He might have to search a little harder, but Emporia State football coach Dave Wiemers promises to find something to grumble about after the Hornets’ impressive first game against Oklahoma Panhandle State on Saturday.
Turns out a 69-6 blowout victory doesn’t even get the Hornets a free ride in practice these days.
“As coaches, we’re going to find something wrong,” Wiemers said. “We’ll nitpick pretty good at that.”
The truth of the matter, though, is that the coach learned a lot about his team after its first game of the 2006 season.
His verdict — so far, so good.
“We had a team that we were better than and overmatched a little bit,” Wiemers said. “I just like the fact that we kind of took care of our business. We didn’t mess around too much.”
Though it might not have been against the best competition, the coach did get some answers to many of his burning questions entering the season.
One question revolved around the running game. With a more experienced offensive line, Wiemers believed his team could get back to a run-oriented attack and control the line of scrimmage.
It all looks promising after game one.
ESU set the tone early, rushing on the first five plays of the first possession for 46 yards and a 9.2-yard average.
The ground game would only thrive from there. ESU finished with 47 rushes for 299 yards on the ground, good for 6.4 yards per carry.
“I was excited with the run game,” Wiemers said. “We got some plays on the perimeter that we need to have. That needs to be a big part of our run game.”
Another reason for optimism was running back Seville Ko. After playing through an injury most of last season, the sophomore looked fully healed against the Aggies on Saturday.
The speedy Ko finished with 18 carries for 141 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He was replaced for good in the third quarter.
“I still felt a little bit rusty,” Ko said, “but that’s going to come with the first-game jitters.”
Other backs also proved they were capable of carrying some of the load.
Redshirt freshman Justin Wieser carried nine times for 52 yards and a score, and Emporia High product Colby Rainey had arguably the best run of any Hornet. The freshman used a stiff-arm and then a spin move to avoid defenders on a 33-yard TD run in the fourth quarter. He finished with five carries for 47 yards.
“We just found out we could execute like we planned on doing,” Ko said. “I think we did what we were supposed to do.”
The Hornets showed their versatility on offense as well.
Eight different players had receptions, and nine players scored in the rout.
“We definitely have a lot of deep threats,” ESU quarterback Ben Purkeypile said, “and a lot of guys to throw the ball to.”
The wide array of athletes that can catch passes should benefit Purkeypile all year.
Zac Teske was the leading receiver for the Hornets on Saturday, grabbing three receptions for 56 yards. At 6-foot-4, 235 pounds, Teske was able to give a big target and also be physical with defenders downfield.
Sean Partridge and Jermaine Barnett provided that deep threat ESU has needed to keep defenses honest. Partridge had three catches, and Barnett extended to take in a 35-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter.
Purkeypile had a solid game in his own right, playing well in his first collegiate start.
The sophomore was 11-of-16 for 199 yards and three touchdowns in limited action.
His performance was more impressive considering it didn’t start out so well.
Purkeypile fumbled the ball inside the Hornet 15-yard-line on the third possession, then threw an interception on the sixth.
Miscues like those might be minor in a 63-point game, but Purkeypile said he knew he would have to learn to minimize them quickly — especially with No. 17 Winona (Minn.) State coming to Welch Stadium this Saturday.
“The interception was just a bad read on my part,” Purkeypile said. “I overthrew him on top of it. It’s kind of a double negative right there, but it didn’t set me back.”
A bright spot on the defense was the amount of pressure sustained on the quarterback and the penetration of the defensive line.
After finishing next-to-last in sacks a year ago, ESU registered three on Saturday and also combined for 11 tackles for loss.
“We’re all just kind of getting healthy now,” ESU defensive lineman Matt McClain said, “which is good.”
That was the case for McClain, who started despite missing most practices with a bum ankle. He finished with a sack, forced fumble and two tackles.
The Hornets even executed with reserves, as the third unit finished the game up in the fourth quarter.
Every player who traveled with the team played except for Lebo High product Nathan Linsey, who will most likely be redshirted this season.
Though the 69 points was a record for a season opener, Ko said the team was making sure to put the contest in perspective.
After all, 1-0 is nice, but 2-0 would be even better.
“We’re not going to jump the gun; we know it’s a long season,” Ko said. “We’ve got a tough team next week, so we’re just going to get ready for that.”