Liam Smith ’20, Sports Editor

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Strake Jesuit handily defeated the George Ranch Longhorns 34-7 last Friday, November 2, on Senior Night. Jesuit punched their ticket to a postseason playoff spot while the now 4-5 George Ranch will compete for eligibility next year.

Senior running back Michael Wiley carried the offense, rushing for over 200 yards and two touchdowns. Junior running back Dylan Campbell complemented with 95 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown.

Our rushing attack exploded.

Quarterback Michael Hansen completed 10 of 24 passes for under 100 yards. Though a late touchdown pass helped seal the game, Hansen’s chemistry with senior wide receiver—Nathaniel Beal—felt strained. The prolific tandem combined for only 4 receptions for roughly 40 yards on 11 targets.

With first-year head coach Klay Kubiak making adjustments all season with his team, there is no reason to believe Hansen shouldn’t come out firing in the next game with a few tweaks made during the week.

Speaking of fire, the defense played a stellar game while only giving up seven points, earning two sacks and recovering two fumbles. By the second half, George Ranch had resorted to sending in their sophomore backup quarterback in an attempt to catch our defense off guard with a new offensive scheme, which lasted just a handful of plays, a testament to the dominance of our defense over the Longhorns.

With their quarterback struggling,  George Ranch used zone-read plays to take advantage of his athleticism. The Crusaders—who had suffered from their opponents’ prolific running backs in the past—maintained gap discipline and remained stingy on the run all four quarters. The majority of the game was a shutout and by the end of the fourth quarter, and the bench players were able to gain valuable playing experience (as they will replace the senior-filled roster next year).

The Crusaders played an all-around, fundamentally sound game. They played as Wisconsin would with Melvin Gordon or Jonathan Taylor’s having a stellar 200-yard game and the defense clamping down on a poor Illinois or Indiana. The game wasn’t flashy, but our team handled business within their roles. If you were to ask him, i”ll bet that’s all Coach Kubiak wants from his team.