“Mater Dei has thrown the ball more than they have in past years,” Hefner noted. “Part of that is because of their situation. They were forced to throw it more.”
The Knights will enter the game still looking for their first win. They were shutout, 35-0, by Columbia in the opener and then lost 49-13 to their cross-town rival Breese Central last week.
“They still want to run the ball,” Hefner explained. “They like to get the ball on the perimeter and then use play action in their passing game. They have some impressive skill players. We need to do a good job covering them.”
Mater Dei has not been impressive on offense yet. Turnovers have been a factor. Quarterback Chase Jansen has completed only 43 percent of his passes and has thrown four interceptions. He is 20-for-46 for 229 yards and one touchdown.
The Knights have just 398 total yards of offense in two games – 162 on the ground; 236 in the air. Running back Brett Himes has carried the ball 20 times for 117 yards. Their leading receiver is Reed Pingsterhaus. He has five catches for 86 yards and a touchdown.
“They’ve played two outstanding teams,” Hefner said. “Columbia and Breese Center are both really good. Plus, they’re playing a ton of first-time varsity players. They lost a lot of kids to graduation.”
Effingham and Breese Mater Dei have become familiar opponents the last several years.
“They haven’t really changed much and we haven’t either,” Hefner admitted. “We know each other pretty well. There’s a good understanding of what each other is going to do. But this team will be as well-coached as anybody we’ll play all season.”
Mater Dei has been outscored 84-13 and its defense is allowing 380 yards per game.
“Next to Mahomet, their defensive line will be the most physical line we’ll face,” Hefner said. “They’ll probably play straight man in the secondary without any safety help. They’ll try to make it as difficult as possible for us to run the ball. They are fundamentally sound defensively.”
That defensive approach makes sense against the run-heavy attack by the Hearts. Led by senior running back Weldon Dunston IV, Effingham has racked up 517 rushing yards in its first two games. Dunston has been the workhorse, carrying the ball 54 times already. He has gained 395 yards and found the end zone eight times.
The dual quarterbacks – Jaxon Bridges and Max Buzzard – have combined to complete 59 percent of their passes. Together, they are 17-for-29 for 231 yards. Bridges is 12-for-20 for 192 of those yards, while Buzzard has been more effective as a runner. He was a major factor in last week’s win, gaining 69 yards on 10 carries at Mt. Carmel. But he also threw a fourth-quarter touchdown pass that proved to be the difference in the game.
Hefner is pleased with his team’s 2-0 start and would like to see the squad play well Friday night in preparation for what lies ahead – Apollo Conference match-ups the next five weeks.
“I think we’re headed in the right direction,” the veteran coach noted. “Winning is hard. You can’t ever forget that. I thought we made a decent jump last week. We played a cleaner game. I hope this week is more of the same. This will be another good test for us. Hopefully, we’ll go down to Breese and play well.”
