There weren’t a lot of defensive stops in Flanagan-Cornell/Woodland‘s 46-22 Illinois 8-Man Football Association victory over the visiting Ridgewood co-op.
That made the times the host Falcons did manage to halt the Spartans all the more meaningful.
A first-quarter fumble forced by linebacker Jack Flahaut and recovered by Riley Wallace, a momentum-flipping three-and-out on the opening drive of the second half and linebacker Leelynd Durbin’s spectacular, knifing-through-the-line tackle for a loss on a fourth-and-2 midway through the fourth quarter that all but put away the victory were the difference in FCW’s first win over Ridgewood since joining the I8FA.
“From watching film, I knew when their end stood up like that he was coming around and blocking for that fullback,” Durbin said of his late-game stop. “I knew exactly what gap he was going to. I had to go through it. We needed that bad. …
“It means a lot to get this win. It’s my last game here. I had to play hard.”
With the win on Woodland’s homecoming over a fellow 2024 I8FA playoff team, FCW improves to 3-2. The co-op’s remaining two regular-season home games will be played on their other home field in Flanagan.
Ridgewood falls to 2-3.
“I have so much respect for [Ridgewood] … and we knew how important it was for our program to get this win tonight,” FCW coach Todd Reed said. “We’d never beaten them, so it’s even more special.”
Senior tailback Logan Ruddy ran for 206 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries, junior QB Brezydn Simons — who did not complete a pass officially but was 3-for-3 passing on three successful two-point conversions – ran for 60 yards and two TDs on a dozen carries, and Durbin finished his career on his home school field at the Wood Shed with 69 yards and two touchdowns of his own on 17 rushing attempts.
Ridgewood senior fullback Gavin Franks had a big game carrying the ball as well, going for 191 yards and all three of his team’s touchdowns on a 25 carries. It was Flahaut’s strip tackle of him on Ridgewood’s second offensive snap and Wallace’s recovery that seemed to breathe life into what became a consistently aggressive and effective Falcons’ effort.
“That was a big swing for us,” Reed said. “And from there the adjustments from Coach [Aaron] Jackson, our defensive coordinator. He had some great game plans coming into tonight and made some in-game adjustments with the defense, and they came through.
“I’m so proud of ‘em.”
Holding a 16-0 lead at halftime, FCW’s advantage was cut down to 24-14 by the break on a Franks fourth-and-goal from the 1 TD run as time expired. Ridgewood looked to be in business receiving the second-half kickoff, but the Falcons defense forced a three-and-out – one of just two total on the night combined – and three plays later Ruddy was back in the end zone on a 30-yard run and the lead was back to 16 points.
“We kind of had the same thought,” Spartans coach Dawson Anderson said, “getting that score in before half and coming back out with a little more momentum, trying to put something together. You know, we’ve struggled trying to get a drive out of the half all year, unfortunately. …
“[FCW] came out and executed their game plan a lot better than we did.”
From there, the Falcons used long scoring drives to salt it away.
In addition to the effective running game and key first-quarter fumble, Flanagan-Cornell/Woodland received a quarterback sack by Jaxon Torrez, two tackles for loss from Durbin and 1.5 TFLs courtesy of Simons.
The Falcons visit West Prairie in Week 6.
Ridgewood is scheduled back at home against Bushnell-Prairie City.