Truckers struggle in loss to North

NORWALK — From the start, it was a tough night. The Norwalk football team didn't find an edge anywhere at Contractors Stadium on Friday, falling 35-0 to visiting Eastlake North in a non-league matchup. The Norwalk defense gave up 212 yards on the ground and four passing touchdowns of 30-plus yards. Meanwhile, the Truckers (1-1) had four three-and-out drives and a fumble on offense in the lopsided loss at the Warren C. Whitney Complex. The home sideline was fired up early as Jarren McLendon took the opening kickoff 61 yards to the opposite 39-yard line. That fire was quickly extinguished when, two plays later, McLendon fumbled a handoff, giving favorable field position back to the Rangers (1-1). "You can't give the ball away with how we're built on offense," Mora said. "I don't think we lost confidence — it was just an unfortunate play." That kick return was the sole bright spot for the Truckers. Three plays following the fumble, quarterback Zach Rummel found a streaking Steven Cammack for a 34-yard touchdown. The Rangers found success in the air, but the ground game exposed Norwalk's defense. The Truckers gave up 125 yards rushing in the first half and 212 yards before the backups took the field. Rummel, Reon'tae Lowery and Drake Martinez took turns gashing the front seven, setting up two air touchdowns in the first half. "I'm not concerned about a deep pass, that's gonna happen," Mora said. "I'm more concerned with a team's ability to methodically run the ball down the field." The Norwalk defense stepped up to create some momentum in the second quarter. A gang tackle by several Truckers forced a fumble and senior Austin Ware emerged from the pile with the football. Norwalk looked to have life with good field position, but it was a fleeting notion. The offense lost eight yards in three broken plays and were forced to punt, giving the ball right back. "This is an offense that's not easy to pick up," Mora said. "Seeing a different defensive scheme definitely created some issues for us." With 41 seconds left in the first half, Rummel aired it out again. This time, he lifted it to Cammack, who grabbed it over the defender's helmet to claim a 30-yard score. The duo linked up for another score early in the second half, as Rummel threw a dot to Cammack on the sideline for a 43-yard touchdown. Another 56-yard connection between the two put Eastlake North up 28-0 with 1:35 left in the third quarter. "We got out of our base coverages and into some zone stuff with some guys cramping up," Mora said. "Two of those four touchdowns we were out of position in zone coverage." The running-clock clincher came midway through the fourth, when Rummel took a quarterback keeper two yards for the final score of the night. "They say it's about the Jimmy's and Joe's not the X's and O's," Norwalk head coach Keith Mora said. "Their Jimmy was darn good." Norwalk will have a chance to redeem itself next week when they visit Toledo Rogers (0-2). "We have to treat every opponent with respect and believe those guys are game planning, too," Mora said. Eastlake 7 7 14 7 — 35 Norwalk 0 0 0 0 — 0 Scoring E — Cammack 34 pass from Rummel (kick good) E — Cammack 30 pass from Rummel (kick good) E — Cammack 43 pass from Rummel (kick good) E — Cammack 56 pass from Rummel (kick good) E — Rummel 2 rush (kick good)