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[October 07, 2023]
Lincoln – Make no mistake about it: the LCHS Railer football program
has made strides this year, earning its fifth victory of the season
last week to become playoff eligible for the first time since 1984.
So, Lincoln has every right to (and should) be proud of the progress
it has made and accomplishments it has earned.
As impressive as those strides have been for the Railers, the
eight-time IHSA state champion Rochester Rockets left no doubt who
the better team was Friday night in dominating Lincoln 55-0 at
Handlin Field.
According to unofficial statistics, Rochester held Lincoln’s offense
to -3 yards of offense while rolling up 457 yards of its own. Three
plays after receiving the opening kickoff, the Rockets broke off a
55-yard touchdown run en route to a 34-0 advantage at the end of the
first quarter. The Railers didn’t get a first down until several
minutes into the second quarter and only made three first downs all
game.
So with all the buzz and good vibes with the Lincoln football
program being on the rise this year, how does the team process this
loss?
“The message afterwards was ‘move on,’” said Lincoln coach Matt
Silkowski. “We’ve got two more regular-season games ahead of us that
we can look forward to, so we can just kind of flush it…it’s over.
“That [Rochester] is a really, really good football program and a
really good team that we expect will play really late into November.
We got out healthy and unscathed, so that’s the positive tonight.”
Following its opening touchdown, the Rochester defense forced a
3-and-out from Lincoln before striking through the air on a 54-yard
touchdown pass. The Rockets scored another rushing touchdown,
another passing touchdown and on an interception before the first
quarter expired.
Rochester added a second quarter touchdown on another interception
return. The Rockets scored their other touchdowns in the third
quarter on runs of 35 and 13 yards.
The Railer coaching staff sets goals for the team each week. When
facing a juggernaut such as Rochester, Silkowski said players were
asked to focus on the effort they put forth on the field.
[to top of second column] |
Railers Football Coach Matt Silkowski
“Our goal this week was just to play and give them
a good fight,” Silkowski said, “and to see how we did with our
attitudes if things didn’t go our way. We wanted to give our best
effort; I think when you play a team like that, that’s really all
you can ask from your team.”
Overall, Silkowski said he was generally pleased with his team’s
effort. He did name an area in which the team can work to improve,
but he acknowledged that the Railers’ opponent may have influenced
Lincoln’s performance.
“We didn’t tackle very well in space,” Silkowski said. “Some weeks
we do it really, really well, and some weeks, not so well. I think
it’s hard for 16- and 17-year-old kids to get up when you kind of
know what you’re staring down. I think that plays a lot into it as
well.”
Lincoln will look to get back on track on October 13 when the
Railers travel to Hancock Field at Illinois State University for a 7
PM Central State 8 game against Normal U-High.
[Loyd Kirby]
Hudl Box Score
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