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Bison ready to collide with 'legit' 4-0 Bulldogs
GERING, Neb. — When does a 51-point scoring average mean absolutely nothing?
When realizing these are not the Gering Bulldogs who surrendered 248 points to McCook during their past five varsity football meetings.
A lot has changed since the Bison last faced Gering in 2021.
The Bison (3-1) own a 130-40 scoring edge (35 to 10 average) over their first four foes ....
But those Gering Bulldogs (4-0) are rolling along at 36.7 points per game while allowing 15.
“Gering is a very solid team and their record speaks to this,” McCook coach Joe Vetrovsky observed. “Coach O’Boyle has them playing disciplined football and to top it off they have some nice players that make it all go.”
It’s the district opener for both teams Friday night as they really begin pushing for positions when Class B playoffs start in about one month.
Gering owns four wins over four teams who’ve only combined for four wins, 11 defeats.
So the Bulldogs obviously would get a boost from beating those 3-1 Bison.
Yet the same could be noted for McCook considering earlier wins over surprisingly struggling 0-4 Aurora along with 0-4 Crete last week.
Neither team will easily accept an “L” on Friday in Gering.
Vetrovsky provided more insights into these Bulldogs’ key players:
“They are led on offense by their running back Creighton Beals (5’10”, 175 pounds) who is a 300 high hurdle state champion.
Exceptional athlete that runs the ball with a purpose (88 yards per game through four contests).
Their quarterback Rece Knight (6’2”, 180 pounds) does a great job leading their offense and a true dual threat by running and throwing the football.
Knight has thrown six touchdown passes with only one interception so far this season.
He’s also rushed for 261 yards and four more scores.
His favorite wide receiver target is Barron Williams (5’10”, 175) who has five receiving touchdowns on the season.
Williams has averaged 59.5 receiving yards so far this season.
A ton of threats for Gering on offense and their offensive line has continued to improve week in and week out.
Their defense is led by outside linebacker Bo Gable (6’1”, 185 pounds) who is very athletic and pursues the football really well.
Gable averages 12.3 tackles per contest.
They are a disciplined defense that does a good job stopping the run and not giving up the big play.”
The Bison (3-1) are off perhaps their best defensive performance where they allowed only 36 rush yards to Crete and 88 total on Homecoming night at Weiland Field.
McCook’s offense also topped 30 points for third time in four games this season.
While junior Tristan Campbell topped 100 rushing yards a third time, the Bison found another new receiving target with senior Alex Landry making four receptions including one 20-yard second-half TD.
Projected Bison starters:
McCook’s projected varsity football starters when the Bison take on 4-0 Gering Friday night in Gering.
2024 McCOOK BISON
Game captains: Davien Hanson, Ethan Schmidt, Quentin Terry and Tristan Campbell.
Offense
| Pos | No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
| WR 20 | Alex Landry 5-10 145 Sr. | ||||
| WR 22 | Ethan Schmidt | 5-11 | 165 | Sr. | |
| WR | 7 | Tripp Raile | 6-2 | 165 | So. |
TE 45 Gabe Roberts 6-1 205 Jr.
| LT 64 | Simon Garcia | 6-0 | 205 | Jr. | |
| LG | 68 | Quentin Terry | 6-1 | 215 | Sr. |
| C | 55 | Trey Tiller | 6-1 | 215 | Jr. |
| RG | 62 | Davien Hanson | 6-5 | 215 | Sr. |
| RT | 73 | Beckett Heskett | 6-1 | 230 Sr. | RB 25 Tristan Campbell 5-10 155 Jr. |
| QB | 9 | Trenton Raile | 6-2 | 155 | Jr. |
Defense
| Pos. | No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. | |
| DL | 68 | Quentin Terry | 6-1 | 215 | Sr. | DL 78 Eidos Klein 6-3 295 Jr. |
| DL | 57 | Spencer Steinbeck | 6-4 | 315 | Jr. |
DL 88 Andrew Pochop 6-4 210 Sr.
LB 45 Gabe Roberts 6-1 205 Jr.
LB 44 Kalen McCorkle 6-0 170 Jr.
| LB 62 | Davien Hanson | 6-5 | 215 | Sr. | |
| LB | 21 | Oliver Corbett | 6-7 | 190 | Jr. |
| DB 22 Ethan Schmidt | 5-11 165 Sr. |
DB 8 Ty Junker 6-0 160 So.
| DB 7 | Tripp Raile 6-2 | 165 | So. | ||
| DB | 25 | Tristan Campbell | 5-10 | 155 | Jr. |
Special Teams
| Pos. | No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. | |||
| KO/FG/PAT 17 | Gunner Kaps | 6-1 | 140 | So. P 12 | Davien Hanson | 6-5 | 215 | Sr. |
Holder 7 Tripp Raile 6-2 165 Jr.
| Snapper 45 Gabe Roberts | 6-1 | 205 | Jr. | |
| Returner | 22 Ethan Schmidt | 5-11 | 165 | Sr. |
The seasons so far:
McCOOK (3-1)
| Date | Opponent | Result |
| Aug. 30 | At Beatrice (1-3) | W 56-6 |
| Sept. 6 | Aurora (0-4) W 33-14 | |
| Sept. 13 | At Waverly (2-2) L 7-20 |
Sept. 20 Crete (0-4) W 34-0
Friday At GERING (4-0) 7 p.m.
Oct. 4 Hastings (2-2) 7 p.m.
Oct. 11 Ogallala (1-3) 6 p.m.
Oct. 18 At Scottsbluff (3-1) 8 p.m.
Oct. 25 Lexington (0-4) 7 p.m.
GERING (4-0)
| Date | Opponent | Result |
| Aug. 30 | Torrington, Wyo. (1-2) W 34-14 | |
| Sept. 6 | At Mitchell (1-3) | W 40-26 |
Sept. 13 Alliance (1-3) W 47-12
Sept. 20 At Ogallala (1-3) W 26-8
Friday MCCOOK (3-1) 7 p.m.
Oct. 4 At Scottsbluff (3-1) 7 p.m.
Oct. 11 Lexington (0-4) 7 p.m.
Oct. 18 Chadron (4-0) 7 p.m.
Oct. 25 At Hastings (2-2) 7 p.m.