Jack Redlin, Racine Raiders
The Racine Raiders continued their dominance into the playoffs with a 32-0 win over the Tri-City Outlaws to claim the Gridiron Developmental Football League Xtreme Conference championship and punch their ticket to the Gridiron Bowl XV national championship game. The Raiders extended their winning streak to 26 games, which puts them in sole possession of the second-longest winning streak in team history. The Raiders defense also extended their streak to 27 straight quarters without allowing a defensive touchdown, which goes all the way back to the first quarter of their June 8th game against the Tennessee Hornets.
The Raiders played a good all-around game throughout the night while only having a few hiccups here-and-there. The Raiders offense put up just over 250 yards while tallying one rushing touchdown to go with three passing touchdowns in their win over the Outlaws.
The Raiders defense showed their dominance throughout the night allowing just over 50 total yards while shutting out the Outlaws. The Raiders defense also added 13 sacks while forcing two fumbles, one which was recovered for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter.
The Raiders first score of the game came early in the first quarter after the defense forced a quick six-play drive. This resulted in the Raiders getting the ball at the Outlaws 43-yard line. A few plays later Andre Locke, Jr. was able to find Dillion Flores over the middle at the goal line and he powered his way into the endzone. Brady Wodack would come in and pushed the extra point wide making it 6-0 with just over eight minutes remaining in the first quarter.
The Raiders next score of the game came after a stellar defensive drive by the Raiders. The Outlaws had the ball at their own 17-yard line when the Raiders defense pushed them all the way back to the one-yard line. This resulted in a short punt which gave the Raiders the ball at the Outlaws 17-yard line. This led to a quick two-play drive where Locke was able to find a wide open Bubba Rewolinski over the middle on a shallow crossing route and Rewolinski walked into the endzone. Alex Gonzalez came on in his second game with the Raiders this season and added the extra point making it 13-0 with just over ten minutes remaining in the second quarter.
To open the second half, Jacquez Woodland showed off his return game by returning the opening kick 50 yards to give the Raiders the ball at the Outlaws 35-yard line. This turned into the ground-and-pound game where the Raiders gave Tom Benko the ball until he was able to power his way into the endzone. This led to a six-yard rushing touchdown by Benko and Gonzalez came on for the extra point but pushed it slightly wide making it 19-0 with just over 11 minutes remaining in the third quarter.
The Raiders next score of the game was the first play of the fourth quarter where the Outlaws had the ball at their own 26-yard line. During the play the Outlaws were looking to throw a deep ball when quarterback Dominique White rolled out of the pocket looking for extra time, but little did he know defensive lineman Antonio Dundy was right behind him. This led to Dundy putting a big hit on White which resulted in a fumble, but nobody could seem to secure the fumble and the ball got kicked back all the way to the endzone. Aarion Ivy sprinted to the endzone in order to recover the fumble and add six more on the board for the Raiders. Wodack would come on for the extra point but would have it blocked making it 25-0 less than ten seconds into the fourth quarter.
The Raiders final score of the game came with just over three minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Raiders had the ball at the Outlaws 48-yard line on third-and-medium when Sawyer Schick aired it out over the top of the defense to find Woodland at the goal line before rolling his way into the endzone. Gonzalez would come on once again and make the extra point making it 32-0.
Locke completed 9-of-16 attempts for 106 yards while adding two touchdowns and one interception. Schick completed 3-of-5 attempts for 57 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Leading the way in receiving was Rewolinski with three receptions for 47 yards and one touchdown. Right behind him was Woodland who added two receptions for 39 yards and one touchdown. Flores tallied one reception for 14 yards and one touchdown while Terrence Fitch totaled one reception for 18 yards.
The rushing leaders on the night were Locke who tallied five attempts for 29 yards. Right behind Locke was Benko who added eight attempts for 23 yards and one touchdown. Rashawn Herron totaled 15 yards on three attempts and Greg Kennedy added 13 yards on two attempts.
At the head of the defensive masterclass was Ivy who totaled five tackles, two sacks, and one fumble recovery for a touchdown. Dundy tallied three tackles, two sacks, and one forced fumble while linebacker Elvin Turner added five tackles and three sacks on the night. Leading the secondary before he got hurt in the first half was cornerback Corey Dalton who added a tackle with multiple pass breakups, but when he got injured safety Jordan Danowski stepped up by totaling four tackles and multiple pass breakups.
The Raiders will face the Upstate (NY) Predators (10-1) in the Gridiron Bowl XV on August 31st at Historic Horlick Athletic Field with a 7 pm CT kickoff. Tickets are available online through Hometown Ticketing. No tickets issued by either the Predators or Raiders for the 2024 season will be valid for this game as it’s a league-controlled game. More information is available at www.GridironBowl2024.com.
