Ironmen face Danville in must-win matchup

Ironmen need to win out to extend streak of 25-straight playoff appearances

Jeffery Woodard, Senior Staff Reporter • Sep 30, 2022

Image Courtesy of: Mr. Jeff Christopherson

Senior Cemeron Thierry put the Ironmen up early over Bloomington, scoring on a 37-yard touchdown run on the first series of the contest. The Ironmen would win 35-7 to improve to 2-3 on the season.

Following a 1-3 start, Community’s 35-7 win over Bloomington on Friday kept the Ironmen’s playoff hopes alive.

With the Big 12 Conference title out of reach, the Ironmen will need to win out in order to extend their streak of 25-straight playoff appearances.

For the Ironmen to hear their name announced on the IHSA Playoff Pairing Show on Oct. 22 they must beat Danville (3-2), Dohn Community (3-1) of Cincinnati, Peoria Notre Dame (3-2) and Peoria Manual (0-5).

The Iron take on the Danville Vikings tonight in their Homecoming game, looking to improve to .500.

Community is 15-3 all-time against Danville, winning their last matchup 31-14 over the Vikings in 2021’s shortened spring season.

Quarterback Chase Wiese was under center the last time the two teams met, throwing for two touchdowns and 190 yards — tonight, he will be on the sidelines after suffering a broken hand in Week 3’s 21-4 loss to Normal West.

Since Wiese’s injury, sophomore Kyle Beaty and junior Brady Augstin having been splitting time at quarterback.

The duo will look to score against a Danville defense that has allowed an average of 15 points a game.

Against the Raiders, Beaty completed 12 of 17 attempts, throwing for two touchdowns and 189 yards.

Augstin added a touchdown of his own with a 3-yard run in the game.

After allowing 64 points in Week 4 against Peoria High, the Ironmen defense bounced back against Bloomington.

The Raider’s lone score came after a 30-minute lightning delay, with a Marcus Griffin 2-yard run capping a 76-yard drive.

Danville, averaging 22.8 points per game, is coming off a 7-0 loss to an undefeated Champaign Centennial (5-0) team.

Danville’s defense accomplished something in Week 5 no other team had been able to do — shut down Centennial’s scoring. Centennial had scored 45 points or more against their first four opponents.

The Ironmen host the Vikings tonight at Dick Tharpe Field, with kickoff at 7:00 p.m.

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About the Contributor

Jeffery Woodard, Senior Staff Reporter

Jeffery Woodard is a senior at Normal Community High School and is involved in track & field. This is his third year working with the Inkspot, and he is a senior staff reporter. On the weekends, I enjoy hanging out with friends and going to the gym. In my free time, I enjoy watching movies of all sorts. My favorite film is "Black Panther."