South Tama Quarterback Cody Blocker (3) looks for a running lane alongside running back Michael Henry (22) during last Friday night’s season opener against Roland-Story. The Norsemen defeated the Trojans 47-0. PHOTO BY STEVE BRANT

STORY CITY — The 2024 South Tama football season kicked off last Friday with a difficult matchup on the road against the Roland-Story Norsemen. While the Trojans hung tough in the first half, eventually Roland Story used a strong performance in all three phases of the game to pull away for a 47-0 win.

South Tama showed in the first half that they could have a solid defense in 2024. However, it was big plays that hurt the Trojans.

“I thought our defense played really well in the first half,” said senior safety/quarterback Cody Blocker. “We showed good potential by holding them to a field goal and a couple of breakout plays.”

After Roland Story scored a field goal on their opening drive, the first of those big plays came when Norsemen blocked a Trojan punt. With starting field position at the South Tama 22-yard line, the Norsemen scored on a 21-yard rushing touchdown by quarterback Sam Knoll, pushing the score to 10-0.

On offense, the Trojan showed glimpses of promise in the first half when Blocker found wide receiver/linebacker Nick Upah through the air for gains of 44 and 22 yards. However, Roland-Story held strong and sustained yards that were hard to come by for the Trojans.

Blocker finished the night with 88 yards passing. PHOTO BY STEVE BRANT

“It just was a challenge to get our offense moving in the first half,” Blocker said.

On the fourth possession of the game for the Norsemen, the big play struck again. After a key 7-yard sack by Upah, Roland Story faced a 3rd and 18 on their own 26-yard line. But Knoll was able to find wide receiver Aiden Frey for a 54-yard pass.

This eventually led to another touchdown for Roland-Story. But once again, the Trojan defense showed promise before the half ended, when senior cornerback Tyrus Clegg hauled in his first interception of the year. At the end of the first half, the score was 17-0 in favor of Roland Story.

To start the second half, Roland Story quickly put the game out of reach. On South Tama’s opening drive, the Norsemen sacked Blocker in the end zone for a safety. This was followed by a Roland Story drive that saw them begin to flex their muscles in the run game.

A steady diet of rushing by Knoll and their star running back Fiston Carlson led to a touchdown with 8:56 left in the third quarter. The Norsemen led 26-0 and never looked back.

STC Junior Garrett Surman (21) wraps up Roland-Story’s Ben Mazyck during last Friday night’s contest. PHOTO BY STEVE BRANT

“We knew coming into the game they had a top running back in the state,” Blocker said. “In addition to that, their quarterback did a great job moving the ball through passing and rushing.” The balanced attack continued through the second half, and Roland Story pushed the final score to 47-0. To end the game, Blocker finished 7/12 passing for 88 yards. Blocker was also the team leader in rushing attempts with 17. Upah led Trojan receivers with 2 catches for 66 yards. The defense was paced by junior Marcus Bear, who recorded 10 total tackles, 1 sack, and 3 tackles for loss.

The Trojans (0-1) will look to bounce back during their second game of the year on Friday night, Sept. 6 against Charles City (1-0). It is the home opener for South Tama in 2024 and kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

After a difficult first game, Blocker expressed optimism about the week and matchup ahead.

“I know our coaching staff is going to have us well prepared for Charles City. We need to have a good week of practice and perfect the plays we run. We need to stay focused and do everything one hundred percent,” he said.