Christopher Hugo, Section618.com
Waterloo– A re-surging Mt. Vernon Rams Football Program knew they needed to get out to a hot start to set the tone for the new season and they did just that in Saturday’s 55-41 win at Waterloo. Both teams lost their leading rushers from 2022, but Dan Mings believed this could be the fastest team he has ever coached and was looking to his offensive line to create some holes.
He didn’t have to look very far or very long as it only took the first play from scrimmage to get the Rams on the board. Mylan Nettles promptly took a Peyton McMillen pitch 77-yards for the game’s opening score.
Waterloo’s opening drive was stopped in its tracks when Rams’ Freshman Josh Crowder stepped in front of a Koby Osterhage pass and returned it for a pick-6. The PAT gave the Rams a strong 14-0 lead with 8:32 left in the quarter.
When it looked like the Rams had jumped out and might runaway early, the Bulldogs found a 21-0 run of their own.
Patrick O’Donnell reeled in a 15-yard catch to cut the deficit to 14-7 with 6:15 left and after a Rams turnover on downs deep in their own zone on the next drive, Chris Pete found the end zone with a 25-yard carry tying the game at 14.
Another Rams turnover left a fumble recovered by Waterloo and would ultimately setup Osterhage’s first TD run of the day, this time a QB sneak from one-yard out with 1:03 to go in the first that would give the Bulldogs their first lead at 21-14.
The quarter was unable to come to a close without more theatrics. The Rams’ Navontae Nesbit returned the kickoff 92-yards to stop Waterloo’s 21-0 run and get the Rams back within 21-20 with 49 seconds remaining in the first.
Just 53 seconds later, Jhymear Smith-Henson stepped in front of Osterhage’s pass and handed him his second pick-6 of the day and gave the Rams a 27-21 lead that stook for a little more than two minutes in the quarter. Derez Sayles got on the board with a 13-yard run that tilted the see saw in favor of Waterloo with a 28-27 lead.
The back-and-forth continued with Mt. Vernon’s Nettles making an acrobatic catch from his knees in the end zone to corral a 31-yard pass from McMillen. Then just a little more than a minute later, Osterhage hit pay dirt from 32-yards out with 3:15 left in the half and ultimately setup a 35-33 halftime score favoring the Bulldogs.
The second half slowed down a little with both teams trading scores in the 3rd quarter. The Rams’ Mason Randall recovered a fumble which setup Nesbit grabbing a McMillen pass for a 49-yard TD and a 40-35 lead at the 9:45 mark. The Bulldogs were able to find a lengthy drive into a 7-yard TD for Sayles. After that, the Rams defense began to make stops and create additional opportunities for the offense.
Nettles had already had a big offensive night but came up with a big defensive play with 8:33 left in the game when his 50-yard interception return setup Nesbit to turn a busted play into a 36-yard TD. Smith-Henson would run in the 2-point-conversion giving the Rams the lead for good at 48-41.
Waterloo had a 4th and 2 with 5:56 remaining and the Rams came up with the stop and then converted that into a Nettles 33-yard TD catch and a 55-41 lead. The Bulldogs would try another rally but came up short at 2:17 whenever an Osterhage pass fell incomplete up the left side.
Mt. Vernon travels to Carbondale on Friday for a 7:00 pm kickoff at Bleyer Field. You can listen to that game on WMIX-AM 940 & 96.5 FM and on the Mt. Vernon Rams Channel on the Section618.com App or watch live via the app and WMIX Sports YouTube.