South Putnam Eagles look to continue soaring high

After capturing the Class A state title a year ago and moving up to Class 2A under the Indiana High School Athletic Association's success factor, the South Putnam Eagles have not missed a beat.

At 4-0 overall and 2-0 in Western Indiana Conference play, Chuck Sorrell's team could actually be better than last year's squad, as the Eagles continue to post video game numbers across the board. 

In a 49-13 win over Vincennes Lincoln last week, senior running back Ty Benton rushed for 220 yards and three touchdowns on 11 touches and caught another touchdown. On the year, Benton has rushed 43 times for 567 yards and 12 touchdowns. 

As an offense, South Putnam rolled up 521 total yards, with 373 coming on the ground. 

The Eagles have outscored opponents 207 to 33 heading into Friday's clash at Sullivan. 

But, the most impressive statistic may be the fact that South Putnam's starting defense has not allowed a single point in four weeks of football and, as a unit, the defense is only allowing 8.3 points per game. 

According to Sorrell, defense was a main point of emphasis for his team coming into the season. 

"We were trying to hang our hats on that all offseason. We wanted to get 11 guys swarming to the football. We lost a little bit of size off the defense, but we have a lot of speed. We have five defensive backs that have played for three years now. They've given up a lot of points and touchdowns, but right now they are clicking. We have a pick six in each game. It is an impressive stat. We've blocked a field goal to keep the shutout streak going. It would be nice if we had all shutouts," Sorrell told The Putnam County Post. 

As for whether or not South Putnam is where Sorrell thought it would be at this point, the veteran coach notes his team is ahead of schedule.

"We are a little bit better. Defensively, we got better really quick. I would like to see our special teams be a little better. Keenan Mowery-Shields has made every tackle on the kickoff team for four years, and we have to give him a break. We can always fix things, and there are things we will work on. You don't have to change your entire scheme to be a good team," Sorrell said.

Sorrell said another factor putting his team ahead of schedule is the pride they take in winning the battles in the trenches.

"We have really prided ourselves on winning the battles on the offensive and defensive line of scrimmage. It is what we've been beaten by. Linton beat us twice on the line of scrimmage. Lutheran beat us on the line of scrimmage. The last few years, we have hung our hat that we would win the battle on the line. We graduated a few offensive linemen, but we have guys who are hitting their blocks and getting stronger. We have four juniors and a sophomore who are really good. We have seven guys on the offensive line that can control the line of scrimmage. Hats off to those linemen, who pave the way for 350 yards on the ground," Sorrell said. 

One thing that hasn't changed with the success is the way Sorrell has coached his team, not only this season but through his career. 

"It's fun to win. You never take winning for granted. I have been at a program that couldn't win. I'm not coaching any differently now than I did when I was 0-10. We could, possibly, have an undefeated season, and I am coaching the same way. Players are sometimes easier to coach, sometimes you have talent, but you have to coach hard and not let them get complacent. I think the sky is the limit for this team, and if we keep getting better, some good things can happen. I know Cascade is out there, and if you get past Cascade, there's Lutheran. We have guys who know how to win football games. There are a lot of teams out there we have to get better for and we are focusing on getting to 1-0 each week," the veteran coach said. 

Big games are on the horizon for South Putnam, beginning with Friday's test at Sullivan. This continues through games against Owen Valley, led by former South Putnam athletic director Troy Burgess, and then Northview, who defeated the Eagles last year. 

"Going to Sullivan is never easy. Obviously, everybody thinks us and Northview could be 6-0. They'll be in the top ten in Class 4A and we will be in the top ten in Class 2A. They come to our place and it will probably be the game of the week in our area. It'll be hard, and we have a long way to go. If we do what we are we supposed to do, play the way we are supposed to and continue to improve in all three phases of the game, then good things could happen," Sorrell said. 

Sorrell admits before any of that, his team must find a way to defeat a Sullivan program that tested the Eagles a season ago, falling 10-0. 

Sullivan is led by running back Cody French. 

"They have weapons. The French kid was on the cover with Cole (Stephens) and Keenan (Mowery-Shields), so there's people in the state who think he's deserving of being one of the Top 25 or 50 players in the state. We have to control the run game. The quarterback throws the ball well and has a lot of passing yards. They have some big receivers. I think we have to control the line of scrimmage. Last year, they bottled up our run game and limited us to 10 points. We have to find ways to get our guys in space, and we may have to throw the ball this week," Sorrell said.