With a 4-0 start to the high school football season, the Greene County Rams are gaining attention on a statewide basis. After the first three wins, the Rams broke into a number of Class 2A top 10 rankings, where they will stay after handling the Class 3A Gilbert Tigers by a 46-7 final on the road last Friday. The Rams are ninth this week in the Des Moines Register 2A poll, up one spot from a week ago, and the Associated Press had them at number seven.

The game with Gilbert brought with it a separate article in the Des Moines Sunday Register, outlining how the Rams beat the Tigers. The offense put together 494 total yards with a near identical balance between the run and pass.

The defense has come up with 15 turnovers in four games, and no team has effectively run the ball on the Rams and the Tigers were another case in point, with 36 rushing yards on 24 carries. Gilbert lost three fumbles against Greene County and all three resulted in points. Tyler Teeples recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchdown following a muffed punt late in the game. Cole Betts recovered the ball late in the first quarter after the Tigers tried a fake punt. The ball hit off the chest of a Gilbert player, hit the turf, bounced into his hands and the lineman rumbled 49 yards to the Tigers’ six  yard line, setting up the first Greene County touchdown. On the ensuing kickoff, Carter Morton recovered another Gilbert fumble and the Rams scored on the next play from scrimmage.

Class 2A District 9 action begins this Friday at Linduska Field in Jefferson when the 0-4 Shenandoah Mustangs visit Allensworth Field. The rest of the season has the Rams starting at 7 p.m. with coverage at 6 p.m. on KG98 and streaming on www.raccoonvalleyradio.com.