JASPER — Tony Lewis can’t say he nor his coaching staff did a good job in preparing his Jasper squad in Friday’s 37-6 loss to Southern Indiana Athletic Conference opponent Evansville Memorial.
The Wildcats (0-1, 0-1) dropped a game by 30 or more points for the first time since Aug. 19, 2016 — also a season-opening loss to Memorial, which was 41-7 — and its largest margin of defeat they have suffered since Lewis became coach in 2019.
“We obviously do a good enough job to prepare them,” Lewis said. “We didn’t play hard, we didn’t play with purpose, we didn’t play with a great attitude — and it was an embarrassing display.”
Lewis spoke to The Herald in July and said Jasper-Memorial is probably the best game in Southern Indiana to start the year — though Friday proved that not to be the case, amidst the hype and hoopla that usually comes with these two teams locking horns.
“We didn’t do a good enough job coaching and we didn’t play hard,” he said.
The Tigers (1-0, 1-0) scored on their early possessions, starting with a 19-yard field goal from junior Pate Barrett with 7:12 to go in the opening quarter — but they only got started, as minutes later, junior Dylen Kendrick took a 43-yard run to the house on third and four. Barrett converted the PAT, and the Wildcats saw themselves trailing, 10-0, with 4:37 to play in the opening quarter.
Wildcat junior Max Bueltel went 2-of-7 passing for 27 yards in the opening half — nearly throwing an interception on the first drive of the game and overthrew another pass in the opening quarter — and it only for things to go the opposite way for senior quarterback Matthew Fisher of the Tigers.
Memorial notched more than twice as many first downs (11) in the first half, as Jasper did (five), with Fisher going 7-of-12 passing for 120 yards and a touchdown.
The Tigers had a delay of game called on them towards the end of the first half but came back and responded right afterward when Fisher found fellow senior Luke Ellspermann for a 14-yard score. Barrett nailed the extra point, and the Tigers held a 23-0 lead with 12.3 seconds to play in the first half.
“We didn’t tackle in open space, we did not play the screen game well and we were out-physicaled up front on both sides of the ball,” Lewis said.
It didn’t help that one of the team’s captains, senior offensive lineman Tyson Ruhe, didn’t play Friday, and had a brace around his arm.
Lewis told The Herald Ruhe is supposed to get an MRI on Monday and the Wildcats hope to have him back next week, “but that’s still up in the air.”
The Wildcats tried but could not hold off Memorial in the opening drive of the second half, as the Tigers had multiple third down conversions en route to another Kendrick touchdown with 7:32 to go in the quarter — and Barrett’s nailed PAT put Jasper down, 30-0.
And the Wildcats both risked having a running clock against them, which they couldn’t fend off.
Fisher found junior Luke Dockery for a 17-yard score — and extra point put the Wildcats down, 37-0, with 7:17 to play. Jasper ended the shutout with a rushing touchdown by sophomore Drake Hagan and under two minutes to play — though the running clock continued and senior Marvin Mejia missed the PAT.
The passing game went opposite directions on Friday, as Bueltel went 3-for-10 passing with 38 yards and an interception, while Fisher was 14-of-26 for 230 yards and three touchdowns — though Lewis also noted Bueltel had no time to throw, given the problems Jasper encountered upfront.
Jasper is scheduled to be back in action Aug. 30 at home against Evansville Harrison, with different things to review today after Friday’s loss.
“There will be a lot of constructive criticism during film tomorrow,” Lewis said after Friday’s game.
