Railers Win

[August 26, 2017]  By Benjamin Yount

MACOMB – For the first time in a dozen years, the Lincoln Railsplitters are 1-0.

Lincoln's varsity football team got its first win of the 2017 season Friday night, a 7-6 victory over Macomb High School.

The Railers didn't make it easy on themselves.

Lincoln's offense sputtered for most of the first half. Senior running backs Titus Cannon and Isaiah Bowers, and senior quarterback Josh Linares couldn't move the ball very far or very often.

Lincoln's sluggish offense meant the Macomb offense got the ball more.

And, in the second quarter, Macomb senior quarterback Jake Burg finished off a long drive with a touchdown. But Macomb missed the extra point.

A few minutes later it was halftime.

And Lincoln flipped a switch.

“We felt like in the first half we were a little nervous,” Cannon said. “Second half we all calmed down. We knew we had a job to do and we gotta get it done. We also knew they couldn't hang with us the whole game.”

The third quarter proved that to be true.

Cannon carried the ball Friday night 27 times for 95 yards, but he was the only runner on the Railers' second drive of the second half. The drive that ended with a touchdown.

“I was running left and I was looking for my hole,” Cannon said of his touchdown run. “I saw it. I ran off the left tackle. And I ended up in the end zone.”

Alex Bogdanic made his extra point. Lincoln lead 7-6.

“It should've been 21-6,” Lincoln coach Matt Silkowski said after the game.

And it could have been.

The senior, Bowers, intercepted a Macomb pass in second quarter and returned it for a touchdown. But an illegal block negated that pick six.

Cannon had a 78-yard touchdown run in the third quarter called back because of a holding call.

“We committed penalties. The refs were right to throw those flags,” Silkowski said after the game. “I told our team all week that we're better than these guys. Tonight I told them we are better than one point better.”

While Cannon carried the ball as expected, and the offense played like they were supposed to. Lincoln's defense played with an aggression and tenacity that may have taken some people by surprise.

“We put a lot of effort and time into our defense this year,” coach Silky said. “Over half of our guys never played varsity football before. A couple guys, this is their first game playing football period. There are a lot of young guys on offense, so we knew that we'd have to have a good defense this year.”

Lincoln's front three, Andrew Schmidt, Tyson Opel, and Gage Wilson pressured Macomb's quarterback all night, forcing errant throws and two interceptions.

In the fourth quarter the Railsplitter defense took away the pass that gave Macomb so much first half success.

With less than two minutes to go in the game, Noah Funk intercepted a pass and sealed the Railer victory.

The last time Lincoln won their first game was 2005.

The celebration for the 2017 Lincoln team will be short live. The Railers host Mt. Zion for their first home game of the season next Friday at Handlin Field.

Mt. Zion beat Limestone Friday night, 47-0.

[Ben Yount; photos by Sherri Sparrow]