MADRID — All-State speedster Michael Santi only needs a tiny sliver of space to get loose with the football. Once he does, the results is almost guaranteed.
Santi nearly single-handedly carried Madrid to a 47-12 mauling of Woodward-Granger Friday. The senior carried just 12 times but amassed 250 yards rushing and four touchdowns. For good measure, he ran down W-G’s Tanner Vermaas, ripped the ball away, and returned it 68 yards for another score. He also had a 55-yard return of an interception, but was kept from scoring on the play.
Madrid honored former coach Randy Hinkel, who suffered a fatal heart attack Dec. 20. With family members gathered on the track, a statement was read honoring the Hall of Fame football coach who will be posthumously inducted into the Iowa track coaches Hall of Fame this winter.
The Hawks recalled teammate and friend Drew Jacobson by carrying his No. 58 jersey onto the field for the ceremonial coin toss. Jacobson, who would have been a senior this year, collapsed at a basketball practice Dec. 2 and succumbed to a rare heart condition five days later.
The Tigers will wear a special “RH” decal on their helmets this season, with the Hawk headgear sporting a “58” sticker.
With an intermittent light rain falling, neither team made much traction in the early going. Madrid cashed in the first time they gave the ball to Santi out of the wishbone as the senior burst free for a 71-yard score. He added a TD of over 50 yards midway through the frame, then robbed Vermaas of the pigskin and racing the other way for a 21-0 Tiger lead after 12 minutes of play.
Vermaas scored on a five-yard dive in the second quarter, but the score stood at 34-7 at the intermission, all but settling the matter. A 40-yard TD spurt from Vermaas in the fourth quarter was the only other score for the Hawks.
“We dropped too many passes and had too many penalties, both of which set us back when we were moving the ball at different times,” W-G head coach George Ashman said. “Those are fixable things, and we will be at work on them this week in practice. You might not think so, but there were several positives we can take from how we played and we will work to sharpen those, too.”
W-G connected on just two passes for only 11 yards, but, with Madrid 0-for-2 in the air, the high-flying attack was a non-issue for both squads.
Madrid ran 51 times for 444 yards and five scores, with Aaron Sperling scoring on a six-yard dash and Keaton Adams on a three-yard plunge to go with Santi’s four rushing scores. Bryce Dean had 67 yards on six runs and Wyatt Smith 56 yards on 13 totes to help lead the attack.
The Tiger defense intercepted two passes and recovered three fumbles, with Logan Gray making 7.5 tackles, with Smith and Sperling adding six stops apiece.
Vermaas ran well for W-G, finishing with two scores and 156 yards on 18 carries. Payton Tague (4-31), Austin Scharlau (6-15) and Brendan Bird (2-4) also hauled the ball as W-G accumulated 206 yards on 30 attempts.
Bird caught one pass for six yards, and connected with John Stucker for a five-yard reception to account for the only passing yards in the contest.
Devan Kirckman’s 7.5 tackles led the W-G defense, with Alex Kirton providing 5.5 denials and J.P. Nixon and Vermaas four each.
Madrid travels to Earlham Friday, with W-G beginning the first of three consecutive Friday nights at Hawk Stadium. They will host Van Meter Friday, will play as the visitor to Woodward Academy when District 5 play begins Sept. 9, and will then host Central Decatur Sept. 16. All games will begin at 7 p.m.
You can do your part in keeping our coverage of Woodward-Granger sports coming with a $5-per-month donation to ThePerryNews.com. To get started, simply click the Paypal link below.
