**ARTICLE BY MICHAEL MARKOCH**
The Union Red Hawks are 3-0 to start the season for the first time since 1998. On Friday night, the Red Hawks played their first home game of the season at Houseman Field and kept their early season momentum going with a 48-20 victory over the Wyoming Wolves. The victory was Don Fellow’s 100th career victory as a head coach.
The game did not start out great for the Red Hawks, as the offense went three-and-out on their opening drive and Tommy Stevens, who is the quarterback and also the punter, dropped a snap on the ensuing punt attempt that set the Wolves up with the ball on the Red Hawk 15-yard line. The Red Hawks’ defense would be up to the task however, allowing no points after a fourth down stand inside the 10-yard line.
From there, the Red Hawks offense did the rest. On the next drive, Stevens recovered to hit senior wide receiver Brian Parks on a deep post route to give the Red Hawks a 7-0 lead. Union would score on its next four possessions, capped off by an Elijah Taylor 90-yard touchdown run with 57 seconds left in the half, giving the Red Hawks a commanding 35-0 lead into the halftime break.
Stevens ended the day with eight completions in nine attempts, throwing for 128 yards and two touchdowns through the air. The senior quarterback added 62 yards and another touchdown with his legs, giving him three for the night. However, it was Taylor that was the story on this night as the senior running back torched the Wolves for 258 yards from scrimmage, 218 of those yards coming on the ground, and three touchdowns.
For Wyoming, it was more of the same for most of the game as the Wolves were unable to really find any sort of offensive momentum in the first half. However, in the second half, the Wolves scored on all but one of their possessions. One of those drives was finished off by one of the plays of the night, when quarterback Ja’Quari Hayes connected with wide receiver Avion Joye for a stellar 60-yard touchdown pass through a defensive pass interference call with five minutes remaining in regulation.
The Red Hawks defense showed out once again in this victory, forcing four Wolves’ turnovers. Robert Dedrick IV led the team in tackles with seven, including recording the only sack of the game for Union. The Red Hawks outgained the Wolves 456-250, and dominated time of possession once again. Even though the Red Hawks gave up three touchdowns in the second half, their play in the first half made sure the result was never in doubt.
Union rises to 3-0 on the season and Wyoming stumbles to 0-3. The Red Hawks will be on the road next week when they travel to face the energetic Rockets of Reeths-Puffer, while the Wolves will hunt for their first win of the season when they return home to face Mona Shores.
