Coal City runs past Streator in season opener

COAL CITY — Coal City football coach Dan Hutchings said after Friday night’s season-opening 48-0 win over Streator that senior Asa Cooper doesn’t get tackled very often in practice.

Cooper didn’t get tackled very often Friday night, either.

The 5-foot-10, 180-pound running back/receiver touched the ball six times, and scored four touchdowns. He carried the ball four times for 65 yards and three touchdowns, caught a pass for 16 yards and returned the second-half kickoff 97 yards for his fourth score.

On two of his rushing touchdowns and the kick return, he used his speed to outrun the Streator defense. On the other touchdown, he broke a tackle in the backfield before turning the corner and breaking two more tackles on his way into the end zone on a 26-yard scoring run. His other two TDs came from nine and five yards out.

“I don’t like to be tackled, whether it’s in practice or in a game,” Cooper said. “The offensive line did a great job blocking and we had a great game plan.

“I had a feeling we were going to win, but I didn’t know we would win like this. We just came out and took over from the start.”

Streator received the opening kickoff and got a first down on an 11-yard run by quarterback Tyler Luckey before being forced to punt. Coal City’s Kyle Gockman, a transfer from Plainfield Central, fielded Mason Telford’s kick at his own 44 and sped up the left sideline untouched for a 56-yard touchdown. Aydan Murphey’s extra-point kick was good, giving the Coalers a 7-0 lead.

Gockman then returned another Streator punt to the Bulldogs’ 25. Quarterback Keegan Crater hit Cooper with a swing pass for a 16-yard gain, then Cooper swept around the left side for a 9-yard touchdown and a 14-0 lead with 5:59 still to play in the first quarter.

“Asa doesn’t get tackled very often in practice,” Hutchings said. “He has always been fast, but he has another gear this year. Our offensive line - Austin Ellis, Dan Cueller, Nick Latta, Chase Wasielewski, and Joey Piatak - did a good job all night opening holes for the backs.”

On Streator’s next possession, Coal City’s Jake Cholico recovered a fumble at the Bulldogs’ 16. On fourth-and-goal from the 2, Crater scored on a two-yard run for a 21-0 Coaler lead.

Cooper’s five-yard touchdown run gave Coal City a 28-0 lead with 8:04 left until halftime. A 34-yard return by A.J. Benning gave Streator the ball on their own 45, and a 13-yard run by Luckey put the Bulldogs in Coal City territory for the first time. The drive stalled, however, and Telford’s punt went into the end zone.

Runs of 13 yards by Gockman and 25 yards by Cooper helped the Coalers reach the Streator 37. On third-and-15 after a holding penalty, Gockman ran for 12 yards to the Streator 26, setting up Cooper’s tackle-breaking TD with 1:50 to go until halftime, giving Coal City a 35-0 lead.

“We knew coming in this was going to be a tough game,” first-year Streator coach Kyle Tutt said. “They are ranked No. 7 in Class 4A and lost in the semifinals to the state champs last year. We knew they lost some seniors from last year, but Cooper is a special player. And, Coal City has a lot of tradition is and just a great program.

“Our guys played hard all game. We did some good things when we ran power on offense and our defense made a few good stops. We are still trying to figure things out and we did have some mental mistakes and bad snaps. But, the kids gave a great effort. We know it’s an uphill battle, but the kids gave all they had.”

Copper put the cap on his night when he returned the second-half kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown which began the running clock. Coal City’s final score came on a 5-yard run by Connor Gass.

“We couldn’t have drawn up a better start,” Hutchings said. “We’ll look at the film and find some things to fix, but overall, we played very well. The defense was very good and we didn’t have many penalties. Now we get right back to work and get ready for Manteno.”