Bladt stresses fresh start as Cyclones open district play

HCHS (4-0) hosting winless Saydel for Homecoming

 HARLAN (Sept. 24) -- It’s Homecoming week for the Harlan Community football team, and the top-ranked Cyclones are riding high after wins over four high-profile teams.
 Their opponent Friday night at Merrill Field is lightly-regarded Saydel, an 0-4 squad facing HCHS for the first time ever at 7:00 p.m.
 So how do the 4-0 Cyclones guard against complacency in this, their opening Class 3A, District 6 game of the year?
 “That’s the question every coach asks,” said third-year HCHS head mentor Todd Bladt.
 “You [can] get a big head if you’re 4-0, but really... we’re 0-0. We’re starting district play and every team in the district is going to start 0-0. You don’t get to take anything you’ve done in those pre-season games... Everybody’s got to start with a fresh coat of paint here and we’ve got to get the job done on Friday and get the district started out right.”
 In other words, while those wins vs. Lewis Central, Grinnell, Sergeant Bluff-Luton and Glenwood were certainly fun, impressive and big in their own way, the next five weeks are much more important in terms of Harlan Community’s playoff aspirations. The Cyclones will be heavy favorites in all five games, but they must make sure to take care of business and keep on improving week to week.
 Bladt says that Saydel is a team searching for chemistry and good fortune following non-district losses to Clarke (43-6), South Tama (33-0), Chariton (33-18) and Newton (35-6).

Full story in Sept. 24 Harlan News-Advertiser

 
 

 

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