Linn-Mar Football

No.6 Lions cruise by Waterloo West, 40-0

As they rolled to a 40-0 home win over Waterloo West Friday night, the only thing that stopped the sixth-ranked Linn-Mar Lions was the clock.

They scored both on the ground and through the air to take a 37-0 halftime lead. With the continuous clock running the rest of the way, the game was over less than a half-hour later.

Still, Linn-Mar Coach Bob Forsyth was less than completely satisfied.

"We played a respectable game," he said. "But we still have a lot of things to work on, defensively and offensively. We saw some things we still need to correct."

Waterloo West did hold them under their 43.7 points per game season average (third in the state) and improved slightly on last year's 45-0 shellacking.

But, in truth, it was no contest right from the start. Pretty much what you'd except from a 0-4 team that has been outscored 164-68 against a 4-0 team with a 171-46 scoring margin.

As is usually the case, star quarterback Mark Atwater was the straw that stirred the drink for Linn-Mar. And this time, it was on defense as well as offense.

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Wantock rushes into spotlight at Linn-Mar

Mitch Wantock played fullback for Linn-Mar last season and helped the Lions make the playoffs. He did a lot of blocking for Jer Garman, but not much running.

Garman graduated and now Wantock is the featured tailback. From the look of things so far, the Lions haven't missed a beat.

Wantock galloped for 182 yards and two touchdowns Friday night when Linn-Mar walloped Dubuque Wahlert, 54-22, in a Mississippi Valley Conference game in Dubuque.

The Lions broke school records for rushing yards in a single game (514) and total offense (656) while raising their record to 3-and-0.

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No.8 Lions set records in 54-22 romp at Wahlert

DUBUQUE - Linn-Mar Coach Bob Forsyth could have trouble picking an Offensive Player of the Week for his ballclub after all the fireworks in Dubuque Friday night.

The eighth-ranked Lions broke a school record with 514 yards rushing, smashed another school mark with 656 yards of total offense and rolled up 54 points.

Here's an idea: Give an award to everyone.

Linn-Mar roared back from a halftime deficit and smashed Dubuque Wahlert, 54-22, in an entertaining Mississippi Valley Conference game at the Rock Bowl.

The Lions trailed, 16-14, at intermission and appeared in a speck of trouble, but they scored four touchdowns in the third period and put the game out of reach.

"We came out and exploded like we knew we can," said quarterback Mark Atwater, who rushed for 194 yards. "We ran the ball really well tonight. A lot of things clicked tonight."

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Smith beat bigger names for Linn-Mar award

Linn-Mar football coach Bob Forsyth announces the Players of the Week when the Lions get together on Mondays.

Everybody is eligible for the awards, but you might assume it would be tilted in favor of the "skill position" players like quarterbacks, tailbacks and receivers.

That being said, the winner of the first Offensive Player of the Week award at Linn-Mar was ...

Not quarterback Mark Atwater, who passed for three TDs and ran for another in a 35-10 victory over Jefferson on Aug. 29 ... And not receiver Andy Henry, who caught all three of those TD passes.

No, the winner of the Offensive Player of the Week award for the opening game was Dustin Smith, a soft-spoken offensive lineman who had a half-dozen pancakes against the J-Hawks. In football terminology, a pancake happens when a blocker flattens an opponent, like a pancake.

"Our guys take a lot of pride in that," Forsyth said. "He did a great job."

Smith has the skull-and-crossbones insignias on his helmet to show for the pancakes and his other good hits. He has 12 crossbones for the season already, so he's off to a good start.

He also has a special Player of the Week T-shirt, given to each of the winners. "It's just something to wear around to show who you are," he said.

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