South West Illinois News

What are the first steps toward improving on a great season?

In Eldorado High School's case, it's by getting more defensive, and there are few walls more impenetrable than the Eagles defense, which started the season 5-1.

In the Eagles' first five games, they allowed 6.2 points per game — with one of the opposing scores coming from that team's defense — and registered four shutouts. That average is better than last season's 12.3 points per contest allowed as Eldorado marched to a 10-1 record and the Black Diamond Conference title.

In that five-game span this season, Eldorado allowed a total of 678 yards of offense to its opponents, an average of 135.6 yards per game. Through the Eagles' sixth game, opponents had put a total of just 57 points on the scoreboard.

“I think the thing we focus on trying to do here defensively is we try to keep it real simple for our kids so they can play fast,” Eagles Head Coach Brandon Hampton told Southwest Illinois News. “I like how hard our kids are playing. We're tackling really well.”

The Eagles' defensive dominance begins up front with the linemen and linebackers, Hampton said. Ross Harris led the team with 54 tackles through the first five games, with Jacob Traxler second with 48. Eldorado's two outside linebackers, Max Kasiar and Tyler Gass, have been starting for three years apiece, Hampton said, and that shows in their production. Gass had a team-high seven tackles for loss and three fumble recoveries in the first five games, while Kasiar had five tackles for loss. Hampton also cited Tysen Bradley (three tackles for loss, one forced fumble) and Braden Attebury (two tackles for loss, two fumble recoveries) as key players.

“We've got a lot of veteran football players that played a lot of football for us, and they're extremely physical,” Hampton said.

The ferocity of the front part of the Eagles' defense is a big boost to the team's relatively young secondary. There are several new kids playing in Eldorado's defensive backfield this season, Hampton said, but they are doing some good work, especially working in conjunction with the pressure on the quarterback the defensive front provides.

Eldorado's ballhawking has also been strong in 2016. In the first five games, the Eagles forced 12 turnovers — nine fumble recoveries, three interceptions — in the first five games and have scored two touchdowns off those. Hampton said the team has always been able to create turnovers, but this year's Eagles being able to score off opponents' mistakes has been fun to see.

“That's something you kind challenge your defense with: If you want to be a great defense, you know, start scoring a little bit,” Hampton said.

The only points Eldorado has allowed this season came all in one game — the Eagles' 37-34 loss to Carmi-White County on Sept. 10. Hampton said after that adversity, the team went right back to work that following Monday and then shut out its next two opponents.

“The neat thing about our football team is just the way they practice each and every day,” Hampton said. “They go out there, we're not trying to outwork or out grind people, none of that. We're just trying to play.”