The Garden Plain Owls were one of the few teams in the state of Kansas to kick off their 2023-24 season last night. The Owls used their dominant run game and clock management to beat the Conway Springs Cardinals (Garden Plain 20, Conway Springs 14).

Sophomore’s Emrick Hays and Pete McGregor were a big help in the Thursday night victory for the Owls. The duo combined for 235 yards (Hays 126, McGregor 109). 

Hays was the bellcow on offense, getting a lot of carries and even breaking a couple off for big gains. After fumbling the first drive, he was able to bounce back and punch it in the next drive. “We are a run-first team. When we can get three to four yards a carry, one is bound to spring for a big play or even a touchdown” says Hays. On defense, he made many tackles and was able to nuetralize any outside run that came his way.

McGregor stepped up on offense, picking up first down’s in clutch situations. Defensively, he was able to fill alleys and was very physical with receivers coming over the middle. Mcgregor said, “The biggest key to us winning last night was getting Kunz on the ground. Going into the game, our goal was to hold him to minimal gains and I would say we met that goal.” 

Leadership and spirit were a big part of this win, but nothing compares to the tradition of Garden Plain football. “All of our preparation goes into what we want to do on Friday nights,” says Junior right gaurd Hank Lilly, “All of the workouts, weight lifting, and conditioning was all so we could succeed. Even though it wasn’t pretty, we managed to get it done.”

The Owls week two matchup will definitely be a tougher opponent. The Cheney Cardinals are an outstanding football team, who throw many formations at their opponents. Similar to week one, the Owls will have to focus on a specific player. This week, their focus is on Jackson Voth. Voth, a 5 ’10’ ‘ 185 lb. wide reciver, is headed to New Mexico State University next season. He will be a definite test for the Owls secondary. 

Head Coach Todd Rice was definitely satisfied with the Owls week one performance. Hoping to build on it week two when the Owls visit rival Cheney on September 8. It will be a game to watch as both of these teams have climbed the rankings in their respective classes.