As a unit, the defense allowed only 172 total yards – and 121 of those came on just two plays.

One was a fake punt, which Robinson pulled off on its very first series. Blake Green got loose around the end and scampered 46 yards for a first down deep into EHS territory.

The other big play came on their second play of the third quarter. Maroons quarterback Reese Johnson threw a short screen pass to Judson Pinkston. The senior wideout broke one tackle and scooted 79 yards down the sideline for the host’s only score of the night.

On the remaining 49 offensive plays, that Hearts defense held Robinson to 51 yards. That defensive front of Charlie Ring, Michael Love, Eli Middendorf and Kayden Mietzner created havoc virtually the entire game. They applied constant pressure on pass plays, recording five quarterback sacks and delivering a hit on Johnson after almost every pass attempt. Middendorf had three of those sacks.

“We need to lean on those guys up front,” Hefner admitted. “We weren’t lining up correctly early, but our pressure was real good. I thought that was the one constant we had tonight.”

After the fake punt, Robinson reached the Hearts 13-yard line, but a fourth down pass attempt was intercepted by sophomore Wade Bushur, giving EHS the ball at its own eight.

With an inexperienced offensive line and a new quarterback, nobody really knew what to expect. But senior QB Gaige Gillum relied on running back Weldon Dunston early and often. The junior back, who was the leading rusher on last year’s team, began racking up the yards quickly.

After five carries, Dunston had 54 yards, including a 28-yard romp that moved the ball across midfield. After the 12-play drive reached the Robinson 23, Hefner called on sophomore kicker Maicol Sefton and he drilled a 40-yard field goal to put the Hearts on the board just 37 seconds into the second quarter.

Each of the Maroons’ next three drives resulted in punts and Effingham responded after two of those with drives that reached the endzone.

The first was a quick strike, taking just 29 seconds. Gillum connected with Andrew Lotz for a 41-yard gain and Dunston covered the final 13 yards on the next play to make it 10-0 at the 4:45 mark.

The Hearts added to their lead with an impressive “two-minute” drive right before halftime. After a short punt, EHS took over at the Robinson 39. Dunston, again, was the workhorse, carrying the ball four times for 27 yards. He also caught a short pass from Gillum and ran it to the one. On the sixth play, Gillum covered the final yard to make it 17-0 with only 29 seconds remaining in the first half.

“When you have a quarterback playing his first varsity game, you’re never sure what you’re going to get,” Hefner noted. “With Gaige tonight, you saw some good, some bad. Overall, I was pleased with how he played and he’s going to just get better as we go along.”

Things got a bit tense as the third quarter unfolded. After the Maroons scored in the opening seconds, they got the ball right back. A handoff between Gillum and Dunston was mishandled, creating a fumble, recovered by Robinson’s Deacon Jones at the Hearts 27.

But four plays netted just three yards, giving the ball right back Hearts and they responded with a 10-play, 4½-minute scoring drive. Gillum went 3-for-3 in the possession, including a 21-yard strike to Hunter Reed and a 23-yard completion to Brodie Belcher. Gillum also had a 13-yard scamper and ended the drive with a 2-yard TD toss to Colton Webb to increase the EHS lead to 24-7.

The Hearts added one more touchdown in the fourth period. Dunston broke loose for a 24-yard gain and Gillum added a 16-yard run. Dunston capped the five-play drive with a one-yard run to account for the final points.

Robinson had one more scoring chance in the final minutes. After a snap sailed over the EHS punter’s head, the Maroons had the ball at the Hearts five-yard line. Three rugby-like running plays moved the ball to the one. But on fourth down, the Hearts defensive line refused to budge and then stripped the ball out of Johnson’s hands. It was recovered by Cam Raddatz at the three.

The Hearts finished with 348 offensive yards – 242 on the ground and 106 through the air. Dunston finished with 173 yards rushing on 28 carries and Gillum picked up 69 more on nine attempts. Gillum was 6-for-13, completing passes to five different receivers.

“Offensively, I really didn’t think we were very good up front,” Hefner said. “We will have to get better, plus we were missing some guys.

“But I thought Weldon looked good,” the veteran coach added. “He ran the ball hard. You could tell he’s put in the work during the offseason.”

The Effingham defense gave up 172 yards – 41 rushing and 131 passing. The Hearts were whistled for 11 penalties for 95 yards.

The Hearts will now prepare for their opener next Friday against Mt. Carmel.

“Things will get a lot tougher next week,” Hefner noted. “They have nine guys back on offense and six or seven back on defense. They’ll be physical and strong. But we’ll continue to work hard and get better.”

Kickoff at Washington Savings Bank Stadium will be at 7 p.m.