Raider Report: Racine Raiders-49, Lake Geneva Generals-24

Pre-game warm-ups in football tell more about how a team is gonna play than any other sport.  You can spot a team outcast if they’re doing all their drills alone, 20 yards away from the rest of the team. You can tell right away who’s is injured, out of shape, still a little hung over yet from Friday night.
Last evening, as the teams took the field about 45 minutes before the opening kick off, you could tell the Raiders had a tough game ahead of them. Their opponent was hitting hard, cutting sharply on the grass, and playing with high speed and energy. They looked sharper in their warm-ups than some teams do all season.

When one of my friends told me that the Raiders were playing a team from Lake Geneva, I expected a bunch of wealthy kids from Illinois, financed by their great grandfather’s Chicago-based chewing gum company.  I hold nothing against Lake Geneva, but anytime your city is called the Hamptons of the Midwest, it’s hard to picture your city having a good football team. I would expect Lake Geneva to have a national championship winning croquet club.

Turns out, their team was the exact opposite of what I expected. Lake Geneva had good size, depth, and athleticism. They didn’t all pull up in a fleet of Lamborghinis. Their uniforms weren’t made from the finest East Asian silk. They were just a pretty good football team. Last night was the Raiders’ first league game, and they definitely had to earn their second overall victory of the year.

The first half of the game was some of the most entertaining football I’ve watched at Horlick Field. Raider quarterback Craig McClelland had all day to throw the football, and he took full advantage, hitting guys in stride three separate times for touchdowns before half time.

Even more impressive was the Generals’ receiver, Ricardo Williams. His team threw the ball up against the summer sky, and twice he fought off defenders to grab the ball and score. Williams had one opponent he couldn’t defeat, however, that being his own hubris. After his second score, Williams injured his ankle during his celebration dance. He didn’t have the same explosiveness  for the rest of the night.

To end the second quarter, both teams had big plays on special teams. The Raiders returned a punt for a touchdown, electrifying  the crowd of nearly 1,700 in the process. On the ensuing kickoff, the Generals had an 80 yard return of their own, which quickly led to a touchdown.

When the dust had settled, it was 28-21, with the hometown team leading the way into halftime.\

The teams came back out for the final two quarters, but the Generals had lost their flare that had kept the game very entertaining early on. Lake Geneva’s elite players had tired themselves out, and the Raiders’ slightly superior size would help them pull away. Raiders’ running back JR Taylor had a couple runs that were pure heart and determination, as he persevered through defenders and gained yards. This allowed the Raiders to continue to score, and run out the clock.
McClelland finished with five passing touchdowns and over 300 yards. The running games was once again solid. The Raiders are finding their balance at the perfect time, now that league play is here.
There are still causes for concern for Racine’s team. For one, defensive back Eric Feest will miss multiple games with an MCL injury he suffered last weekend. His replacement, Laverl Johnson Jr., was burned twice on deep passes against the Generals, though his coverage improved as the game went along. Johnson Jr. is also a capable tackler, something you need from your cornerbacks to stop the outside running game.

The Raiders still seemed confused at times with their own running game. JR Taylor is a big, powerful back, who makes his yards running head first into the defense, using balance and determination to break off large runs. Yet multiple times again last night, the Raiders pitched Taylor the ball, or ran him on long developing plays towards the sideline. This often resulted in lost yards, as Taylor wasn’t able to get momentum going on these lateral plays. The Raiders have smaller, quicker backs that could be used on those stretch plays more effectively.

The occasional offsides and late hit penalties remain troubling. It seems like the Raiders accrue more late hits and silly mistakes late in the fourth quarter, which could be devastating in a close game. Like last week, when the Raiders fumbled away a chance to win a close game against the number one ranked team in the nation. In that game, the Raiders had too many penalties down the stretch as well.

Next week’s game will be the Raiders’ first away from home, as they will play at the Dane County Hawks.
If they can keep the balanced offensive attack and give safety help to Eric Feest’s replacement, they should be in good shape for another win.