Jackson Baer
For The New Era
Sweet Home ended its season Saturday, Nov. 12 with a disappointing loss at the hands of the Baker Bulldogs.
The 43-7 defeat was not the way they planned on ending the season but the Huskies still finished with a stellar 8-3 record.
“It’s disappointing because it didn’t depict the type of season we had leading up to this game,” said Dustin Nichol. “There are only 16 teams left and they’re the most competitive teams, who aren’t used to losing. Something’s gonna give when that happens.”
Baker stopped the Huskies on their first drive and responded with a four-yard touchdown run by junior quarterback Braden Phillips. The 6-4 quarterback finished 15-19 for 259 yards and two touchdowns on the day.
The Bulldogs converted on the two-point conversion after a roughing-the-kicker penalty gave them another chance after they missed the PAT.
“Baker’s offense was tough and they had size,” said senior Alex Armstrong. “They like to pass the ball with little and short passes so it was hard for us to cover them.”
The Huskies were stopped again in their own territory and Baker drove the field again to score just one minute into the second quarter. Phillips rushed in for a one-yard touchdown run to extend the Bulldog lead to 15-0.
Sweet Home finally put a solid drive together after starting at their own five-yard line. The Huskies drove down to the Bulldog 31-yard line but an interception gave the momentum back to the home team.
Baker took over at their own five-yard line and responded with three big plays, capping the drive with a one-yard touchdown run by senior Colten Richards with :20 left in the first half to take a 22-0 lead into the locker room.
Baker received the ball in the third quarter and looked to extend its lead, but Richards fumbled on the first play and gave the Huskies a bit of life.
But Sweet Home was unable to convert on fourth and three at the Baker 42-yard line and the Bulldogs had the ball back.
Baker pushed again, but another fumble, this one at the Sweet Home 17-yard line, gave the Huskies another chance to climb back in the game. Running back Wade Paulus found fellow junior Mitch Keenon for a 31-yard strike out of the wildcat formation.
The Huskies were stopped on fourth and eight at the Baker 41-yard line and time was quickly running out.
“They had a good running and passing game,” said Keenon. “We just couldn’t stop them. They all had experience from last year’s team so they knew how to bring it.”
The Bulldogs found the end zone again on a 40-yard touchdown pass from Phillips to junior Dane Bachman with 1:10 left in the third quarter.
The lead was now 29-0 and emotions were beginning to run high and the game was turning into a flagfest– as evidenced by the 26 penalties between the two teams recorded in the box score.
Baker scored two more times in the fourth quarter. The first came on a 17-yard pass from Phillips to senior Cody Osborn at the 9:05 mark. The next came on a 22-yard run by Richards with 7:04 left to play and left the Huskies trailing 43-0.
Sweet Home refused to quit and Paulus finally broke free for a 65-yard touchdown run with 2:51 left in the game.
The final score showed the strength of Baker but doesn’t diminish the fine season Sweet Home played. Their three losses came to Central, Elmira, and Baker; who have a combined 28-4 record and are all still playing football.
Baker will play No. 1-ranked Siuslaw, which is 10-0 on the season and defeated Hidden Valley this week, 46-19.
Sweet Home can only look ahead – to what looks to be a promising future as 26 of the Huskies’ 36 players are juniors or sophomores.
“My goal for next year is to go undefeated throughout the season and win a state championship,” said Paulus.
While that sounds lofty, no one expected this team to have eight wins after totaling only three last season. The program seems to be headed in the right direction and the playoff experience will help them next year.
“I am proud of how well we all stepped up this season in both defense and offense,” said junior David Skeen. “In a sense, we all stepped up and grew together as a team that couldn’t work without one another. Our team became a solid unit.”
Nichol had similar thoughts. “I’m happy about what we accomplished this season. 8-3 is a whole lot different than 3-7. Hopefully, we can build next year on what we did this year.”
Next year’s squad looks extremely promising with young talent gaining valuable experience.
“I see Wade Paulus as being our leader and Mitch Keenon is gonna be a strong force,” said Nichol. “Colton Holly has really improved as a receiver and has made some huge catches for us. Colton Schilling is tougher than nails and I think Cole Horner has got the range and just needs to work on his accuracy. He’s just gonna get better.
“Our offensive line, with Austin Horner, Nate Melcher, Zach Gill and David Skeen is almost complete and we’re gonna be pretty solid. We lose seven seniors that dressed down so we don’t lose a whole lot of starters. I’m excited about what we have coming back next year. I really want to take league. That’s our goal for next year.”
1st 2nd 3rd 4th Total
SH 0 0 0 7 7
Baker 8 14 7 14 43
Team Statistics
Rushing: SH 34-168; Baker 33-158
Passing: SH 9-20-127; 3 INT; Baker 15-19-259; 2 TD
First Downs: SH 13; Baker 14
Penalties: SH 13-127; Baker 13-104
Turnovers: SH 3; Baker 2
SH Offensive Statistics:
Total Yards: 295 yards Rushing: 168 yards
Passing: 127 yards
Individual Rushing:
Wade Paulus 20-138; 1 TD
Hunter Bidwell 8-16
Cole Horner 5-13
Jacob Smith 1-1
Individual Passing:
Cole Horner 8-18-96; 3 INT
Wade Paulus 1-2-31
Individual Receiving:
Mitch Keenon 3-56
Wade Paulus 3-34
Colton Holly 2-27
Bryce Vandenberg 1-10