McLendon, Rothhaar score five times in Norwalk win

TOLEDO — There is no secret where it starts — and ends — for the Norwalk football team. The duo of senior running back Jarren McLendon and junior receiver Ben Rothhaar again led the Truckers, as they combined to score five touchdowns in Friday's 42-26 win over host Toledo Rogers. After winning just one game in the 2021 and 2022 seasons, the Truckers improved to 2-1 with the win over the Rams (0-3) in a first-ever meeting between the two schools. "They are our workhorses, everyone knows that," Norwalk head coach Keith Mora said of McLendon and Rothhaar. "We were fortunate to find a couple plays offensively where we didn't have to do a lot else." Unlike a 35-0 loss vs. Eastlake North where an early fumble took momentum away, the Truckers were again able to play from in front. Austin Ware intercepted a pass to set up the offense, and Sam Konik scored on a short run. Norwalk added the conversion for the early 8-0 lead. "We are definitely a team that tends to play better with the lead," Mora said. "And that's just from being a little inexperienced at times and not being overly used to battling back from a deficit in a game. "Fortunately, we haven't spent a whole lot of time playing from behind so far this season, but it was a good start." Leading 8-6 after one quarter, McLendon scored the first of four touchdowns from a yard out. The conversion failed early in the second quarter, but the Truckers had a 14-6 lead that it took into halftime. Rothhaar then returned the opening kickoff of the third quarter for a 67-yard TD, and Norwalk was off and rolling with a 21-6 lead. McLendon followed up with a 19-yard TD run, then a 3-yard score — and scored one more time with six minutes left for a fourth TD. "We felt pretty good about our ability to get some nice yards off just a few different plays that were pretty safe for us," Mora said. "We didn't do as much optioning as we like to do, but it was our ability to utilize a couple different blocking schemes and pound the ball downhill that allowed us to get first downs — and turn those into touchdowns." Norwalk will stay on the road in Week 4 when they travel to play Bellevue (2-1) in what is officially a non-league, SBC crossover matchup. The teams were league foes for nearly 100 years prior to this season. "It's a lot easier to go to Bellevue 2-1 than it would be at 0-3," Mora said. "Our kids believe and feel confident in themselves. There is no doubt they know what Bellevue is as a program and the history behind playing there. But again, it's a lot easier to go into Saturday film and break things down and take positive feedback. "It's also easier to come in Monday ready to work knowing you're 2-1," he added. "There is no reason not to believe … that's a lot easier sell to a 2-1 team than it is to an 0-3 team trying to find its way."