LOWELL | Morton was late for the dance with Lowell on Friday night at the Inferno, and the Red Devils took advantage of the Govs' tardiness, so to speak.
Lowell (1-1) got a superlative effort from junior running back George Fields, who rushed for 257 yards and four touchdowns in a 26-14 win.
“It feels wonderful,” Fields said. “I’ve got my line blocking for me. It feels good.”
After Morton (0-2) finally got on the board in the third quarter to pull within 20-7, Lowell caught the Govs napping. With the clock winding down, Morton players slowly walked to the sideline, as they thought the quarter would end without a play.
Lowell quickly rushed to the line and ran the ball around the right end, as Morton scurried to get back on the field. Fields ran untouched into the end zone for a 45-yard run and a commanding 26-7 advantage.
“We saw them running off the field, and coach (Keith) Kilmer told us to run back and call a 34-iso,” Fields said.
“I would never do that to a friend,” Morton coach Roy Richards said.
Kilmer was remorseful about the play.
“I’m yelling across the field, ‘I apologize,’” he said.
In the first half, Fields broke free over the left side of the Morton line for a 14-yard touchdown run for a 6-0 lead. He put Lowell up 13-0 with his second TD of the night on a 63-yard jaunt just before the first quarter ended.
Fields did it again with a 43-yard burst for a 20-0 count with 3:24 left in the second. He finished the first half with 165 yards rushing.
“They had 11 guys inside our tackles, and we’ve got 11 guys inside the tackles, too,” Kilmer said. “It was just a matter of will, and he saw the vision.”
Meanwhile, Morton sputtered with its offense, turning the ball over twice on downs.
Quarterback Jimmy Glidewell hooked up with Nate McClurg on a 45-yard pass play to the Lowell 20-yard line in the first quarter, but the drive stalled at the 17.
Richards said he doesn’t understand why his charges aren’t ready at the opening kick.
“It’s what we see in practice,” he said. “It’s a lack of focus and a lack of concentration.”
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