Columbia beats Elco 42-35 to clinch a share of Lancaster-Lebanon Section 4 Title

Tagged under: District 3, Gameday Hub, pfn

Pat Weider | October 23, 2021

Coach Bud Kyle speaks to his team after a 42-35 win over Elco Friday Night. 

Columbia beat Elco 42-35 Friday night to improve to 7-1 on the season and to clinch at least a tie for the Section 4 title of the Lancaster-Lebanon League. Columbia was again led by Quarterback Robert Footman who passed for 13 out of 18 277 yards 4 passing touchdowns and rushed for two as well. Head Coach Bud Kyle “It feels great for the kids because they have worked hard, and see what the accomplishment is for this program. For the first time in 20 years we have a chance at an outright section title”. Footman on the win “It means a lot bringing that title back to the community and the school”.

Elco and their option-based rushing attack gave Columbia everything they could handle on the night. Running back Luke Williams had 45 carries for 226 yards and 3 touchdowns on the night. Elco was able to control the time of possession and keep Columbia’s offense off of the field most of the night, but they could not overcome the explosive plays by Columbia. Coach Kyle”We knew coming in they were going to be tough. We had a few big stops. Proud of the guys to fight against adversity to get the win”. Elco even tried several onside kicks, to try to steal a possession since they could not stop the Columbia offense even though they didn’t recover any of them. 

Footman and the Columbia offense had long stretches in the game where they were not on the field because Elco controlled the time of possession so much and Columbia had to defend the Elco offense. Footman credits the coaches for keeping him focused and ready to play. Footman “Thank god to our coaches for keeping our conditioning up”. Coach Kyle said this about his Quarterback “The kid makes plays. He is a natural leader. He is the one we look forward to holding everyone accountable”. 

When you watch Columbia and their spread offense it is hard not to come away impressed with their Wide Receivers. Consistently they always get open and make plays for their team and their Quarterback. Arthur Pointdexter, Demari Simmons, Demari Simms, and J’Von Collazo all caught touchdown passes from Footman tonight.  Coach Kyle on his Wide Receivers “It is a great thing when you got 6 different wide receivers. The biggest thing is we got depth compared to years in the past when we didn’t have depth at all”.  Footman on his wide receivers “It’s amazing. They are confident catching the ball and doing what they are doing and making plays”.

Lastly, Footman seems like he has total control of this offense. He has gotten better with throwing in the pocket. Footman said, “This is something I have tried to improve on during the season”. Then when the play breaks down he can make ad-lib and make great plays for his team.  Footman again “Running around and thinking that my guys keep playing and if no one is open I am out”. Footman and his teammates have been running around for 8 games and have a share of a section title to show for it, with much more to come going forward. Footman simply said, “Just keep our composure and keep playing”.  

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