Rock Falls not sure what to expect from Rockford Christian

ROCK FALLS – There isn’t too much tape to study on Rockford Christian.

The Royal Lions pulled their football team out of the Big Northern in 2018 for the Northeastern Athletic Conference, then spent the spring in the NUIC before deciding to bring the football team back into the BNC fold this fall, so for Week 1 opponent, Rock Falls doesn’t quite know what to expect.

But that’s just fine with Rock Falls, who would prefer to be focused on the Rockets.

“You really have to focus on yourself,” Rock Falls coach Kevin Parker said. “That’s something I continue to remind our guys. Even if we were playing Stillman Valley or Genoa-Kingston Week 1, we still have to take care of ourselves that first week. I think we’ve done a pretty good job of focusing on that. It’s even better if you don’t know a whole lot about your opponent, but there’s lots of things you can fix through practice.”

Rockford Christian comes in with a new coach this year in Terry Gulley, a longtime teacher at the school who previously coached at Rock Valley College. Parker said he’s been able to sense some excitement from seeing TV interviews Gulley and his players have done this week with Rockford stations, excitement he tasks his players with matching on Friday night.

In addition to the new coach, new playmakers are going to have to step in for the Royal Lions after the graduation of quarterback Caden Norquist, who had 1,206 passing yards in the spring, as well as his two favorite targets in Isaiah Johnson and Collin Elsbree, who combined for 753 receiving yards and eight touchdowns in the spring.

But instead of worrying about not knowing what they will be facing on Friday, the Rockets are embracing it as a chance to improve themselves.

“We’re really trying to push each other and get ourselves ready for gameday,” Rock Falls junior Aidan Kobbeman said. “We’re really just trying to focus on ourselves and try to get better, run through our plays and practice.”

Rock Falls brings back its committee of running backs from the spring with Booker Cross and Dillon Schueler, as well as quarterback Jordan Jones, but in front of them on the offensive line, there is a little more youth.

“We have a few freshmen, and I think they’re going to do pretty well,” junior offensive guard Blake LeFevre said. “They’re holding up under pressure really well and it looks like they have some talent. Right now we’re helping them get better with the traps, we’re trying to help them get conditioned faster.”

On the other side of the ball, Parker said the defense is getting there. He’s excited in what he sees with the ability of his team to execute.

“I think we’re happy about where we’re at right now,” Parker said. “Everybody knows you can be out here looking good at practice and not have it ready to go up to that level you need to have at that first snap.”

With the countdown to the kickoff now numbering in hours, Parker is seeing excitement from his team.

“I think offensively we’re starting to come together in practice,” Parker said. “I think we just had a pretty decent session [Wednesday]. We’re feeling better about those things. You’re also looking to see who you’ve got banged up a couple days out. A couple things we’ve got to get fixed; otherwise I think kids are excited.”