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| Serving Callaway County communities since 1875. | www.fultonsun.com | Sunday, July 05, 2009 |
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Bulldogs' second-half rally yields historic playoff berth By RYAN BOLAND The Fulton Sun
South Callaway - pursuing a first-ever trip to the state playoffs - trailed Hallsville 6-0 at halftime Thursday night, after a first half in which the Bulldogs committed four turnovers. Instead of relying on histrionics to implore his squad, Rulo and his coaching staff concentrated on strategy at halftime by breaking the players down into position groups. The shrewd decision paid off for South Callaway as it secured the historic postseason berth behind a strong second-half comeback that resulted in a 29-6 victory over Hallsville in a Class 2, District 6 showdown. “If you can't get pumped up to go to the playoffs, you shouldn't be there anyway,” Rulo said on Saturday. “If you can't get up for that, you probably know what the outcome is going to be. “The players have the understanding that you have to play every play, do it well, and you've got to keep doing your job. If you believe and trust that you're doing it right, then things will turn out the way they should.” As the district runner-up, the Bulldogs (6-4, 2-1 District 6) travel to District 5 champion Centralia (10-0) - ranked No. 4 in the state - for a regional playoff at 7 p.m. Wednesday. “All of the teams you see from now on, they all look good on film.” South Callaway took control in the second half Thursday night behind a suddenly potent running game that has emerged in recent weeks, as well as a defensive unit that tormented Hallsville. The Bulldogs took the lead for good on sophomore running back Bryan Lechner's 2-yard touchdown run with 9 minutes, 53 seconds left in the third quarter. Senior kicker Derek Dixon added the extra point to make it 7-6. The defense then extended South Callaway's advantage after junior linebacker Grady Bartley intercepted a pass and returned it 35 yards for a touchdown at the 4:02 mark of the quarter. Bartley had returned an interception for a score on the Indians' previous possession, but it was called back when the Bulldogs were penalized for a block in the back. Bartley - from his wide-receiver position - then accounted for an offensive score when he caught a 13-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Justin Struttmann on fourth-and-6 with 10:28 left in the game. Struttmann followed that up with a 38-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Brandon Waterson with 6:02 to play. Struttmann ran in the two-point conversion to close out the scoring. Rulo noted that the South Callaway offense was slow in countering Hallsville's blitzing, man-to-man coverage. The Bulldogs finished with 228 yards of total offense and committed a total of five turnovers. “We expected something different (defensively), so it took us a while to get it figured out how to adjust,” Rulo said. The corrections were most evident in South Callaway's running game, which produced 90 of its 135 net yards in the second half. The Bulldogs also rushed for 147 yards in a 28-14 district win at Southern Boone on Oct. 24. Lechner topped South Callaway with 89 yards on 18 carries Friday night. “We wanted to get a rhythm going (offensively),” Rulo said. “We know that Bryan can run the ball hard and he can do it well. He showed us that. “It also says a lot about our offensive line. They were making the blocks and sustaining them.” Despite throwing for two touchdowns, Struttmann completed just 7-of-24 passes for 93 yards and was intercepted three times. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs' pestering defense limited the Indians (2-8, 1-2) to 149 yards of total offense and forced seven turnovers, including five interceptions. “(Hallsville) Coach (John) Morris told me that he was so impressed with our defense,” Rulo said. “They were fired up, they were excited, they were well-prepared, and they played fast. “They looked really sharp.” |
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