Playing in their first full game without all state quarterback Jake Hoffman, who suffered a torn ACL in his knee against Freeburg, the Red Bud Musketeers offense struggled but the defense came through big in a 3-0 win over Breese Central Friday night.
The win improved Red Bud’s record to 6-0 on the season, moved the team into sole possession of first place in the Cahokia Conference and guaranteed the squad a playoff spot.
“We knew this would be a tough game for us,” said Red Bud coach Dave Lucht. “You definitely find out what type of player you had in Jake when he is not there anymore. It was a tough situation for Zach Seibold to come in to. It was his first varsity start at quarterback and we were facing one of the best defenses in the conference. We have not lost any confidence in Zach, he will carry us for the rest of the season.”
The usually potent Red Bud offense that was averaging 47.6 points a game before the Hoffman injury was held to just a field goal and just 134 yards of total offense.
However, the Musketeer defense notched their second defense of the season to carry the team to the win.
“Thank God the defense stepped up,” said Lucht. “The kids rose to the occasion defensively. Central has a lot of speed out there and we were able to stop their big plays. I am very proud on how we pulled this win out.”
The dominating Red Bud defense forced three turnovers and recorded nine sacks while holding the Central offense to just 158 yards from scrimmage.
Kevin Crafton led the team with 10 tackles, and was also responsible for kicking the winning 30-yard field goal.
Red Bud’s defense set the tone for the game on Central’s first play from scrimmage, as Crafton  intercepted a pass and gave his offense the ball to start from its own 34-yard line.
Tyler Hubert got the Red Bud offense started with a 10-yard on first down, but the Musketeers couldn’t find a way to pick up another first down on the drive and were forced to punt four plays later.
Neither offense was able to find any rhythm in the first quarter, as each team picked up just one first down and combined for only 25 total yards from scrimmage.
Breese Central put together the first potential scoring drive as the Cougars marched down the field 55 yards on 12 plays to the Red Bud seven-yard line. The drive ended on fourth down when Nick Grapperhaus was tackled three-yards short of a first down by Tyler Magruder.
The Musketeers took over possession from their own 10-yard line but were only able to pick up one first down on the drive and were forced to punt the ball away after just six plays and a total of 17 yards.
Central gained two first downs and moved the ball all the way to the Red Bud 33-yard line. But the Musketeer defense came up big again as the unit held the first down run to just one yard gained, forced an incomplete pass on second down and Carl Borja knocked down a screen pass to set up fourth down.
On fourth down, Jason Greer was able to beat the Central offensive line for a quarterback sack to stop the scoring threat and give the ball back to his offense with a minute left to play in the first half.
Starting from their own 37-yard line, the Musketeers quickly pushed into Cougar territory with a 21-yard run by Hubert. After a nine-yard run by Seibold and a 18-yard pass to Alex Phegley, Red Bud had a first down on the Central 15.
The Musketeers were held to short gains over the next three plays, setting up a fourth down and seven yards to go.
Coach Lucht sent out Crafton for the 30-yard field goal attempt and the junior booted the ball down the middle of the goal posts for a 3-0 lead at the break.
In what turned out to be a key play of the game, Breese Central attempted an onside kick to start off the second half. The kick was mishandled by Red Bud and Central recovered the ball, but the play was ruled dead after an inadvertent whistle from a referee and a re-kick was ordered.
On the re-kick, Central again tried the onside kick, but this time the Musketeers fielded the ball cleanly at the Cougar 48-yard line.
The good starting field position didn’t help out the Red Bud offense and after three plays, the team was forced to punt.
Once again the Musketeer defense stepped up and the Cougars couldn’t even gain a yard on its next possession, as they were also forced to punt after just three plays.
Magruder fielded the punt and returned it 31 yards to the Breese Central 20-yard line.
The offensive struggles continued for Red Bud, as the team couldn’t get any closer to the end zone and were forced to try another long field goal. However, the Crafton kick from 37-yards out was wide left and the score remained 3-0.
Central’s next drive lasted just two plays, as Magruder picked off a pass from Austin Rickhoff and Red Bud took over from the Cougar 26-yard line.
After three consecutive incomplete passes and a short two-yard run from Hubert, the Red Bud scoring threat was over and Breese Central regained possession of the ball.
Central’s Jordan Lobb busted loose on two long runs of 13 and 25 yards respectively to get his team to the Red Bud 26-yard line early in the fourth quarter.
Red Bud’s defense regrouped and were able to push the Cougar offense backward over the next three plays to force a fourth down and 24 yards to go. On fourth down, Rickhoff’s pass was broken up by Crafton for the turnover.
Central’s last drive of the game made things interesting, as Rickhoff completed three passes for 41 yards to move the ball to the Red Bud 35-yard line.
On the next play from scrimmage, the snap was fumbled and Phegley was able to recover the loose ball to seal the win for the Musketeers.
Hubert finished with a hard-fought 105 yards rushing on 22 carries, while Seibold was 4-of-11 passing for 28 yards.
Red Bud hosts Metro East Lutheran (1-5) Friday night.