MOUNT VERNON — President Harry Truman famously had a sign on his desk which read, “The Buck Stops Here.”
After Mount Vernon’s 12-0 win over the Highland Fighting Scots on Friday night, that could very well be the mantra for Yellow Jackets Coach Mark Weber.
In a game riddled with penalties, Weber was not about to lay the blame on the shoulder pads of his players. With a fire in his eyes, he said that solving the psychological puzzle of the game is squarely on him.
“We addressed the penalties, and they got worse,” the coach noted. “The weeks we haven’t talked about them, they get a little better.”
At this point, the mentor believes that he needs to wear at least one more hat, not only that of head coach, but also of psychologist.
“It’s like we talk about these things and they get worse; why is that? It is psychological. I have to be a better leader, and figure out the psychology,” he said.
Still, Weber noted his defense played well in recording the first win of the season.
“Proud of the denfense, they practiced this hard all week,” the coach said.
It did not take long for the penalty bug to bite the Jackets. The first play from scrimmage could have served as a foreshadowing of what the game had store as the Jackets were flagged for a false start moving the ball in the wrong direction.
The teams traded possessions until with 5:28 remaining in the first, Bryce Hollenbck took a pass to paydirt. Then with 4:47 remaining before the intermission, Landon Dawson pushed the one yard needed for another Jacket score.
The 12-point gap would be all that was needed for the win.
Next Friday, the Jackets travel to Johnstown-Monroe to face the Johnnies.
The Scots drop to 1-2 and will travel to Marion Harding next week.
