DC’s Three Takeaways after Mules win over Kennett

Last Friday’s pink-out game for the Poplar Bluff Mules was everything and more. We had the pleasure of seeing an outstanding offensive showing while a few players moved up the ranks in Poplar Bluff’s football history book along the way.

For the second time this season, the Mules opened the game with impressive play on both sides of the ball and took control early. The Mules picked up their fourth consecutive win of the season and could be on pace for a successful playoff run.

It was an easy Friday night for the Mules as they stepped onto the gridiron with a mission to roll past the Kennett Indians. They established a comfortable lead after an explosive first half and coasted to a 42-7 victory.

The Mules (5-3) were able to execute offensively and dominate defensively, which left the Indians rattled for most of the game and halted them from making any plays to make the game competitive.

With both teams entering the matchup with similar records, I expected a game that would go down to the wire, but the Mules had other plans. I’ve watched this team grow on both sides of the ball all season, but I didn’t predict such dominance against the Indians.

A lot was on the line tonight, with both teams needing a win to improve their chances of hosting the first-round district game. Though the Mules are currently third in Class 5 District 1 standings, many players have only expressed interest in winning out the season before they focus on the playoffs.

Though it wasn’t much adversity for the Mules to capture the win, there were still a few notable takeaways from their performance.

Spreading the action

One thing about capturing an early lead is that it gives the coaches the option to rest their starters and allow others to mix in with the offense. With his first opportunity at taking snaps at the running back position, senior defensive end Aiden Pratt took full advantage at the moment to shine.

Pratt led the Mules with two touchdowns and rushed for 36 yards on 12 carries.

“I felt pretty good about the win, but it wasn’t unexpected because we’ve been working really hard lately,” Pratt said. “We’ve been putting in a lot of effort into our game. We took some bad losses initially, but we’ve been working together as a team when putting stuff together and executing within the offense. I got to play RB for the first time ever, and it felt great to have my team’s support, and I just went out there and did what I had to do for the win.”

Everyone got a piece of the action last Friday, with multiple players getting across the endzone.

Jay Edmundson threw 9/10 on 174 yards with two passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown, while senior Logan Hite and Dereck Burton each had a TD. The Mules tallied 371 yards, and Kennett to 171 yards to end the night.

Making History

In the quest to keep their winning streak alive, the duo of Darius Graham and Romeoh Wontor made history in the second half of the game by stitching their names in the Mules football history books.

With a 27-yard touchdown pass from Jay Edmundson, Graham would move into the third spot on the Mules’ all-time receiving yards list with 1,599 yards. Wontor would move into the 13th spot on his first catch of 42 yards to crack 1,000 yards receiving.

Graham, who previously broke the all-time punt return record with 94 yards earlier this season, was utterly shocked about moving up in the all-time receiving list.

“That was big for me, but I must give credit to my quarterbacks and the coaches with their play calling,” Graham said. “I want to thank everyone for doing their jobs, which puts me in great positions to get the ball. I thank my team for trusting and knowing that I can get out there and make plays.”

As for the game, Graham said it was one of those games where they were trying to establish a big lead early. He said they have a tough game against Hillsboro and hopes the team can keep up the same energy to finish the regular season strong.

The Mules will host Hillsboro (7-1) on Friday for senior night.

I am far from being a football guru, but I know talent when I see it. Poplar Bluff has grown tremendously from their first game, and they have all the tools to finish out the season strong. If they can keep this winning momentum up for the playoffs, the sky’s the limit for this team.