Even though we had an early start time at 5 PM in 'the Grove', the stadium was rocking with our fans as we went against Elk River in our third game of the season.  Elk River provided a great challenge because of the unique nature of their offense and the mental discipline it takes to stop them play in and play out.  I thought our defense did a great job all night keeping them on their heels and taking advantage of the turnovers that presented themselves throughout the night.  Adam Brant had an unbelievable game with 11 tackles and probably one of the most memorable plays of the young season with a strip on a breakaway kickoff return that got us the ball back when things looked bleak.   Jake Engelken had nine tackles and a touchdown on a fumble return of over 80 yards, and Isaac Collins had a great game at safety with seven tackles.

Offensively, we were patient with the run.  Early on Elk River did a good job stopping us, but we maintained and still was able to run for over 280 yards for the game.   Clark Wieneke was able to run for 100 yards, Tyler Coyne rushed for near fifty yards as did Tahi Nomane.   One of the highlights of the game was Evan Pukal scoring from 51 yards on quarterback boot late in the game.  As the game went on, our offensive line started to gain control and really kept them moving backwards as our average yards per rush kept continuing to improve.   Also, Karl Altenberg had his best game at quarterback throwing for over 180 yards, completing 7 balls to senior wide receiver Brady Engelke, and another touchdown of over 50 yards to Clark Wieneke.  We have to continue to get better and better, but winning three games in a row is a great start and we want to keep it rolling this upcoming Friday at perennial power Blaine.  It will be a fun test.  Let's get that fourth step and keep getting better!