Scott Swanson
Sweet Home needed a turnaround after two deflating league losses and it came on Homecoming night for the Huskies, who ran over Philomath 42-3 Thursday, Oct. 10.
“We needed a win,” said Head Coach Dustin Nichol. “We finally had a good running game.”
The Huskies are now fourth in the league standings, with two games left – at Stayton this Friday, Oct. 18, and against Newport at home on Oct. 26.
It took most of the first quarter for Sweet Home to get rolling against Philomath, but when they did, the Huskies were firing on all cylinders, amassing 424 yards of offense, 282 on the ground. It was a night of opportunities and they took advantage of them, turning two of three fumble recoveries and two interceptions into touchdowns.
“Our No. 1 goal this week was to find our run game,” Nichol said, adding that the running-back-by-committee approach has helped give four of his starting defenders and special teams players needed rest, but he’s leaning toward focusing on one or two who have produced best.
Quarterback Aiden Tyler connected for four touchdown passes, two to Zach Luttmer, and finished with 141 yards on 12 completions in 28 attempts, with no interceptions.
“Our run game has been shut down, but tonight our linemen showed up, all five in unison, and really showed them what we could do,” said senior lineman and linebacker Iakona Howerton.
Confidence was a key ingredient, Nichol said, especially after grinding through a first half of the season that included three of the best teams in the state.
“You’re losing and it’s pretty easy to get down, lose confidence in yourself, second-guess yourself,” he said. “Then you lose one you’re supposed to win at Sisters, then play another tough team at Cascade and you’re still second-guessing yourself.”
Philomath’s first two series were the Warriors’ best of the night, resulting in a 25-yard field goal by Logan Hannigan-Downs to open scoring for the night, with 3:12 left in the first quarter to take a 3-0 lead.
Sweet Home responded by driving from its 15 to the Warriors’ 5, where Gavin Nichols sliced in for a score with eight seconds left in the quarter.
That’s when the opportunism took off.
Tyler tried to run the ball in from the for a two-point conversion after Philomath jumped offsides on the kick attempt following Nichols’ touchdown. Hit at the line of scrimmage, Tyler lost the ball and offensive guard Taylor Moore seized the opportunity.
“I was two yards out and I saw Aiden get hit,” Moore said. “I turned around and he was getting spun backwards and the ball flew out. So I decided to stick my hands out and there it was in my hands.”
It was the first score of Moore’s career, he said, and it gave the Huskies an 8-3 lead.
On Philomath’s first play, ballcarrier Colby Roe fumbled, and Kai Bryson recovered the ball to put Sweet Home back on offense on the Warriors’ 33 as the second quarter began. Four plays later, the Huskies were in the end zone again, as Cade Gaskey scampered in from the 5, making it 14-3 after Philomath blocked Luttmer’s kick.
Roe fumbled again on Philomath’s next play, but this time the Huskies couldn’t get in synch, going three and out. But after the Warriors did the same thing, Sweet Home drove 74 yards, Tyler hitting Cole Baxter with a 12-yard scoring pass with 4:10 left in the second quarter.
Philomath starting quarterback Michael Lundy had to leave the game with an injury and sophomore Caleb Jensen took over the signal calling. Jensen threw three interceptions and his first, snagged by Jackson Royer led to Sweet Home’s next touchdown, when Tyler connected with Luttmer on a bomb from the 33 yard line with 3:14 left, to give the hosts a 28-3 lead, Luttmer picking the ball off a defender’s hands.
“I just got lucky, I guess,” he said. “The ball bounced off the guy’s hands and just landed in my arms. Not much I could do there other than get lucky.”
Two plays later, Jasper Korn picked off another Jensen pass, but this time Aiden missed on three straight passes and Philomath took over again. Gaskey recovered a bad snap on the Warriors’ second play, at their 47, and Sweet Home got one last chance as the half wound down.
Gaskey got the drive started with a 31-yard run, and seven plays later Tyler hit Tye Moore from the 15 to give the hosts a 35-3 lead with 17 seconds left in the half, after Luttmer made the kick.
“We are still trying to work on firing out in the beginning and showing them who we really are,” Howerton said. “Our second halves are usually really good. This was more second quarter, because we started blowing them out.”
Sweet Home went scoreless in the third quarter, but on the second to the last play of the period, Korn intercepted Jensen again, and Sweet Home started the fourth quarter at its 35, marching 71 yards in nine plays, capped by a 44-yard pass from Tyler to Luttmer with 8:12 on the clock, for the final score of the game, Luttmer catching the ball through the hands of a defender in the end zone.
“Our quarterback put it in a spot where I could get it,” he said.
At that point, Sweet Home put in its less experienced players and some starters got moved to other positions, including Royer, who rushed eight times for 32 yards as the clock wound down.
Gaskey led the Huskies with 78 yards on 10 carries, with Tyler right behind with eight for 75 yards.
“It was nice to have Cade Gaskey back,” Nichol said. “He did a good job offensively and defensively.”
He also credited Royer for a “good” game on the defensive side and Luttmer on both sides of the ball.
“I think two guys who are flying under the radar, just doing their job, not having an out-of-the-body experience, but just stepping up are Jasper Korn and Cole Baxter. They just get their lunch box and go to work. Not real flashy, but real consistent.”
Howerton, who, Nichol said, provided leadership on defense and stellar play on the offensive line, recovered one of Philomath’s fumbles.
“I was relieved that we were finally playing someone who was ranked at the level we are, not one of the top-six-ranked teams in the state,” Howerton said. “It just shows that we’re still a really good team. We’re still ranked in the top 50 percent of state. This gives those kids who are new to varsity level a new confidence.”
Nichol said the win gave the Huskies a chance to find their stride.
“Now we’re playing teams that we’re just as good or better than,” he said. “It’s just a matter of getting our confidence back. Getting that ebb and flow of winning. That we can win games.”
Stayton (2-1, 4-2) is ranked 14th in the state, four spots ahead of Sweet Home, and is sitting in the No. 2 spot in the Oregon West Conference standings, behind Cascade (3-0, 5-1), and tied with Newport (2-1, 2-4).
Sweet Home (1-2, 2-4) still is in it, Nichol said.
“I think, going forward, we’ve given ourselves an opportunity. We just need to do our business and win out and let the chips fall where they may, and just say “we did all that we could do.”
“(Stayton) is 4-2 and we’re 2-4. I think if we beat them, that would put us in the top 16, which would be at-large, and we could possibly host a play-in game.”
The key against the Eagles will be containing quarterback Ben Rash (6-0, 170), who likes to run, and Jared Mitchell, who is listed as a wide receiver at 6-0, 215, and who played running back against the Huskies last year.
“The bottom line is they’re big, big up front,” Nichol said, adding that Stayton’s double-tight end offense is difficult to defend and it has “talented receivers.”
“We’ve got to get pressure on the quarterback and we cannot give up big plays. They’re going to be someone that’s going to grind, grind, grind, then boom.
“We just have to play. We have to show up and put forth our best effort, and there’s no reason we can’t come out with a win. This is anybody’s game.”
Scoring Summary
SH 8 27 0 7 – 42
P 3 0 0 0 – 3
First Quarter
P – Logan Hannigan-Downs 25 FG.
SH – Gavin Nichols 5 run. Taylor Moore recover fumble in EZ for 2-pt. conversion.
Second Quarter
SH – Cade Gaskey 5 run. Kick failed.
SH – Cole Baxter 12 pass from Aiden Tyler. Zach Luttmer kick.
SH – Zach Luttmer 32 pass from Aiden Tyler. Luttmer kick.
SH – Tye Moore 16 pass from Aiden Tyler. Luttmer kick.
Fourth Quarter
SH – Zach Luttmer 44 pass from Aiden Tyler. Luttmer kick.
Individual Statistics
Rushing – SH: Cade Gaskey 10-78, Aiden Tyler 8-75, Gavin Nichols 9-51, Travis Thorpe 8-45, Jackson Royer 8-32, Kyle Marler 1-2. P: Colby Roe 13-40, Michael Lundy 1-2, Caleb Jensen 1-2.
Passing – SH: Aiden Tyler 12-28-0-141. P: Michael Lundy 4-13-0-74; Caleb Jensen 2-7-3-1.
Receiving – SH: Zach Luttmer 4-101, Tye Moore 2-16, Cole Baxter 4-15, Jasper Korn 1-9. P: Matt Workman 2-27, Carson Gerding 3-11, Dylan Bennett 2-2.