October 2, 2015 at 1:21 p.m.
One of those games you just had to see
Whatever that something turned out to be it worked and the Pointers rolled out 36 unanswered points the second half to win 50-36.
How did it happen?
"Honestly, we did not really discuss x's and o's," Palzkill said about the halftime talk. "Our lack of execution in the first half really led me to believe that if we did execute in the second half all of things we had practiced all week could work."
It would be hard pressed to find anyone watching the whole game to disagree.
"We just focused on the kids and why we weren't playing up to our ability," Palzkill continued. "They certainly responded and I am proud of the way our team just put it all out there in the second half and as we gained momentum, we just continued to play with more confidence."
Some of the thanks for the second half rally has to go to Pointer quarterback Scott Pittz.
Pittz started the second half with a six yard scoring run then handed off to Lucas Sanchez who traveled 30 yards to score. He then ended the third quarter with a 39 yard scoring strike to Dane Pfaff and carried the ball in for a two point conversion that tied the game. That score came with 41 seconds left in the frame.
Pittz wasn't done yet. He raced in from the six at 4:55 then scored again with four seconds left to complete the comeback and get the Pointers the win.
While Palzkill had plenty of respect for Pittz's effort he felt the win was the result of team play.
"The difference in the second half was that we played with energy, emotion, and confidence," Palzkill said. "Scott did a great job leading the charge and our entire team responded. He ran tough as always, but we were able to create more running lanes for him due to our offensive line following rules and taking care of their assignments on each play."
"Scott always has that extra," Palzkill continued. "He is a great leader and a consistent player for us. The difference in the second half was that his teammates all stepped up as well. It was a true team effort and as we gained confidence and executed properly, things seemed almost easy for him. "
Iowa Grant coach Gary Allen agreed that Pittz was a difference maker the second half.
"Pittz can hurt you in several ways," Allen said. "Mineral Point did everything better in the second half. That made Pittz even more dangerous because we had to defend the pass, Sanchez, and Pittz. They got going and we couldn't stop them."
Pittz finished with six pass completions for 94 yards, all in the second half. He also ran for 96 on 24 attempts.
Sanchez did everything he could the first half to keep the Pointers in the game. He scored both touchdowns on big runs of 41 and 54 yards.
Brayden Johnson had a five touchdown first half and was a force for the Panthers. He scored on runs of 16, one, three and 51 yards then hauled in a 17 strike from Panther quarterback Caleb Hill with 3:13 left in the first half to finish the 36 point run.
Hill passed to Acea Upmann for the sixth Panthers score, threading the needle from four yards out.
"Brayden seems to be getting stronger and better as the season goes on," Allen said. "He runs very aggressively and takes good care of the ball."
Palzkill agrees with that assessment of Johnson's ability.
"He is a great running back and IG has a very good football team," Palzkill said. "We were able to contain him the second half because of our effort. We took care of our defensive responsibilities and pursued to the football."
Johnson had 42 carries for 286 yards.
In Allen's assessment the Panthers had problems matching Mineral Point's intensity the second half.
"Our kids started the game with a lot of intensity. They were focused on their jobs and played well together," Allen said. "In the second half we had a mental let down and Mineral Point took it up a notch. We didn't match their intensity."
Not to be overlooked are the three big runs Sanchez made for touchdowns for the Pointers. He also finished the game with 177 yards to his credit on 11 carries.
"Lucas is a very athletic and strong back," Palzkill said. "He does not go down easily and will always break at least one tackle. When we do a good job at point of attack he is able to break that tackle downfield and turn plays into big gains. Lucas has really settled down and is understanding the offense better each week. We will need a great performance out of him again this week."
Defensively the second two periods were different from the first two for the Pointers.
"We were certainly a different team in the second half," Palzkill said "The defense began to fly to the ball, but did their responsibilities under control so they could make play within our concept. We had many missed tackles in the first half and most were due to kids playing too high and not being athletic and breaking down their feet."
Palzkill said Cummings made huge plays up the middle and Dane Pfaff did an outstanding job of setting the edge.
"That helped us when they tried to run jet, toss, and stretch," said Palzkill. "Dane's emergence was great to see and he is capable of playing like that for us the remainder of the season."
Allen was also pleased with some of IG's defensive play.
"Our secondary had very good coverage," Allen said. "That is something that has really improved this season."
The Panthers plan to rebound quickly and get ready for the milk can game Friday at Fennimore.
"As usual we are trying to play better this week than last week," Allen said. "Our kids are resilient. We will be ready."
Going against the Golden Eagles won't be an easy task.
"Fennimore has gotten healthy the last couple weeks," said Allen. "They have some size and speed. We will need to play well."
The Pointers will have their hands full too as they travel to Cuba City to take on the ranked Cubans.
"We have Cuba City this Friday and this is an important game to both teams," Palzkill said. "It means a lot in terms of seeding for the playoffs. They are a great program and they are coached very well by Guy Koppe and Steve Graber. It will be a good football game and we are looking forward to the opportunity to earn a win this Friday night."
