A festive crowd packed the Riverside Park grandstands to watch Iola High’s 2013 home opener Friday.
The Mustangs didn’t disappoint.
Iola scored early and often, rolling up more than 300 yards rushing in the first half against visiting Osawatomie.
By the time quarterback Tyler McIntosh found wideout Tyler Powelson on a 23-yard touchdown pass on the last play of the half, Iola led 40-0.
The Mustangs let off the pedal in the second half, substituting liberally in the third and fourth quarters, but still rolled to a 47-14 victory.
The win keeps Iola’s record spotless at 2-0, although a much higher hurdle looms next Friday when Field Kindley High of Coffeyville rolls into town. The Golden Tornado is one of the most highly regarded Class 4A teams in the state.
“Next week is going to be a whole different animal,” Iola head coach Doug Kerr said. “We’ve got tornadoes coming to town, and we need to be ready.”
The game started as a near carbon copy of Iola’s 2012 game against the Trojans. Iola scored a trio of quick touchdowns and led 20-0.
But unlike a year ago, when Iola allowed a pair of Osawatomie scores to keep the game in doubt, there was no such letup.
Iola held Osawatomie to only two first downs in the first half, and constantly harassed Trojan quarterback Brody Russell, who misfired on all nine pass attempts in the half, with three interceptions.
The Mustangs had no such problems.
It took all of five plays for Iola’s Shane Walden to bust loose on a 37-yard touchdown run to put the Mustangs up 7-0, just over a minute into the game. John Whitworth followed at the 4:17 mark with a seven-yard touchdown run.
Jacob Rhoads stepped in front of a Russell pass for an interception to set up Iola’s next possession at midfield. He capped the subsequent drive with a 34-yard scoring jaunt to put the Mustangs up 20-0.
The Mustangs turned to ball control in the second quarter, marching 79 yards on 11 plays. John Whitworth waltzed untouched into the end zone from nine yards out to push the lead to 27-0.
Osawatomie’s only real scoring threat in the half followed before a Trojan holding penalty negated a first-and-goal situation. Instead, the visitors came up dry on a fourth-down pass.
Iola followed with a seven-play, 76-yard drive, capped by another Rhoads score, this one from 29 yards away.
Adam Kauth’s interception gave Iola the ball back with 2:11 on the clock.
McIntosh misfired on two straight pass attempts, but rushed for 18 yards on his next two carries, including an eight-yard jaunt on fourth-and-two to keep the drive alive.
The teams traded penalties before Iola set up for one last play from the Trojan 23 with four seconds left. McIntosh led Powelson perfectly into the corner of the end zone, where Powelson corralled the ball seconds before stepping out of bounds.
Mason Key’s extra point put the gap at 40.
“It was nice to see Powelson get that score,” Kerr said. “He had a nice game. So did Trent Latta.”
McIntosh added another touchdown on a one-yard keeper to start the third quarter, pushing the lead to 47-0 before Kerr called off the dogs and began playing reserves on both sides of the ball.
“I liked how we didn’t let up like we did last year,” Kerr said. “That tells me the guys have learned a lot since last year.”
The only wart on the night: Whitworth exited the game late in the first half with an undisclosed injury and did not return to the game.
“I’m really proud of the way Jacob stepped in,” Kerr said. “We’re blessed to have plenty of depth at running back, and a lot of guys got into the game.”
Iola racked up 430 yards on the ground on 48 carries, led by Rhoads’ 120 on nine rushes. Walden rushed for 95 yards, Whitworth for 81.
McIntosh was 6 of 13 passing for 90 yards.
Iola amassed 543 yards of total offense in the game.
Riley England led Osawatomie with 98 hard-fought yards. At one point, he had 64 yards rushing in the third quarter, while the rest of the team had minus-11 yards in total offense.
“The big thing was they threw in some wrinkles we weren’t expecting, but the guys made adjustments on the field by themselves,” Kerr said. “Did we make some mistakes? Sure, we did. But those are things we can correct.”
Kaden Macha led the defense with eight tackles, including five solo stops. Bryce Misenhelter added a sack, while Adam Kauth, Brice Aiello and Rhoads each intercepted a pass.
Kerr was unsure of the severity of Whitworth’s injury.
“We’re a little banged up,” he said. “I should know more (today).”
The game had an added flavor as Iola honored several Mustang alums who played between 2000 and 2012, while members of the Kansas National Guard were on hand as part of a commemoration of Patriot’s Day.
By the numbers
Osawatomie 0-0-7-7—14
Iola 20-20-7-0—47
Iola — Shane Walden 37 yd run (Isaias Macias kick)
Iola — John Whitworth 13 yd run (Macias kick)
Iola — Jacob Rhoads 33 yd run (Kick failed)
Iola — Whitworth 9 yd run (Macias kick)
Iola — Rhoads 28 yd run (Kick failed)
Iola — Tyler Powelson 23 yd pass from Tyler McIntosh (Mason Key kick)
Iola — McIntosh 1 yd run (Key kick)
Osawatomie — Joey Brightwell 11 yd pass from Brody Russell (Sheldon Booe kick)
Osawatomie — Riley England 11 yd run (Booe kick)
Osawatomie Iola
First Downs 7 21
Rushes-yds 25-86 48-430
Passing yds 64 113
Total Offense 150 543
Passes 5-17-3 8-15-0
Fumbles-Lost 0-0 2-2
Punts-yds 3-NA 1-22
Penalties 6-55 5-60
Individual Leaders
Rushing: Iola — Rhoads, 9-120, Shane Walden 8-95, Whitworth 8-81, McIntosh 8-33, Aiello 3-26, Kauth, 4-19, Macha 2-17, Kelly 3-8, Team 1-(-23). Osawatomie — England 20-98, Noah Newcomb 1 (-2), Ayres 1-2, Russell 2-(-10).
Passing: Iola — McIntosh 6-13-0-90, Taylor 2-2-0-13. Osawatomie — Russell 5-17-3-64.
Receiving: Iola — Latta 2-37, Powelson 2-34, Aiello 2-12, Rhoads 1-11, Zimmerman 1-9. Osawatomie — Brightwell 2-23, Wylie 2-17, Pursley 1-24.
