BELVIDERE - Last year, Harlem didn’t have a chance to play its season opener against then first-year program Belvidere North because of a teacher’s strike.
Fast forward a year later, and both teams took the field at Funderburg Stadium, where Harlem pulled out a 24-7 season-opening victory against the Blue Thunder.
“It really meant a lot to come out here and be able to play,” Harlem quarterback Keenan Kellett said.
Harlem coach Jim Morrow was pleased with his team’s effort, but he would have liked more production out of the Huskies in the red zone.
The Huskies converted just one-of-six fourth-down opportunities in the game.
“We had a lot of missed opportunities,” Morrow said. “That’s something we have to work on.”
Kellett, who threw for 128 yards and one touchdown, agreed.
“We worked hard out there, but there are opportunities to work harder,” he said. “We just need to finish and get better.”
Despite Harlem’s troubles in the red zone and more than 60 yards in penalties, North wasn't able to seize the advantage.
Harlem led 14-7 at halftime, then shut out North in the second half.
“You have to take advantage of those opportunities,” North coach Curt Tobin said. “You have to sustain drives and make good plays. Tonight, we played hard and I am proud of our kids. There were times in the game when we needed to make a play, and we did that, but at other times, we didn’t.”
Johnny Jackson scored Harlem’s first points on a 28-yard run in the first quarter. Drew Terpstra converted the extra point for the Huskies.
The Blue Thunder got on the scoreboard after Harlem missed a field goal when Kenny Anderson capped off a 13-play, 81-yard drive with an 8-yard touchdown run. Lauren Waddell’s extra point tied the game at 7-7.
Kellett, who had been connecting with receiver Casey Beck for most of the game, took advantage of North double-covering Beck to hit a wide-open Peter Ruef for a 35-yard touchdown pass to take the lead for good at halftime.
The Huskies scored twice more in the second half.
- Brenda Young, rrstar.com
