Drew Shockley to senior Brayden Lane for 29 yards. The next touchdown came via the ground game. Bruising running back Kurtis Smith ran over the Vikings for an 8 yard score. With both PATs good, the score was 14-0 after the first quarter. The second quarter saw no scoring, but looks and sounds of pads popping hard-hitting from both teams.

A great stop in the 3rd quarter by the Indian's defense turned back a 1st and goal for the Vikings. This led to a scoring drive that ended with a 2-yard TD run from senior Brock Anderson, making it 21-0 after a 3rd PAT from senior kicker Zachary Pinkston. A pick-six from junior corner Nolan Mabie made the score 28-0. Mabie almost got caught by Northern Illinois recruit Messiah Tilson who seemed to have a rocket tied to his back as he tried to run down the Hononegah defender.

The final score came from Kurtis Smith via a 7-yard TD run. Smith finished with 13 carries for 88 yards and two TDs. He again led the Indian's ground game that as a team finished with 195 yards on 39 carries for an average of 5 per rush. The Indians only needed 9 pass attempts for the game to get the 35-0 win over Guilford.

The Indians next tangle with a vastly improving Freeport team who as of this writing are 1-2, having lost by one and in double overtime to Belvidere North earlier this season.

Thank you to @HonoFootball for use of the graphic in the story.

A self-described sports evangelist, Harold Bone is the Rockton-Roscoe News sports editor who is committed to finding stories behind-the-box scores and discovering engaging sports content. Got a story idea? Contact Harold via email at harold@roscoenews.com and follow him on Twitter at @SPRTSEDRRNews.