Coach Mike Roach said after the game that although he was very confident with his team this season, the score also had to do with the fact that the opponent was a rather inexperienced team, in their only second year in the league.
“The real test will be when we play Lacombe Raiders next week,” said Roach after the game.
He added that this year his team had a great advantage in that many of the first-year Cougar players were coming from a very strong football background from last year’s champions, the Panthers.
Follows the interpretation of the game by Coach Roach:
“Morgan Loshny was the quarterback in the first half and he threw touchdown passes to Braden Nelson and Bryce Fisher. Loshny also directed the ground attack that saw Ty Page add a touchdown and Braden Nelson add three more.
“In the second half Stephen Zuk quarterbacked the Stettler offense. He directed a ground attack that scored two touchdowns. Ty Page and Parker Cassidy were both able to make it into the end zone. Unfortunately, the Cougars had two touchdowns called back because of penalties. Nicholas Baharally was good on three of eight convert attempts.
“The defense played very well. The Phoenix managed only four first downs in the game.Stettler defenders had six tackles for losses, four fumble recoveries, and a number of pass knockdowns. Parker Cassidy, Michael Lalonde, Bryce Fisher, Devon Woelk, Ryan Gerl, Braden Nelson, and Mark Forrester were the top tacklers. Ryan Greene, Ryan Gerl, Morgan Loshny, and Bryce Fisher all had fumble recoveries. Greene and Lucas Rankeillor each had a pass knockdown.
“The coaching staff was pleased with the effort. The offensive line started three rookies - Riley Anderson,Jordan McCallum, and Dallas Bosma - something that rarely happens. Their play was excellent. Other starting offensive linemen were Matt Kirk and Michael Lalonde. On the defensive side of the ball, four rookies - Parker Cassidy, Ryan Greene, Riley Anderson, and Brandon Wintringham - started and played very well. The starting defense also featured Panther grads Ryan Gerl, Devon Woelk, and Nicholas Baharally.”
The Cougars will need to count down on penalties. They had nine penalties for 60 yards and two touchdowns were called back.
Saturday, September 12th there is a football double header. The Panthers host the Sylvan Lake Bears at 10 a.m. and the Cougars will host the tough Lacombe Raiders at 12:30 p.m.