Norwalk looks to build on momentum

NORWALK — Getting closer. The final score in last week's rivalry game against Edison will show the Norwalk football team lost by 31 points. But between the lines, the Truckers continued to build off some things they had shown in a 19-0 loss at Bellevue the week before on Sept. 12. Edison (4-1) led 21-0 after a 74-yard touchdown pass with 8:08 left in the first half. That left the Truckers (1-4) in treacherous territory against a program that has won 28 of its last 32 games. But six minutes later, Norwalk trailed just 21-14 to make a game of it late in the first half on the road. Now, third-year head coach Keith Mora is hoping his team shows more progress in the final non-league game of the season when Norwalk hosts Vermilion (4-1). Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Friday at Contractors Stadium on homecoming night. "We basically took out everything that wasn't showing up in games for us," Mora said of last week's approach. "If it was something we were practicing, but it wasn't getting called in games because there wasn't a strong faith in it, or if it wasn't showing up religiously in our play calls, then we got rid of it. "So we got ourselves down to a pretty minimal offensive playlist," he added. "From there, all week long we just harped on winning on first down. We didn't have our first negative play in the run game until the second half, which is awesome for us." Down three touchdowns, the Truckers converted four first downs against the Edison defense, including a fourth-and-1. Senior Gavin Lepley scored on a 3-yard run. On the ensuing series, junior Brady Singer intercepted an Edison pass and returned it 40 yards for a defensive touchdown and a 21-14 deficit with 2:12 left in the first half. Mora noted the Truckers were set up to try and convert a fourth-and-2 against Edison with a 7-0 deficit, but a false start forced a punt. Trailing 31-14, the Truckers were again driving and converted another fourth down, only for a holding penalty to wipe out the play. "There were a lot of opportunities for us, but ultimately we're pleased with the kids for another week of growth," Mora said. "Because when you look at it, we were getting better in the Bellevue game. Obviously it didn't show up on the scoreboard because we didn't put the football in the end zone. "But our kids were starting to grasp things, and we started to get some guys back healthy from some injuries. So we're not having to rely quite as heavily on some of our inexperienced guys. There were a lot of good things for us despite the outcome." After years of limited success, Vermilion broke out with a 9-3 season in 2024. The Sailors have built off that momentum halfway through this season. They've outscored teams 167-77 with a dominant running game. After sharing the workload with quarterback Aaron Mathis and two others last season, senior Evan Kuhns has taken off for Vermilion. After rushing for 849 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2024, Kuhns has already totaled 906 yards and 12 touchdowns on just 67 attempts, good for 13.5 yards per rush and 181.2 yards per game. "He's definitely a tough runner," Mora said of Kuhns. "He runs really hard and is explosive, and he has a nice offensive line that opens up holes for him and makes things easier. They're well-coached in a lot of ways offensively, and they run a mixture of stuff." The Sailors have a lot of Wing-T concepts like Norwalk, but will run a little more out of the shotgun formation than they have in previous years. Vermilion's Isaac Keyser adds 159 yards and 2 TDs on 27 attempts, and Zach Werth has 154 yards and 2 TDs on 22 attempts. Drake Hooks is 25-of-64 passing for 421 yards with 3 TDs and 4 INTs. Brock Meyers has 12 catches for 265 yards and 2 TDs. "They can get in some I-formation and go straight ahead at you as well," Mora said. "They do a lot of things and compliment some of their best players really well, and obviously they are off to a nice start this year." Defensively for Vermilion, Daniel Roy has 41 tackles and has forced a fumble. Kuhns has 20 tackles and two interceptions, while James Bengele has 29 tackles with an interception and a forced fumble. Aiden Keyser also has 35 tackles, one sack, and one interception and has forced and recovered two fumbles. "It will be a lot like Edison to a degree," Mora said of the Vermilion defense. "They run a similar front and do things similarly to Edison, so it's nice to see that on back-to-back weeks because it's a continuation of a lot of things we've been working on from the previous week." For Norwalk, Brady Singer is 23-of-47, passing for 179 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions. Carter Harp has caught 13 of those 18 passes for 123 yards. AJ Weilnau also has 84 yards on 34 attempts, and Gavin Lepley has 85 yards and a TD on 14 attempts. Through four games, Nico Helton paced Norwalk on defense with 34 tackles. Brady Case has 25 tackles with a fumble recovery, and Lepley has 20 tackles and has intercepted two passes and broken up three others. Vermilion won last year's game, 21-0. The Truckers won, 27-0, in 2023, which was the first meeting since they topped Vermilion in back-to-back years in 2013 and 2014.