Bowman looks to turn some heads

Updated: August 31, 2011 10:04PM

First-year coach Rob Gross is definitely going the extra mile to try and change the perception of Bowman Academy’s football program.

The team is off to a 2-0 start as it heads into Friday night’s matchup with Hammond (2-0).

The wins, however, came against a couple of patsies — a 36-14 triumph over the non-IHSAA sanctioned Noblesville Lions and a 41-3 pasting of LaVille’s Lancers.

Getting a victory this week against Eric Schreiber’s Wildcats might be enough to get people talking about the Eagles’ football program — which is exactly something Gross is hoping for.

“I’ve been telling the kids they’re not a 2-7 team,’’ Gross said. “We’re expecting big things. I’ve been telling them that since the first day. With the talent that we’ve got on this team, there’s no way we’re 2-7. We’re going to try and flip the record and go 7-2. If we lose to any local schools, it’s going to be because of us — not them. We’re our own worst enemies sometimes. We have to be disciplined, and limit our penalties and mistakes. We have to stop hurting ourselves with the mental things — like jumping offsides, getting stupid holding penalties. It’s all the mental game. If we can stay disciplined, I don’t think anybody is going to stop us.’’

Gross said he has three goals for the Eagles.

“First, we want to win games,’’ he said. “Their goal should be to go 9-0. Second, I want to get as many of my kids playing at the next level as possible. I believe that’s my responsibility. I want to get as many of my players as possible some type of scholarship. The third thing is to win in the postseason and go deep into the sectional — deeper than we’ve ever gone before. We also want to create a stir and get people talking about Bowman football.

“There’s no disrespect intended to other local teams, but we want to make it so when you play Bowman, you don’t just chalk up a ‘W’ anymore, because Bowman isn’t going to be a bookmark anymore. You can’t just give your team a “W’ by scheduling us.’’

Bowman’s sectional includes Wheeler, Rensselaer and Andrean.

Catch the ball, will ya? Even though Morton is 2-0 following big wins over Griffith and Lowell, coach Roy Richards realizes his team has to clean up a few things in order to reach its full potential.

“I think we have to look at things we haven’t done well,’’ he said. “It’s not a mis-print we’re not throwing and catching very well. That’s where things have been difficult. Teams aren’t really honoring the pass because we’re not catching it. The safeties aren’t getting chewed out by their coaches — even though they’re getting burned — and that’s because we’re not making catches. The safeties and the cornerbacks aren’t afraid of getting beat.’’

So with a quarterback like Chris McCormack throwing the ball, what’s the problem?

“I don’t know,’’ Richards said. “All summer long, we caught it. In preseason camp, we caught it. I don’t know if it’s concentration or maturity.’’

All of Morton’s wideouts were junior varsity players last year, except for Alfred Dickey, who was a defensive back and didn’t play offense.

“We’re getting no production from the wideouts and I think they’re getting really frustrated,’’ Richards said. “We know we have kids who can catch the ball. They’re talented receivers and they have speed, but they have to catch it.’’

Amazingly, of the 45 passes Morton’s thrown in two games, not one defensive back has touched the ball.

“They’re not covering us, blanketing us, or knocking the ball down,’’ Richards said. “We’re just not catching it — and that has to change. We haven’t been in the red zone yet. All of our drives have been outside of the red zone. We’re not scoring in the red zone. That’s where the lack of consistency is showing up.’’

© 2012 Sun-Times Media, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be copied or distributed without permission. For more information about reprints and permissions, visit www.suntimesreprints.com. To order a reprint of this article, click here.