Zizzers Defeat Lebanon 48-13, Go 5-0 For The Season
The undefeated Zizzers faced off against undefeated Lebanon in week 5 of regular season play in the Ozark Conference. These were the only teams with a perfect record going into week 5 – and everyone knew that one of these teams would walk away with a loss and ruin their perfect record.
Zizzer fans knew it would be Lebanon going home with a loss. But Lebanon didn’t go down without a fight – the Zizzers fully expected this and were prepared for it, handing Lebanon a 48-13 defeat. This was the first time this season for Lebanon to be held to under 41 points. And no team has scored more than 40 points on Lebanon this season… until they faced the mighty Zizzers.
Coming into the game, the Zizzer Defense had allowed only 7 points in 4 games. This Zizzer Defense was formidable last year, ranked the number one defense in the Ozark Conference in 2017. And they’ve only gotten better since last season. So perhaps Lebanon can find pride in the fact that they scored almost twice as many points in one game. Seriously. Lebanon’s offense drove at the Zizzer D with a diversity of offerings that pushed & stretched our Zizzer D to the point where they allowed 13 points to be scored on them. Most defensive teams would be happy with that, but our 2018 Zizzer Defense really likes shut outs!
And I’m pretty sure they’ll get another shut out or two before the regular season is over. Go Zizzer Defense!
So let’s brag on the big Z “D” for a bit. These guys love to pressure the QB (3 from #36 Taylor, 2 from #69 Robins) as they try to sack him. They love to defend against the pass (#11 Mitchell blocked 2) as they go for the interception (#39 Jett got one!). They love to cause fumbles (#66 Agnew)! And when it comes down to basics – they just love to tackle (88 total tackles against Lebanon). These guys are fun to watch! … unless you are the offensive team facing off against them.
Now let’s talk Zizzer Offense. This is one of the best Zizzer Offensive teams we’ve seen. Period. Coach Ary has so many viable options each play – there’s a Zizzer Offensive threat everywhere he wants to go. Thanks to a terrific offensive line, great receivers and running backs, and a solid QB who can scramble and pass, each offensive play is exciting to watch!
As expected, Brayden Lidgard got the ball. A bunch. To the tune of 5 touchdowns and 237 yards! Yep. Coach Ary likes to shove Lidgard down the throat of the defense. And when it takes 4 or 5 guys to take him down every single play, you can understand why Coach Ary likes Lidgard. He just wears them down. Again and again. And then he breaks free… and goodbye!
Rackley handed the ball to others well: #18 Marcak (2 carries for 1 TD and 19 yds), #45 Cobb (1 carry for 4 yds), #34 Parker (2 for 12 yds), #39 Jett (1 for 5 yds) and #14 Lucas (2 carries for 31 yds!). And Rackley had a couple QB keepers as well (2 for 8 yds). But QB Rackley threw the ball a bit also, completing 9 out of 11 for 122 yards. 1 completion went to #87 Warren for a TD! Warren had 3 completions for 29 yards. #45 Cobb had 2 for 31 yards. #18 Marcak had 2 for 53 yards! #14 Lucas had 2 for 9 yards.
The game went like this: Zizzers started out by marching the ball down the field with Lidgard and finished the drive with a pass to Marcak in the end zone. Cressman got the extra point. 7-0. Mitchell deflects a Lebanon pass and Jett recovers it. Zizzers drive for another TD & extra point. 14-0. Zizzer Defense stops the Lebanon drive. Zizzer Offense takes over and drives for another score. 21-0 in the 2nd quarter.
Lebanon answers with a successful drive, 21-7. But the Zizzers put together a fast drive for another score, 28-7. End of first half.
In the 2nd half, Lebanon put together a successful drive but missed the extra point, 28-13. Zizzers attempt a long pass, but Lebanon gets called for pass interference (and we have the photos to prove it!). Add to that TWO (yes two!) consecutive unsportsmanlike conduct calls on the Lebanon sidelines, for a total of 45 yards in penalties. They basically handed the Zizzers another TD opportunity – which the Zizzers used to their advantage, 34-13 after a blocked extra point attempt from Trey Cressman. Zizzers would score 2 more times with successful extra point kicks, ending the game at 48-13.
This was an exciting game from beginning to end! We expected this to be the biggest challenge / threat to the Zizzers this season (along with Camdenton), and Lebanon put up a fight that pushed our Zizzer Defense to work harder than they’ve had to before – which is a good thing! This only serves to help strengthen them for the post-season.
NOTE: Camdenton, Lebanon and Rolla are in the Top 10 in their classes in the media statewide football rankings this week. The only team to defeat all three of them? Yep, you guessed it: The Zizzers!
