3 Idaho high school football games you should not have missed in Week 3
It’s not often that Eagle’s typical high-powered offense is held to under 10 points. That’s only happened 12 times since 2004.
And in those games, the Mustangs were 0-12.
Well, that all changed Friday night. They were held to under 10 points, but managed to pull one out this time around in a 7-3 victory over rival Rocky Mountain in the annual "Herb Criner Bowl" at Thunder Stadium.
The win also snapped a seven-game losing streak against the Grizzlies (2-2). Eagle (3-0) had not held possession of the "Herb Criner" trophy since winning it during the inaugural year in 2016.
"In those seven years, it’s never really been a blowout. They’ve always been great battles. But it’s always been frustrating, obviously, coming up short. But it felt good to get that one after seven years," Eagle coach James Cluphf said. "It’s definitely a monkey on our back that we’ve had. So we’re glad to get it out of the way. We’re happy to move on after that sucker."
The top-ranked Mustangs scored on their first possession of the game via a 1-yard plunge from Noah Burnham with 6:53 remaining in the opening quarter. The sophomore was about the only bright spot on offense. He piled up 110 yards on 19 carries.
"He was a nice security blanket," Cluphf said. "If we ever need to get into a rhythm or get clicking on offense, it's nice to go to our bell cow there. We know he's going to be consistent and run his butt off. It's really nice to be able to lean on him."
But Eagle failed to do much of anything after that drive. It ended up having almost as many penalty yards (145) as offensive ones the rest of the way.
The Mustangs only managed two first downs alone in the second half. Lucky for them, their defense answered the call.
Especially in the first half.
Fourth-ranked Rocky Mountain mustered just 86 yards of total offense, including 23 yards on the ground. Senior defensive back Eli Mikita came away with the lone turnover on a fumble recovery midway through the second quarter.
The Grizzlies needed 17 plays alone just to get in position for their only points of the game on a 28-yard field goal by Shawn Thompson with 28 seconds to go in the half.
The Grizzlies were better in the second half with 126 yards, even though it took three different quarterbacks to do so. But none of them resulted in any points. It's the first time in six year they haven't scored a touchdown in a game. Eagle ensured it with three fourth-down stops, including a bat down by Thomas Priegel to seal it.
"I was ecstatic," Cluphf said about his defense. "It was awesome. They didn’t really give them any air. A couple drives here and there, but other than that, they played lights out. They really flew around and made the other team feel them, that’s for sure."
POCATELLO SHAKES OFF THE RUST IN TOP-FIVE WIN OVER TWIN FALLS
Pocatello was just ready to get back on a football field after having its game unexpectedly canceled a week ago.
The second-ranked Thunder shook off the rust in a 20-7 win over No. 4 Twin Falls in a marquee matchup.
"We definitely played far from perfect. I think it hurt us a little bit not having a game last week to work some of the kinks out," Pocatello coach Dave Spillett said. "So, it was nice to be able to do that against a really good football team on their own field and come away with the win still."
Pocatello (2-0) jumped out to an early 13-0 lead after scoring on its first two possessions of the game. They were both bombs from quarterback Dreyson Contreras to Julian Bowie.
Bowie is a Boise State University commit for basketball who returned to the gridiron this season after a year away. He finished with two catches for 140 yards and the two scores.
"He’s so explosive," Spillett said. "He’s tough to defend. They decided to try to go one-on-one and we’re gonna take that match up any chance we get."
The Bruins (2-1) got back into the game by locking up on defense for the rest of the first half before running back Wyatt Solosabal put them on the board at 13-7 in the third quarter. But that’s as close as they got.
Contreras, who finished with 294 yards through the air, went deep again. This time he connected with Hunter May for the 69-yard strike in the fourth quarter to put the game away.
Ryken EchoHawk ran for 77 yards on 16 carries, while Ty Wilkinson added two catches for 85 yards in the win for the Thunder.
BORAH’S NELSON RUNS ALL OVER KUNA IN BREAKOUT GAME
If you didn’t already know the name Jevon Nelson, you will now.
The Borah High senior running back had a coming out party in front of hundreds of spectators at Dona Larsen Park. He racked up 258 yards and four touchdowns in a 35-7 drubbing of 5A SIC foe Kuna.
Nelson came into the game with 450 rushing yards over the past three games. He now has 708 yards and 10 touchdowns through just four games.
"Jevon solidified himself as the best back in Idaho tonight," Borah coach JQ Kenyon said.
The Lions are 4-0 for the first time since 2018. They’ll have a chance to go 5-0 for the first time in 11 years when Mountain View comes to town next week.
"Players have been extremely motivated to make their statement on Borah football," Kenyon said.
