The wind blew, and for Montezuma, the “W” flew.
Meanwhile, all watching at Badger-Gabriel Field turned blue.
The Braves football team put together multiple phases of its game and handed the HLV Warriors their first district defeat, 56-44, on raw night that felt colder than it was on Friday, Oct. 11.
“One thing that stood out to me was our defensive linemen,” Braves Coach Pat O’Brien said. “They did a great job of setting the tone at the line of scrimmage.”
The offense? After a polite start, it got revved up and rolling.
“We just kept chipping away and things opened up for us,” O’Brien said.
The results left both teams with 5-2 overall records. HLV is 4-1 in District 4 of eight-man ball. Montezuma is 3-2. Both remain contenders for post-season play.
Braves quarterback Eddie Burgess passed 10 yards to receiver Cole Watts for a last-seconds touchdown that sent the Braves off with a 20-18 lead at intermission.
Montezuma outscored the Warriors 36-26 in the second half, but didn’t have its final margin until Burgess scored on a running play with 3:01 left in the game.
It was a team effort all the way for Montezuma, but you can’t dismiss what Burgess’ efforts meant to the Braves in this one.
The 6-2, 215 pounder had his usual big day at the office on offense, throwing for five touchdowns and running for three.
But on defense he hit like a wrecking ball from outer space. Burgess was credited with 16.0 tackles, including four solo quarterback sacks, and he recovered a key fumble right out of halftime, which the Braves converted into points.
Burgess was 14-28 through the air for five touchdowns and 227 yards. He called his own number on running plays 23 times, gaining 153 yards. That meant he was directly accountable for 378 of Montezuma’s offensive output of 412 yards.
Receiver Trey Shearer caught nine passes for 117 yards and two touchdowns. Watts caught three – two for scores – and 59 total yards. Ben Jorgenson caught a 37-yard scoring strike.
Brian Diaz backed Burgess’ big effort on defense with 12.0 tackles. Connor Van Zee had 7.5 and Arendt had 7.0.
“We tackled way better than the previous week,” O’Brien said. “Our angles and pursuit could have been better, but we got the job done.”
“One thing that stood out to me was our freshmen,” O’Brien said. “Each week this class of young men continue to step up when we need them to and make plays for us.”
“Trey Shearer did a fantastic job punting!” O’Brien said. “He averaged 40.3 yards, which put our defense in good position.” That included one drive which HLV started on its own one yard line.
“Owen Cook did a great job of kicking off and making PATs,” the coach said.
The Braves didn’t score in the first quarter and trailed 6-0.
But then the “chips” O’Brien talked about starting falling.
“We picked up blitzes better and did a great job of getting the ball in our playmakers’ hands,” he said.
THINK PINK – October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Montezuma’s cheerleaders collected for the cause during the night.
UP NEXT – The Braves visit English Valleys Friday, Oct. 18.
Braves’ stats
Passing – Eddie Burgess was 14-28 for 227 yards and 5 touchdowns. Trey Shearer was 0-1.
Receiving – Trey Shearer 9-117 and 2 touchdowns. Cole Watts 3-59 and 2 touchdowns. Ben Jorgenson 1-37 and 1 touchdown. Brayden Arendt 1-14.
Rushing – Burgess 23-151 and 3 touchdowns. Arendt 5-34.
Tackles – Burgess 12 solo and 8 assisted (16.0) with 4 solo sacks. Brian Diaz 5 and 14 (12.0). Connor Van Zee 4 and 7 (7.5). Arendt 5 and 4 (7.0), Trey Shearer 3 and 4 (5.0). Chandler Carl 1 and 7 (4.5). Jack Brenner 1 and 2 (2.0). Camden Michalek 0 and 3 (1.5). Jorgenson 0 and 1 (0.5). Kodie Strong 0 and 1 (0.5). Joey Kercheval 0 and 1 (0.5).
Fumble recoveries – Burgess 1-0, Kodie Strong 1-0.
PAT kicks – Owen Cook 2-3.
Kickoffs – Cook 8-296.
Punts – Trey Shearer 4-161 (40.3 avg.)
Kickoff returns – Trey Shearer 3-43, Masin Shearer 1-7, Arendt 1-6.
Punt returns – Trey Shearer 1-24.
