Messenger photo by Britt Kudla: Will McElroy of Fort Dodge runs for a first down against Waterloo East on Friday inside Dodger Stadium.

Football is a sport driven by energy and enthusiasm.

Fort Dodge had to find its emotional footing on Friday as the program continues to process the pain of losing a former teammate.

The seventh-ranked (Class 4A) Dodgers handled tragic news from barely 24 hours earlier with maturity and perspective, taking care of business in a 36-0 shutout of long-time rival Waterloo East.

Head coach Nik Moser’s squad improved to 3-0 for the first time in four years by completely dominating the first half. The FDSH offense, which had struggled finishing drives the first two weeks, hit paydirt four times in the second quarter alone and racked up nearly 300 yards of offense before intermission.

The response was strong given what the Dodgers had faced mentally leading up to the game and before the opening kickoff. News spread quickly on Thursday that Isaiah Caldwell, a 2024 FDSH graduate and former first team all-district defensive end, had tragically died in a motorcycle accident. Caldwell was just 19 years old.

“It’s hard to put it into words or know what to say, really,” an emotional Moser admitted afterward. “Just an awful situation. Isaiah had such a presence. He was well-liked with a big heart and a great personality. And he was a really good football player for us. Our (current) senior class played with him and looked up to him. Our juniors knew him well, too.

“Our thoughts are with Dave, Leslie and their entire family right now. It’s a parents’ worst nightmare.”

Players wore “I.C.” decals on their helmets, and Caldwell’s old Dodger jersey — number 0 in red — was displayed behind the sidelines facing the home crowd. A moment of silence was held in Caldwell’s honor before the National Anthem.

Fort Dodge was able to regain its focus and quickly work into a rhythm once the contest started. Junior workhorse Will McElroy topped the century mark on the ground for the third week in a row, rushing 19 times for 123 yards and two touchdowns in only one half of action. Junior quarterback Tru McBride, meanwhile, had 139 passing yards and a pair of scores himself in the opening 24 minutes of action.

Senior Dalton Eckley caught both of McBride’s TD strikes, covering 13 and 26 yards. McBride also had a short scoring run.

“We didn’t mess around,” Moser said. “You don’t want to give a team that had struggled (in starting the year 0-2) hope — especially one like East that has playmakers.

“We were efficient offensively. The running game and passing game both did a nice job, and our offensive line was really strong in creating holes and giving Tru time. The offense did what it wanted to do, and the defense was lights out again. We played with focus and purpose.”

Ahead 36-0 at halftime, the rest of the game used a continuous clock in accordance with the 35-point mercy rule. Moser was able to substitute liberally, getting his reserves playing time for most of the third and fourth quarters.

Junior Logan Barkhaus added 70 yards rushing. Eckley, who had only two catches for 16 yards before Friday, caught three passes for 51 yards.

Senior John Hughes pounced on a loose ball — Fort Dodge’s first and only fumble recovery to date — and the starting defense held East to negative-4 yards from scrimmage in the first half with six more tackles for loss. Junior Jayon Preston-Grady recorded a sack.

Now the Dodgers head to the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls on Friday to face Class 5A foe Waterloo West (2-1).

“We got through the first three weeks, knowing 4, 5 and 6 would be tough,” Moser said of taking on West, No. 9 (4A) Sergeant Bluff-Luton and Spencer consecutively. “We’ve got three quality opponents in a row. They’re big games and great tests, knowing what our goals are and where we’d like to be come playoff time.”

Kickoff with the Wahawks is set for 7:30 p.m. This will be West’s Homecoming game.

Friday was the 67th all-time meeting in the series between Fort Dodge and East. The Trojans hold a 35-32 lead, but the Dodgers have now reeled off six consecutive victories dating back to 2014.

Fans inside Dodger Stadium participated in a “Pink Out” to bring attention to breast cancer awareness.

FD WE

First Downs 20 10

Rushes-Yards 38-210 25-54

Passing Yards 148 35

Comp-Att-Int 10-15-0 7-18-0

Total Yards 358 89

Punts-Avg. 1-32.0 4-28.5

Fumbles-Lost 0-0 2-1

Penalties-Yards 7-70 11-88

East 0 0 0 0 — 0

Fort Dodge 8 28 0 0 — 36

Scoring Summary

Fort Dodge — Will McElroy (5-yard run), 1:29 left first quarter. Noah Daniel pass to Dreshaun Ross.

Fort Dodge — McElroy (2-yard run), 10:54 left second. Bo Marsh kick.

Fort Dodge — Dalton Eckley (13-yard pass from Tru McBride), 9:31 left second. Marsh kick.

Fort Dodge — McBride (4-yard run), 3:58 left second. Marsh kick.

Fort Dodge — Eckley (26-yard pass from McBride), 0:57 left second. Marsh kick.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing — Fort Dodge: Will McElroy 19-123, Ezrah Barkhaus 14-70, Dreshaun Ross 3-13, Tru McBride 1-4, Noah Daniel 1-0. Waterloo East: Gianni Gary 7-49, Josiahs Spates 6-25, Norshawn Pompilus 6-23, Jayvion Higham 2-(minus-6), Jailen Coleman 2-(minus-6), Team 2-(minus-31).

Passing — Fort Dodge: Tru McBride 9-14-0-143, Reggie Pederson 1-1-0-5. Waterloo East: Jayvion Higham 6-12-0-26, Gianni Gary 1-6-0-9.

Receiving — Fort Dodge: Dalton Eckley 3-51, Noah Daniel 1-40, Kyree Rochon 2-35, Zak Jorgensen 1-10, Will McElroy 1-3. Waterloo East: Norshawn Pompilus 1-14, Jailen Coleman 1-9, Gianni Gary 2-5, Davieon VanArsdale 1-0, Jadyn Perkins 1-(minus-2).