Rain-plagued Schoburg slips, fumbles the game away against Chatham, 32-6
The Enterprise — Jordan J. Michael
Football sandwich: Two Chatham defenders converge on a Schoburg running back to make the tackle during last Saturday’s rain-soaked game in Duanesburg. Schoburg — a combination of Schoharie, Duanesburg, and Berne-Knox-Westerlo — lost, 32 to 6, and is 0-2 on the season in Class C.
The Enterprise — Jordan J. Michael
Slippery when wet: A steady rain fell in Duanesburg for the entirety of last Saturday’s Class C football game between Schoburg and Chatham, and here Schoburg’s Colin Kenyon goes head-over-heels while playing defense. Schoburg had less than 100 yards on offense, and lost, 32 to 6.
The Enterprise — Jordan J. Michael
Bad start: The Schoburg football team fumbled the ball five times last Saturday against Chatham, including a turnover on the opening kickoff here after Kevin Lenahan got hit hard; the ball, middle, popped up into the air. Schoburg lost by 26 points.
The Enterprise — Jordan J. Michael
Going for a ride: Chatham running back Sal Roblez, right, tries to keep his balance during a run last Saturday as a Schoburg defender tackles his legs. Schoburg lost, 32 to 6, and is 0-2 in the Class C South.
DUANESBURG — Unable to keep possession of the football — four lost fumbles in the first half — as a steady rain fell from the sky last Saturday, Schoburg didn’t give itself much of a chance against Chatham, a traditionally strong team.
The game started off on a sour note for Schoburg. Kevin Lenahan received the opening kickoff, but immediately fumbled the ball when he was hit. The ball popped up into the air, and was recovered by Chatham’s Tucker Skype.
With so much rain, conditions were slick at best.
“Bottom line, you have to hold that ball,” said Schoburg Head Coach Ken Meyer after the 32-to-6 loss. “If you don’t, you’ll keep turning it over, and it’s tough to win games with that many turnovers.”
Schoburg was turning the ball over in its own territory, so Chatham’s offense kept getting a short field. And when Chatham ran the ball, the blocking was good; Schoburg couldn’t do much to stop the rushing gains.
“Our tackles are getting beat out of the hole, getting pushed right out of there, and that’s basically where they [Chatham] got most of their meat,” Meyer said. “We were getting blown out of our gaps and they were running through them.”
Meyer said that Schoburg needs to work on tackling better and closing running gaps on defense.
Chatham was ahead, 18 to 0, in the second half, and recovered another Schoburg fumble on Schoburg’s 40-yard line. On Chatham’s first play of the drive, quarterback Mercury Mason found Kevin Frederick wide open for a pass completion, and Frederick had a clear path to the end zone.
“We have a very young team, and stuff can get into their heads, like, ‘Wow, I’m messing up,’” said Schoburg quarterback Colin Kenyon. “It’s a huge mental battle; more mental than physical. So, when they went down, they needed to be picked back up.”
Meyer said that Schoburg didn’t show as much heart as Chatham. “We need to dig deeper and fight harder on the line,” he said. “If you get punched in the mouth, you better come back. You can’t step down.”
Schoburg — a combination of Schoharie, Duanesburg, and Berne-Knox-Westerlo — is in its second varsity season, and some kids on the roster hadn’t played football until this year. Since the conditions were horrible for passing last Saturday, Schoburg’s offense was limited.
“We have great receivers, but pouring rain doesn’t really help our game,” Kenyon said. “Not having a passing offense makes our running offense a little slow. It’s much harder to cut and make decisions.”
Chatham was dealing fine in the wet conditions, but Schoburg was slipping up. Schoburg finished the game with less than 100 yards of offense.
“That isn’t going to make it on any day,” Meyer said.