Bearcat football improves to 7-0; one game left

Going into the home game Friday against Halstead, Ellsworth High School Football Coach Josh Homolka and his Bearcats were 6-0 — something Ellsworth hasn’t done since 1984.

In an interview Friday morning with the Independent-Reporter, Homolka said he wasn’t surprised at how his team was playing.

“I think that was kind of the goal for the last couple of years,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of guys who are playing for us, and you knew at some point they were going to be the same size as everybody else and a lot stronger and more physically ready to play. It turned out it was this year.”

Homolka said he has a good group of players.

“Really, overall, we’re a pretty young group,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of juniors playing for us. We’ve got two seniors we want to send out right. We’ve had guys put in a lot of time the last couple of years and a lot of reps, so it’s kind of paying off right now.”

The team defeated Halstead Friday night, 37-19, improving to a 7-0 record. But the record tells just part of the story. Ellsworth held their opponents scoreless in four of their six games. Against Beloit, the Bearcats won 14-6. And Oct. 7 at Russell, the Bearcats won by three points, 18-15.

Homolka used one word to describe why the Bearcats have come out on top so far — preparation.

“They’ve been running the same plays for three years,” he said, “so we’re pretty efficient at what we do, and we can add things. We’re pretty fast and we’re pretty physical on offense and defense, so it’s been a big deal.” Homolka said a lot of players have really stepped up this year for the Bearcats.

“Truthfully, it’s been a team effort on both sides of the ball,” he said. “There’s not one person who sticks out more than the other. You’ll have Wyatt Bohnen have a good game, then you’ll have Cole Webber have a good game or our offensive line will have a really good game. Loden (West) will play really well on defense. It’s different every week who has stepped up and who’s played well.”

Homolka said no one on the team has really surprised him.

He singled out the Bearcats’ offensive line as a major key to Ellsworth’s success on the gridiron.

“Along with that offensive line is Riley Stone,” Homolka said. “He’s done a lot of good for us on the offensive and defensive side of the ball down in the trenches.”

Homolka said his message to his players has been the same each week.

“Every day we’ve got to get a little bit better,” he tells his players. “Compete with yourselves and step forward every day. Let’s not stay even or go backwards. We’ve got to get better than we were yesterday.”

Homolka said for each of his players, that message is one they take to heart — do you get better in the classroom? Do you get better on the field? Do you take a step in the right direction or do you stay stagnant?

“We want to keep going in the right direction,” he said. “This is a really good group. They’re a fun group to coach. They’re smart and physical and they try to do the right things.”

Homolka said he doesn’t personally feel any pressure carrying a 7-0 record.

“But I don’t play,” he added. “I guess they (players) might feel some pressure. I don’t know. I don’t think so. We’ve done a pretty good job of just blocking everything out and taking each play, each quarter at a time and seeing where we’re at.”

Homolka said his players have done a good job of keeping their heads on straight.

“They don’t get too caught up in all the media stuff,” he said. “It’s a good thing that we’re getting a lot of recognition, but they also know they’ve got to perform to get that recognition, so it’s been good.”

Homolka said the team is a positive and close group.

“They’re friends off of the field,” he said. “They do a lot of things together, so it’s just not football. And they pull younger players in with them. So it’s a really close group, and that goes a long way when you’re close off the field and then on the field. It makes it a lot easier to play for each other, and they’ve done a really good job of that.”

Looking ahead, Homolka said Halstead is a good football team.

“We have a really good shot at having a home playoff game to start the playoffs,” he said, “so that’s big. Whether we get first or second in our district is out the window. It doesn’t matter. We’ve got to win this game (against Halstead) to get to that point and win the district.”

Homolka said because the team is undefeated, they have a target on their back.

“When you’re ranked in the state and you’re 6-0, you’re going to get the best team’s best shot, you’re going to get the mediocre team’s best shot and the not-so-good team’s best shot,” he said. “Everybody is going to come out, because that is a feather in their cap if they can pull it out.”

See page B1 for a recap of Friday night’s game.