Five Takeaways: Week 3 – Dubuque Hempstead vs Dubuque Senior

Along the Mississippi River houses one of Iowa’s most evenly matched and intense high school sports rivalries. Dubuque Senior and Dubuque Hempstead always step up to the occasion when they play each other, especially on football. These games get exceptionally better when both teams are really good, such as the case for this season. So this week I’m breaking the trend of just Central Iowa matchups and take down five takeaways I got from this Eastern Iowa Showdown. &nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id="23854" first="Aidan" last="Dunne"] does it all for the Mustangs If there was one offensive player that showed us what he can do on Friday, it’s Hempstead QB [player_tooltip player_id="23854" first="Aidan" last="Dunne"]. Although his passing statistics don’t jump out, throwing 14/26 for 175 yards and 2 touchdowns, the way he plays does. Make no mistake Dunne is a scrambler that can keep any defense on their toes with what he can do under pressure. Dunne showed how he can extend plays with his legs and feet, allowing receivers like Jackson Ostrander and Noah Pettinger to get open and make a catch. If he has room to run, he can take advantage of that and get a good gain. It should also be noted that Dunne also starts as a strong safety and recovered a fumble late in the game too. Which brings me to my next takeaway. &nbsp; Two-way starters prove why they start both ways If you look at each team’s starting lineup, you’d notice that a bunch of their players play both ways. For Hempstead, QB/SS [player_tooltip player_id="23854" first="Aidan" last="Dunne"], RB/FS [player_tooltip player_id="23922" first="Zach" last="Sabers"], WR/LB Max Moldt, WR/CB Ty Hancock, WR/CB Jackson Ostrander, and C/DT [player_tooltip player_id="23901" first="Cayden" last="Lovett"] all started both ways for the Mustangs. While on Senior’s side, RB/CB [player_tooltip player_id="23836" first="Cain" last="McWilliams"], WR/SS [player_tooltip player_id="23838" first="Logan" last="Flanagan"], TE/DE Carson Tart, and OT/DE [player_tooltip player_id="23816" first="Jim" last="Bonifas"] each started both ways for the Rams. These players I mentioned are also some of their best players too, and it’s not like either school doesn’t have enough players on their team either. They know who their best players are and they want to use every bit of talent they got. &nbsp; Both defenses controlled the pace of the game The game started with a quick touchdown pass by Senior from Jack Gilligan to Tommy Williams, and Hempstead answered back with a drive that led to a [player_tooltip player_id="23922" first="Zach" last="Sabers"] redzone touchdown. Those first two drives might’ve given the impression that it’ll be a high-scoring offensive game, but in reality, it was a defensive slugfest that kept offensive production to a minimum. [player_tooltip player_id="23816" first="Jim" last="Bonifas"] might be going to Iowa State as one of the state’s best offensive tackles, but he showed he can play on both sides of the trenches too as a 3-4 defensive end for the Rams, as he was a constant threat to the Mustangs offense all day. Another defensive stud for the Rams is [player_tooltip player_id="23844" first="Seth" last="Bullock"], he was a playmaker last Friday, forcing a fumble late in the game and blocking a field goal early in the game to go along with a team-high 12 tackles. For the Mustangs, backup linebacker Lucas Tsacudakis led the way with 6.5 tackles, DT [player_tooltip player_id="23901" first="Cayden" last="Lovett"] managed to get 5.5 tackles, and Safety Charlie Besler made a couple of clutch stops that impacted the game too. &nbsp; <span style="font-size: 1rem;">The Rams offense could make or break their season</span> Senior’s offense could be one of the most talented in Eastern Iowa, but something just didn’t click Friday night. QB Jack Gilligan couldn’t complete his passes, RB [player_tooltip player_id="23836" first="Cain" last="McWilliams"] didn’t have much room to run for most of the game, and FCS-level tight end Carson Tart wasn’t utilized much on offense other than blocking. It just didn’t seem like their team was fit for their gameplan that day. About a month before the season started, one of the state’s best receivers, [player_tooltip player_id="23837" first="Kendrick" last="Watkins-Hogue"], moved to Galesburg, Illinois. And while they do return most of their receivers from last year, none of them are at his level athletically, but the Rams play like he’s still there. Gilligan is airing it out but he keeps overthrowing his receivers, and from the couple rushing attempts he made, he could make for a solid dual-threat rather than a pinpoint accurate gunslinger. &nbsp; Both teams stepped up to the occasion When it’s all said and done, both teams gave it their all and didn’t disappoint. This was anyone’s game and Hempstead was the team that was ahead when it was all said and done. No better play shows each team’s will to win this important game for city bragging rights than the final scoring play. On the 18 with about 3 minutes left, Dunne in the shotgun goes to pass, with Bonifas and crew blitzing. Dunne rolls to his right, throws to the endzone to Max Moldt, the attempted catch bounces off his hands, gets tipped in the air, and luckily for the Mustangs, Jackson Ostrander is right behind him to grab it in the back corner of the endzone. Plays like that and a final score of 21-17 make a crosstown rivalry game all the more special. Just an ultra-competitive matchup all game long.