NORTH ENGLISH – Sometimes, a little snowball gently rolling down from the top of a mountain, can pick up speed, grow – really grow – and turn into a nightmare for the people down below.
Avalanche!
The English Valleys Bears had their own avalanche experience against the Montezuma Braves Friday evening, Oct. 18.
The Bears had an 8-6 lead in the opening minutes of the first quarter.
But over a span of 2:35, Montezuma scored 29 unanswered points.
The Braves kept their motors running, and took an 82-46 win. It was their sixth victory in eight games and it kept their playoff hopes very much alive in Class 8 football.
“It was a great game for us,” said Montezuma Coach Pat O’Brien. “The boys played extremely well.”
The 29-0 run started with a gadget play. Quarterback Eddie Burgess threw a lateral out to wide receiver Trey Shearer, who stepped back and threw a strike to fellow receiver Cole Watts. It was a 12-yard touchdown play.
Then, Braves lineman T.J. Townsend intercepted a pass that had been tipped by the 6-foot-4, 215-pound Burgess.
Burgess then passed 31 yards to Shearer for a score.
The Braves stripped the English Valleys return man and recovered the football.
Burgess then dialed his own number, and rambled 30 yards for another touchdown.
And then . . the Braves executed an onside kickoff, which Brian Diaz recovered for Montezuma.
Burgess then passed to Watts, 11 yards, and Owen Cook’s kick made it 35-8. That covered the elapsed 2:35, but there was more scoring left in the first quarter.
The next Braves score was of the spectacular variety, with Watts making a one-hand snag of a Burgess pass, the play covering 45 yards.
Montezuma led 42-14 at the end of the first quarter, and 63-26 at halftime, after piling up 423 yards of total offense.
“The onside kick recovery helped us get an extra possession that we capitalized on,” O’Brien said.
The 29-0 run also created separation between the teams. English Valleys (4-4), is a young squad with explosive capabilities on offense, and play-making talent on defense.
The Braves pass blocked extremely well during the first half.
Bears defender Nolan Grove wasn’t a major factor until after intermission, when he came up with a sack against Burgess. English Valleys’ Kaden Kubas came up with a second sack of the Montezuma quarterback.
But Montezuma’s defense rose up and forced a turnover on downs. The Bears forced Montezuma’s only punt.
Then Burgess hit Watts with a 36-yard scoring strike. It was 69-34 through three quarters and the teams traded scores in the fourth.
Burgess was 19-for-26 through the air for 353 yards and 7 touchdowns. He ran 16 times for 131 yards and four more scores. He even caught an 18-yard pass – no, he didn’t throw it – giving him 505 total yards of offense.
Montezuma had two receivers over 100 yards.
Watts was spectacular with 10 catches, five for touchdowns, and 196 total yards.
Trey Shearer caught six passes for 113 yards and two touchdowns, and was 2-for-2 through the air for 44 yards and another score.
Brian Diaz led Montezuma defenders with 11 solo and 4 assisted tackles for a 13.0 total. That included two solo and one assisted stop for losses. Shearer also had 2 tackles for loss.
Sophomore running back Beau Flander was a threat whenever he touched the ball for English Valleys. He gained 242 yards on 31 carries and rushed for three touchdowns.
Junior quarterback Cole Stephenson threw for 125 yards and three scores. Two of those went to Kaden Hall, who caught seven altogether for 57 yards.
But Montezuma’s offense – by scoring on most possessions – helped to limit the number of times English Valleys had the football.
Another factor: Montezuma’s kicking game.
“Owen Cook had another great game of kicking the ball!” O’Brien said.
“He put our defense in great field position.”
Cook kicked off 13 times for 454 yards and had four touchback kicks. He also was 6-for-9 on point after touchdown boots.
And, Trey Shearer toed Montezuma’s lone punt for 25 yards.
NUMBERS, PLEASE – Care to guess how many total yards of offense there were? According to stats kept by each team, Montezuma had 538 and English Valleys had 403. That’s 941.
You had better be in shape to play this game!
UP NEXT – The Braves host New London on Friday, Oct. 25, in the regular season finale.
Braves stats
Passing – Eddie Burgess was 19-for-26 for 353 yards and 7 touchdowns. Owen Cook was 3-for-4 for 12 yards. Trey Shearer was 2-for-2 for 44 yards and 1 touchdown.
Rushing – Burgess 16-131, 4 touchdowns; Connor Van Zee 2-14, Trey Shearer 1-8, Owen Cook 1-(-11).
Receiving – Cole Watts 10-196, 5 touchdowns; Trey Shearer 6-113, 2 touchdowns; Brayden Arendt 4-27, 1 touchdown; Ben Jorgenson 2-50; Eddie Burgess 1-18; Maguire DeJong 1-5.
Tackles – Brian Diaz 11 solo and 4 assisted (13.0 total) with 2 tackles for loss and 1 assisted tackle for loss; Burgess 4 and 1 (4.5), Joey Kercheval 4 and 1 (4.5), Kodie Strong 4 and 1 (4.5), Connor Van Zee 3 and 1 (3.5). Jack Brenner 1 and 5 (3.5), Trey Shearer 3 and 1 (3.5) with 2 tackles for loss, T.J. Townsend 2 and 2 (3.0), Brayden Arendt 1 and 1 (1.5), Eli Bustamonte 1 and 1 (1.5), Chandler Carl 1 and 1 (1.5).
Interception – T.J. Townsend 1-0.
Fumble recoveries – Arendt 1-0, Diaz 1-0.
PAT kicks – Owen Cook 6-9.
Kickoffs – Cook 13-454 with 4 touchbacks.
Punt – Trey Shearer 1-25.
Kickoff returns – Trey Shearer 1-19.