By,
Rob Reischel
Middleton Times-Tribune
They had left their hearts and souls on the
Ashley Field grass in Sun Prairie just
seven nights earlier.
And seeing to it that a post-Sun Prairie
hangover wasn't a possibility was of great
concern to Kurt Gundlach and his
Middleton coaching staff all last week.
But after a 21-0 pasting Madison La
Follette on Sept. 1, one thing appears
apparent. Middleton is well on its way to
moving forward and leaving the Sun
Prairie heartbreak in the past.
''We've got to have our own goals right
now and not worry about everybody
else,'' said Gundlach, whose team
improved to 1-1 in both the Big Eight and
overall. ''And I thought against La
Follette, we took a lot of steps forward in
becoming a better football team. And
that's what our goal has to be right now.''
There's no question the Cardinals took huge steps towards that goal versus an improved
and determined La Follette team, which appears on its way to ending the four-year
drought of Madison schools in the postseason.
Middleton's defense, which is still searching for answers after losing 10 starters from a
year ago, budged all night, but never broke. Several times, the Lancers drove inside
Middleton territory. But the Cardinals forced three turnovers, including a pair of
interceptions of La Follette quarterback Ben Picker.
''Our defensive staff deserves a ton of credit,'' said Gundlach, whose team hosts
Madison East Friday at 7:30 p.m. ''I knew they weren't real happy about the yards we
gave up, especially on the ground (117). But our guys stepped up when they had to.''
Offensively, no one stepped up more than junior tailback Kyle Brodd.
Now the featured player in the offense, Brodd showed why, catching four passes for 73
yards, rushing for 71 yards on his 22 carries and scoring twice.
''Kyle can scare the heck out of a defense,'' Gundlach said. ''And he showed that.''
So did senior quarterback Jeremy Ziegler. One week after struggling versus Sun Prairie,
Ziegler bounced back to complete 12-of-16 throws for 186 yards and a 35-yard fourth
quarter touchdown pass to Michael Morris.
''Jeremy played great and made a lot of big plays for us,'' Gundlach said of Ziegler, who
missed three snaps during the game after suffering a sprained knee but appears 100
percent for this week's game.
''He's got the ability to move around and break down a defense. He really made a
difference for us offensively.''
The outcome of this game may have been different had La Follette capitalized on some
early opportunities. The Lancers missed a 37-yard field goal and their top receiver, Ryan
Koch, dropped a sure touchdown in the first quarter.
And against a good team like Middleton, you can't leave the door open one iota.
''Things could have been a lot different,'' Gundlach said. ''We caught some breaks.''
Middleton began making its own breaks, though, in the second quarter.
First, Brodd capped an 81-yard, 14-play drive with a six-yard TD scamper. Then after
La Follette fumbled a punt at its own 32 late in the first half, Brodd made the Lancers
pay again with a 1-yard score.
''I think we're starting to find our identity now offensively,'' said Gundlach, whose team
lost starting wideout Tony Crissinger and tight end Luke Ingham for the year due to
athletic code violations. ''We knew that would take time.''
Time officially ran out on the Lancers in the fourth when a reverse to Koch appeared to
have the speedy wideout on his way to an 80-yard TD run. But Middleton free safety
Michael Morris ran him down, stripped the ball loose and Middleton recovered at the La
Follette 11.
The Cardinals then finished La Follette off by driving 89 yards, capped by Ziegler's TD
strike to Morris on a fourth down play.
''That was a very good football team we beat,'' Gundlach said. ''And by doing that, I
think we gained a lot of confidence as a team.
''I think we took a big step forward with that game. But there's still another big step to
take.''