Dodgers try to get back on track
Fort Dodge returns home to face Spencer
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Four weeks still remain in the regular season, but the Fort Dodge football camp is well aware of the weight Friday's game against Spencer now carries on its own.
The ninth-ranked (Class 4A, Bound) Dodgers and No. 8 Tigers square off in a District 1 showdown that will likely help shape the playoff picture down the road. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
Spencer is 3-2 and coming off an early league swing victory over Le Mars. For the first time this season, meanwhile, head coach Nik Moser's squad is in rebound mode after Fort Dodge (4-1) suffered a loss at third-rated Sergeant Bluff-Luton.
"We saw areas we need to grow and learn from and correct (watching film)," Moser said. "You're never as good as you think you are after a win and never as bad as you feel after a loss, so we're taking a level-headed approach to this and moving on.
"Spencer is a really good, really well-coached ballclub on both sides of the ball. They're successful year in and year out under Coach (Jim) Tighe's system. We'll have to be at our best again."
Fort Dodge reached the fourth quarter tied at SB-L last week, but the Warriors pulled away with a 21-point blitz. Now the Dodgers will try to avoid an 0-2 district start that could strain their hopes of eventually reaching the playoffs for a third consecutive year.
"We know what's at stake," Moser said. "There's a long road ahead, but we have to first focus on the immediate (task at hand). This should be an outstanding matchup between two really solid football teams, and I'm hoping the community comes out to support our kids. Having a big crowd means so much to them and to us."
Senior quarterback Tru McBride had 184 passing yards for FDSH last week and added a 47-yard scoring run. McBride hit Sam Moser for a 66-yard TD strike.
The Wayne State (Neb.) College recruit is 233 yards away from becoming the Dodgers' fourth quarterback ever to reach 4,000 career passing yards.
Senior Will McElroy added 91 yards on 22 carries. McElroy has climbed to 13th on the program's all-time rushing charts at 1,656 yards, and is 90 yards from the Top-10.
Spencer's offense is fueled by dual-threat quarterback Larson Vulk. The junior has thrown for 366 yards and five touchdowns, while rushing for 488 and six scores as well.
"He's an outstanding athlete," Moser said of Vulk. "He's completing passes at 20-plus yards (per reception) when he does throw, and averaging over eight yards per carry. A talented, tough player."
Temiloluwa Otaniyi, a 190-pound offensive back, has rushed for 532 yards and four TDs.
"(Otaniyi) is another threat," Moser said. "He's really good. So is (6-foot-3, 200-pound senior Ryan) Berends (the team's leader in tackles and tackles for loss).
"I've been impressed by what I've seen from them on film."
Sophomore Landon Muhlbauer has three interceptions for the Tigers.
Senior Jayce Skow has been joined by classmates Sam Moser and Jayon Preston-Grady as the Dodgers' most active defenders statistically. Junior Cael Adams had two tackles for loss at SB-L and is now the squad's leader in that category, just ahead of classmate Luke Beckley and senior Alex Beekman.
Fort Dodge has taken the last two matchups with Spencer after the Tigers won three in a row from 2021-23.
After a long and wet stretch, conditions are expected to be near perfect on Friday. Temperatures are predicted to be in the upper-50s during the game with very little wind.