Railer football team opens season with 32-0 shutout of Lanphier

 

[August 31, 2024] 

LINCOLN -- Just as a journey begins with a single step, the LCHS football team needed to begin the season with a victory as the Railers look to return to the playoffs for a second consecutive season.

Mission accomplished.

Lincoln raced out to a 20-0 lead after one quarter and didn’t look back. By the end of the night, five different Railers put points on the board for LCHS and the defense kept Lanphier out of the end zone all evening as Lincoln beat Lanphier 32-0.

“Obviously, we’re really happy to get the win,” said Railer head coach Matt Silkowski. “We didn’t really know what to expect out of them [Lanphier]. They went through a lot earlier in the year, but I thought Coach Miller had them really prepared. They’ve got some really good athletes. They have some guys that can flat out play over there.”

It took all of 19 seconds for the Railers to get a sense of the Lions’ athleticism. Lanphier returned the opening kickoff 33 yards to midfield before Lanphier ran the ball into the endzone on the first play after the kickoff. Fortunately for Lincoln, however, the Lions were whistled for a hold and the touchdown did not count.

“When we got their roster the other day and we were going through and seeing who some of these kids are, we knew they’ve got some really good athletes,” Silkowski said. “Once they get settled in and get some things figured out, that’s not an 0-and-9 football team. I think they’ve got some guys who can flat out play.”

Gabe Smith

As the Lions were flagged for a couple more penalties on the possession, Lanphier was forced into a passing situation on third down needing 20 yards. Senior Gabe Smith made an interception--the first of three for Lincoln on the night--and the Railer offense took over.

Paytan Bunner

Railer Paytan Bunner picked up this season where he left off last year in showing a powerful running game. The 6-foot, 220-pound senior rumbled 29 yards into Lion territory, then a few plays later dragged multiple Lanphier defenders into the end zone for Lincoln’s first touchdown and a 6-0 lead.

Tate Johnston

A few minutes later in the quarter, Railer senior Tate Johnston picked off a Lanphier pass to give Lincoln possession at the Lions’ 40-yard line. A Central State 8 second team all-defensive selection a year ago, the senior is handling the quarterbacking duties for LCHS this season. Johnston wasted no time in extending Lincoln’s, keeping the ball on the next play from scrimmage and running 40 yards for a touchdown.

Frank Sanders

In all, Lincoln tallied 20 points in the stanza as senior Frank Sanders notched a safety for the Railers and sophomore Seth Durbin added another touchdown on a 2-yard run.

Smith added another touchdown when he scampered 5 yards into the end zone. Bunner tallied his second touchdown in the final quarter on a 4-yard run, and the Railers came away with a 32-0 victory.

In interviews leading up to the game, Silkowski mentioned that he feels using Johnston at quarterback gives Lincoln the best opportunity for success this season, adding that the senior is a leader on the team, has a high football IQ and wouldn’t jeopardize possessions with risky throws. The performance against Lanphier appeared to validate the decision.

“He did very well,” Silkowski said of Johnston’s performance. “We tried to throw the ball three times, so that’s a pretty good night in my book. He turned the corner on the one [40-yard touchdown run] just exactly like we’ve talked about since Day 1. I thought he managed the game very well.”

Silkowski also mentioned in preseason interviews that Lincoln’s style of play would be more physical as opposed to the speed-based game the Railers tried to impose on teams last year. Lincoln gave up only 148 yards of offense to Lanphier. The Lions amassed 53 total yards rushing, 50 of which came on a single play. With 12 tackles for losses and four sacks in the contest, the railers did seem to handle Lanphier with a more physical style of play, much to the delight of Railer players.

“Last year, we tried to turn everything into a track meet, and it worked,” said senior Frank Sanders. “But this year, we have a lot of physical kids who love to hit people.

“This team is special, I can tell.”

“We love to keep it physical,” added fellow senior Paytan Bunner. “We’ve got a new strength coach, all our athletes here are getting a lot stronger and we love using it on the field.”

Lincoln’s next scheduled game is a Saturday contest against Southeast at Memorial Stadium in Springfield starting at 1 PM on September 7.

[Loyd Kirby]

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