BaldwinCity.com

Lack of offensive production and big plays from Gardner-Edgerton were the ingredients for a recipe of disaster Friday night.

Most of the damage was done in the first half of the Frontier League matchup at Liston Stadium. It was enough damage to knock out Baldwin High School’s football team.

The Trailblazers (2-0) rolled over Baldwin 56-0. The Bulldogs (0-2) allowed 49 Gardner-Edgerton points in the first half of play.

“We didn’t come out ready to play,” coach Mike Berg said. “If you look at the third quarter, they had their starters in and they only scored seven points. We played with them and we were actually able to stop some drives. We didn’t do that in the first half.”

The Bulldogs only had one first down during the first 24 minutes of action Friday. During that same time span, Gardner-Edgerton gained 10 first downs.

The Trailblazers also ran 14 plays that gained 10 yards or more. Five of those were for more than 30 yards. They also scored seven touchdowns during the first half.

“We played a very good football team Friday night,” Berg said. “Again, we’re making mistakes and they exploited them. Their coaching staff is phenomenal and they have excellent athletes. When you make mistakes against a team like that, they are going to take advantage of it.”

Baldwin held Gardner-Edgerton to seven points in the third quarter, but still just had one first down on offense. The Bulldogs did put together one long drive in the fourth quarter.

They started at their own 38-yard line and marched inside Gardner-Edgerton’s 5-yard line. Then the Bulldogs fumbled the ball with 2:18 remaining, thus ending the contest. It was Baldwin’s second fumble of the game. Baldwin lost four fumbles in the season opener against Paola.

“I was happy that we improved on turnovers,” Berg said. “We only had the one toward the end of the game, after an early fumble in the first half.”

Baldwin started the season with losses at home to Paola and Gardner-Edgerton, both of which are now 2-0.

“The good thing about playing two good teams to start is they are going to find your weaknesses,” Berg said. “As a team, we have to fix those.

“It’s a learning curve,” he said. “We told the kids we have to hit the erase button and move on, but you have to remember your mistakes so we can correct them.”

The Bulldogs will try and get their first win of the season Friday in Spring Hill. The Broncos are also 0-2 after losses to Eudora and Louisburg. The BHS coaching staff is trying to remind its players that the rough start doesn’t affect the end of season.

“It’s a long season and that’s what we told our guys,” Berg said. “It’s not a sprint. It’s a marathon. We’ve got to keep our bodies healthy, focus on what our job is and keep getting better every week.”

Baldwin might also be giving some new and younger players a chance to shine on Friday night. Berg said the 0-2 start has the team trying to find anyone who will help the team win.

“We are going to look at some new kids on Friday night,” said. “There is no starting position that’s locked in for us. If you’re 2-0, as a coach you’ll stay with the same starters. But we’re 0-2, so we’re looking for anyone to step up. We want kids that want to play hard.”

Friday’s action begins at 7 p.m. in Spring Hill.

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