Demons win big at Fort Madison

Washington head football coach Randy Schrader emphasized to his Demons last week that they needed to get off to a quick start on Friday at Fort Madison.

And they did just that.

Junior fullback Alex Coker ran for a 49-yard touchdown on Washington?s first play from scrimmage, and the Demons rolled to a 56-6 win over the Bloodhounds.

?Our kids did a nice job on the bus ride down getting ready and ahead of time getting ready,? Schrader said. ?You always want to get out of the chute quick. We kind of got into a groove and things just kind of fell our way.?

Washington (5-3, 4-1 Class 3A District 7) rolled to a 42-0 halftime lead. After Coker?s long touchdown run, the Demons quickly got the ball back, and sophomore quarterback Daryn Sebelius ran for a 5-yard touchdown. Senior defensive end Kyle Roder then intercepted a screen pass and returned it 24 yards for a touchdown that put the Demons up 21-0 at the end of the first quarter.

Sebelius threw a 42-yard touchdown pass to junior Tanner Knupp, junior Carl Sivels ran for an 18-yard touchdown, and Coker broke free for an 84-yard touchdown run, and Washington led 42-0 at halftime.

Sebelius scored a 15-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter, and then Schrader began to put in his reserves. Fort Madison (2-6, 1-4 District 7) scored on Washington?s second-string defense in the fourth quarter, with senior Landon Dohman running for a 4-yard touchdown.

Washington answered with one final score, though, with backup quarterback Jeff Knupp running for a 15-yard touchdown.

The Demons piled up 510 yards of total offense in the game, including 413 on the ground. Coker finished with 244 yards rushing and two touchdowns on just 14 carries.

?He ran hard,? Schrader said of Coker. ?He?s become a much more physical runner over the last two or three weeks. He?s done such a great job in the weight room that he can run over people or break tackles. He?s doing a great job right now.?

Sebelius ran for two touchdowns and also was 5-for-10 passing for 97 yards and a score.

?He does a nice job of managing the game for us,? Schrader said of his sophomore quarterback. ?He?s making great reads for us. We?re going into Week 9, so as a sophomore quarterback he?s gaining more confidence. He does a great job of running out his fakes and making great reads and doing the things we need our quarterback to do.?

With blowout wins over Mt. Pleasant and Fort Madison the last two weeks, Schrader feels his squad is beginning to click as it prepares to host Centerville this Friday night for the regular-season finale.

?They?re improving. As a coach, you want your kids to get better in everything they do every day, whether that?s on the field or in the classroom or in the weight room,? he said. ?We just need to finish strong here against Centerville. They?ve got a backdoor chance to get into the playoffs, and we don?t want anybody to get into the playoffs at our expense. It?s Senior Night, and we don?t want to leave any doubt that we?re the No. 2 seed in our district.?