By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Highland Park's football team is very proud of its offensive firepower.
But the Scots may be ever prouder of their work on the other side of the ball, with undefeated Highland Park pushing its shutout streak to four games with Friday's 48-0 Meadowlark Conference romp past Kansas City-Harmon at Hummer Sports Park.
Highland Park's defense gang tackles KC-Harmon's Nino Howard en route to its fourth straight shutout, a 48-0 win over the Hawks. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
"That was 100 percent the goal when I came here to this school,'' Highland Park coach Jermaine Monroe said. "There were a bunch of guys who wanted to play offense, nobody wanted to play defense and we wanted to build a defense, build a love for defense and get guys who strictly just want to play 'D.'
"We've got about 15 guys on the team who just want to be defensive guys and those guys are flying around, making big plays, and our defensive coordinator, Jacob Kessler, does a great job of keeping it simple for the boys so they can fly around and not complicate things and I think that's what makes it fun for our boys.''
Highland Park (4-0 overall, 4-0 conference), which has now outscored its opponents by a 174-0 margin, limited Harmon (1-3, 0-3) to just 33 total yards Friday night, with the Hawks getting no further than their own 45-yard-line.
Senior Craig Sipple is helping spearhead the Scots' defense at linebacker this fall after starting at quarterback as a junior.
"I'm having a lot of fun playing defense, flying around making tackles,'' Sipple said.
And Sipple said the Scots are savoring their shutout runs.
"It's crazy,'' Sipple said. "I'm telling you, I've never seen it been done here. This is literally the first time I've ever seen it be done, the first four games and no points let up. This is amazing.
"We have a big senior class and everybody wants to win. This is our last year, this is my last year, so everybody is really just trying to win.''
Highland Park senior Jamon Wilson leaves the Harmon defense in his wake on the way to a touchdown in Friday's 48-0 Scot win over the Hawks. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Offensively and on special teams Highland Park got another huge night from senior Jamon Wilson, who scored on a 55-yard run, a 48-yard run, a 50-yard punt return and an 89-yard kickoff run.
Wilson is also the point guard for Highland Park's basketball team and Monroe said Wilson's skills in that sport are carrying over to the football field.
"One thing he's blessed with is being able to cut at top speed but also I think he's using the skills he uses in basketball and translating them to this sport,'' Monroe said. "He's a point guard, so his field of vision and setting up his blocks and his cuts, he's always looking for the next move and I can see the way he's moving and if you could just put him on the court and add a basketball, he's making the same type of moves.''
Wilson said he's playing with a great deal of confidence and feels like he has the potential to score every time he gets his hands on the ball.
"Honestly, that's my goal is every time I touch it to score because we've got so many great scorers I don't know when the ball is coming back to me, so every time you touch it just take it to the house,'' Wilson said.
"This is very fun for sure. Very fun. Everybody is coming together and not one person feels left out. It's a great experience.''
Sophomore G'Honi Montgomery (35) celebrates a touchdown with Highland Park teammates CJ Brown (6) and Richard Miller. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Wilson, who was crowned Homecoming King at halftime, rushed for 119 yards on just four carries while sophomore G'Honi Montgomery gained 157 yards on six attempts, including TD runs of 22, 26 and 62 yards.
Highland Park took control with two first-quarter touchdowns and went to the locker room with a commanding 35-0 advantage.
Wilson opened the second half with an 89-yard kickoff return for a score and Highland Park forced a running clock down the stretch.
The Scots will take a break from Meadowlank Conference play next Friday, playing a non-conference game at Wichita East, which advanced to the Class 6A quarterfinals in 2023.
HIGHLAND PARK 48, KC-HARMON 0
KC-Harmon (1-3, 0-3) 0 0 0 0 -- 0
Highland Park (4-0, 4-0) 14 21 13 0 -- 48
Highland Park -- Wilson 55 run (Montgomery run)
Highland Park -- Montgomery 22 run (run failed)
Highland Park -- Wilson 48 run (run failed)
Highland Park -- Wilson 50 punt return (Brown kick)
Highland Park -- Montgomery 26 run (Fox run)
Highland Park -- Wilson 89 kickoff return (Brown kick)
Highland Park -- Montgomery 62 run (kick failed)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing -- Harmon: Fernandez 3-22, Carter 5-18, Bush 2-(minus)-4, Howard 1-(minus)-7, Hammer 7-(minus)-29. Highland Park: Montgomery 6-157, Wilson 4-119, Dontrail Fox 2-11, Cooper 2-1, Deylen Fox 1-6, Team 1-(minus)-2.
Passing -- Harmon: Hammer 5-20-1, 33 yards; Bush 0-1-0, 0. Highland Park: Dontrail Fox 2-6-1, 25.
Receiving -- Harmon: Howard 3-10, Taylor 1-19, Cervantes 1-4. Highland Park: Wilson 1-20, Montgomery 1-5.
Punting -- Harmon: Rodriguez 5-31.6; Walker 2-15.5.
