Saint Joseph Football 2021 Season

The Indians wrap up a 4-8 season after a sectional championship loss

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Jacob Deahl

Indians 2021 Football Season

After a troubling season last fall, the boys were determined to turn around their 2021 season. This dedication started in the weight room in the spring and workouts on the field in the heat of summer. Coach Whitten’s theme of “attitude, preparation, and effort” carried the team through each week of the year.

As the team prepared for the upcoming season, a raging quarterback battle emerged between Sophomore Alex Ortiz and Junior Marvin Lopez. Throughout the first half of the season, the coaches utilized both quarterbacks which brought a dynamic offensive attack for the tribe. To start the season, the boys played the Lakeland Indians who are a non-conference opponent. The defense got a shutout while the offense put together an impressive performance catching the dub 27-0. After the week 1 win, the tribe traveled to Northridge and fought hard but ultimately fell to the Raiders. The boys got back in the win column against John Glenn with another great performance by the offense, defense, and special teams. After starting strong, the boys experienced a rough patch in the middle of the season losing 6 straight games. The senior leadership by team captains Jacob Deahl and Zach Kennedy along with Coach Whitten’s reinforced themes of “attitude, preparation, and effort” rallied the tribe and turned the season around.

In the last two games of the regular season the boys rewrote their season and got back on track, the boys fought hard against Culver as it was tied 0-0 all game but lost 7-3 in the final few minutes. Even though the team lost, this game sparked a turnaround in the Indian’s season. They fought hard against NIC co-champion and rival Marian and battled on senior night but ultimately fell 16-6 against the Knights. They celebrated these seniors: Mattux Tarwacki, Tyrick Kamau, Aiden Hibbs, John O’Shaughnessy, Riley Zeller, Quinn McCormick, Jacob Deahl, Julian Karmanda, Gishawn Wiggins, Amarion Parker Jack Duddleson, Zach Kennedy, Teo Sanchez, Armand Cyusa, Zach Toul, Jacey Brewer, and Matt Przybylski.

Propelled by the great play against Culver and Marian, the tribe journeyed into the 4A State Playoffs. The boys knocked off number 13th ranked Logansport in the sectional quarterfinal winning 15-14. A game-winning goal-line stand by senior linebacker Mattux Tarwacki and the defense in the final minutes of the fourth quarter won the game for the Indians. In the second round of playoffs, the defense generated 4 interceptions, which led the offense to a 21-0 victory against Kankakee Valley. In the sectional championship against New Prairie the boys fought hard and gave everything they had for the trophy, but unfortunately fell short losing 35-3.

Special shout out to the sophomores and juniors who stepped up and made a huge impact on Friday Nights. Thank you to all the seniors, especially the core group of Mattux Tarwacki, Tyrick Kamau, Jacob Deahl, and Zach Kennedy for their effort and dedication to the SJFB program over the past four years. Roll Tribe!

 

Scoreboard

Week 1: Lakeland W 27-0

Week 2: Northridge L 39-14

Week 3: John Glenn W 27-9

Week 4: South Bend Adams L 21-7

Week 5: New Prairie L 35-0

Week 6: Elkhart L 37-6

Week 7: Penn L 34-3

Week 8: Culver L 7-3

Week 9: Marian L 16-6

Week 10: Sectional Quarter Final Logansport W 15-14

Week 11: Sectional Semifinal Kankakee Valley W 21-0

Week 12: Sectional Championship New Prairie L 35-3