The Roland-Story Norsemen football team returns to action on Friday night, as they host the Greene County Rams on homecoming at Kerry Van Winkle Field in Story City, for a Class 2A, District 8 showdown. Roland-Story enters at 3-2 and 1-1 in the district following their 20-14 win over Southeast Valley, while Greene County also enters at 3-2 and 1-1 in the district after their 39-3 loss to Carroll Kuemper.
Greene County enters Friday night, looking to right the ship and get themselves back into the district title race, following their loss to Carroll Kuemper a week ago. The talented Rams squad is led by quarterback Gabe Ebersole, who’s thrown for 583 yards, 7 touchdowns and 1 interception, completing over 59% of his passes. Ebersole is also a threat to run, with a team-high 286 yards and 3 touchdowns, as the Rams use a two-running back system with juniors Nick Stream and Camden Strennen. Stream has rushed for 226 yards and 4 touchdowns, while Strennen has rushed for 208 yards and 2 touchdowns. Ebersole’s favorite target through the air has been senior receiver Jack Hansen, who’s caught 28 balls for 414 yards and 4 touchdowns, averaging nearly 15 yards per reception. Trey Schilling also has 2 touchdown receptions on the season off 2 catches. The Rams offensive line has seen its ups and downs throughout the year, and will be tested by a big, physical Norsemen defensive front.
On the defensive side, Greene County sophomore Chris Daugherty has emerged as a leader at linebacker, with a team-high 30.5 tackles, with 6.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. Fellow linebacker Gavin Scheuermann has also had a knack for big plays. with 17 tackles, 3 tackles for loss and a sack. Up front, senior defensive lineman Michael Rumley has made noise in opposing backfields, with 12 tackles and 6 tackles for loss, while Jackson Turner has tallied 3.5 tackles for loss and half a sack. The defensive backfield is a prolific one, as Nick Stream leads the unit with 21.5 tackles, and Camden Strennen has 19 tackles on the season. One area the Rams have exceled in throughout the season has been takeaways, as Greene County has 16 as a team. Senior Noah Cornell leads the team with 2 fumble recoveries, while Jack Hansen and Gavin Scheuermann have 2 interceptions each, with Scheuermann having a pick six under his belt.
Roland-Story will likely try to establish their rushing attack that has failed to crack the 100-yard mark in the last two contests. A re-establishing of the rushing attack could open up the skies for a more efficient passing attack, although Sam Knoll made many of the winning plays in the Norsemen’s win over Southeast Valley. The Norsemen defense will try and put pressure on Gabe Ebersole from the get out, to keep the Rams out of an offensive rhythm.
Kickoff is slated for 7 PM from Kerry Van Winkle Field in Story City on Friday night. The game can be heard on 95.7 KQWC or streaming online at kqradio.com.