This year, the Rockets are 8-1 and will enter as the No. 4 seed in Class 4A. Their lone loss was to Springfield Sacred Heart Griffin, a 62-27 setback in the season opener. Since then, they have reeled off eight straight wins, with seven of them being blowouts. They have beaten Decatur Eisenhower (44-0), Springfield High (59-22), Springfield Lanphier (49-0), Chatham Glenwood (27-14), Springfield Southeast (54-6), Normal U-High (56-14), Jacksonville (42-14) and Decatur MacArthur (49-0).
Most people will figure Saturday’s game with No. 13 Effingham to a breeze for the host team.
But you won’t count EHS coach Brett Hefner and this group of Hearts among them.
They’re fully aware of who they’re playing. Just like they knew who they were playing last Friday night. Even though many were thinking mercy clock and an embarrassing outcome, the boys with the “E” on their helmets had other ideas.
The host Bulldogs jumped out to a quick 13-0 lead, but after that, it was a dogfight. The Hearts cut it down to a one-possession game before the hosts prevailed 34-20.
“It took us too long to adjust to the speed and tempo of that game,” Hefner said. “We can’t wait that long to adjust this week or we’ll be in trouble.
“But other than that, there aren’t enough words I can use to describe how proud I was,” the veteran coach added. “We were down 28-7, then went down the field and scored and eventually got it to one possession. They could have easily just decided not to fight. They knew we would make the playoffs. But I’m tremendously proud of the way we fought and competed. It says a lot about this team.”
Rochester features a balanced offensive attack. It averages 361 yards per game -- 175 on the ground and 186 through the air.
The Rockets will have one of the biggest quarterbacks a team will face. Senior Keeton Reiss is 6’ and 250 pounds. He has thrown for 1,617 yards, with 17 touchdowns and just two interceptions. He is completing 71 percent of passes – 98-of-138 attempts. He’s also run for 255 more yards and scored 10 TDs on the ground.
“They will throw the ball, but not as much as they’ve done in past years,” Hefner noted. “They’re a lot like us. They want to punish you and the run the football. But they’re still good at throwing it, too.
“Playing Highland was good for us,” Hefner added. “There are a lot of similarities with Rochester. Highland may pass the ball downfield vertically more, but the tempo and type of schemes they run are similar. It was a good test for us.”
Defensively, Hefner said the Rockets are “very active and very aggressive. What jumps out at me is how well they tackle. We’ll need to run the ball and use our short passing game. Keeping possession of the ball will be a key.”
Hefner has been pleased with what he’s seen in practice this week.
“There’s been a bounce in their step. They’ve really been locked in,” he said. “This group knows they’ve gotten better and is playing with a lot of confidence. They’re feeling pretty good with where they’re at right now.
“We’ve all seen Rochester play. We know their reputation,” Hefner added. “This is an opportunity to go compete and get a shot at them. If you’re any kind of competitor at all – and our kids are – you look forward to games like this. There’s no doubt in my mind they’ll go up there Saturday and compete their tails off with the intent of winning this game.”
Kickoff Saturday is set for 1 p.m.
