Jason Casey
For The New Era
Sweet Home’s football team has demonstrated through two games that it can execute on both sides of the ball.
Through two games, Sweet Home has allowed one touchdown, and that was on a fumbled punt return in the Huskies’ own end zone. Meanwhile, the offense has scored 56 points.
The Huskies shut out Crook County 21-0 Friday night, Sept. 8, in what was supposed to be an away game that ended up at home for the Huskies because of the air quality in Prineville.
Keegan Holly led the way for Sweet Home on offense and defense, pulling in passes for 82 yards on the offensive end and snagging two interceptions on defense.
At the 1:55 mark in the second quarter, quarterback Colton Smith lobbed a deep ball to Holly who ran under it, pulled out of a weak Cowboy tackle, and raced down the right side of the field to the end zone for a 69-yard touchdown, extending the Husky lead to 13-0.
“We went to a football camp this summer, and that was a big route they talked about. Me and Colton have practiced that after practice a lot, and have timed that route quite a bit and it was good to use it in a game,” said Holly.
Smith added,” I called a backside hot route, and we have been working on that for weeks I would say, and we have only ran it a couple of times in the game, and every time we have ran it and completed it, it has been a touchdown.” Smith completed 8 of 17 passes for 106 yards and one touchdown.
After one Cowboy play on the next drive, Holly intercepted Cowboy quarterback Colton Burkhardt’s pass to put the Huskies right back in scoring position. Holly finished with 82-yards receiving, one touchdown catch, and two interceptions. The Husky drive stalled at the 20-yard line on an incomplete pass as the half ended.
“They had routes on the other side, and my man ran a drag towards all of the action, and I just kind of sat back on it and saw the quarterback eyes staring at that receiver,” said Holly. “So I just jumped up in front of it.”
Though Sweet Home played far from a perfect game on defense, allowing the visitors a total of 487 yards, it’s hard to argue with zero points.
“Statistically, you look at what they did to us, the difference is they had five turnovers to our zero, and that is ultimately the deal breaker,” said Head Coach Dustin Nichol. “The other stats, giving up an extra hundred yards to them, but the turnovers are what our defense created. I think our defense created those. There might have been one or two of the fumbles, but at least three of them we created.”
Hayden McDonald led the Huskies with 114 yards rushing and put up the first score of the game with a touchdown 4:19 to go in the second quarter. A Cowboy defender didn’t touch McDonald on his five-yard run.
He was joined in the end zone by Austin James in the third quarter, who barreled through Cowboy defenders to extend the lead to 21-0 with 4:08 to go. James finished the game with 67 yards rushing.
“I think that double backs is really working for us because our line picks up everything, and then we have that extra blocker from the running back,” said McDonald. “You just saw it flow and then Austin James picked up that end we were reading, and it was all green from there.”
Nichol said the plan all along has been for a ground game based on two running backs. “Like I said last year we started this new offense, we pretty much just took a cookie cutter thing of what fit Central Catholic’s mold up there, and now we are putting a Sweet Home kind of stamp on it. We are bringing our old routes, old way of running with the numbering system.”
Sweet Home wasn’t as sharp as Nichol would have liked, but he believed the smokey air had some effect on the team – especially not being able to practice outside, or work on timing routes after practice for the normal 15 to 30 minutes that receivers and quarterbacks normally do.
His quarterback agreed.
“I think that [smoke] kind of put us out of a rhythm,” said Smith, who finished the game 8-for-17 for 106 yards, and one touchdown.
“I’d say because it wasn’t the get up, and school is starting is another thing. It wasn’t the kids getting up at 12 go to practice at 3:30 outside and then go back home and stay up until one o’clock and start your day over again.”
Sweet Home had a tough time slowing down Crook County’s Kyle Brady, who finished the game with 111 yards rushing on 13 carries. The Cowboys were led by Dominic Langley in receiving yards with 74. The Cowboys finished with 487 yards to Sweet Home’s 385.
“(On) defense, we had some success last game. We really need to pick up the intensity; it seemed like we were kind of lackadaisical,” said McDonald.
Junior lineman Noah Moore said, “We [the offensive line] did a lot better then we did last week, and I am hoping we do a lot better next week.”
The Cowboys moved the ball more then Nichol would have liked, but there is still plenty to like about this team.
“Our defense they did good tonight. They bent, but they didn’t break,” he said. “I like how the kids are working together.
“Like Austin James, he is busting his butt for us.”
He said he told James he wanted to get him in the end zone, but James said he didn’t care as long as the numbers on the scoreboard were in Sweet Home’s favor.
“He said ‘thank you, but all that matters is that W up there, and the win, whether it’s one point or 21 points.’ So, that is what I like.”
This week Sweet Home hosts Stayton (1-1). The Eagles lost to then third-ranked Banks 55-21. Stayton was ranked ranked seventh before the game. Currently, Sweet Home is ranked sixth on the 4A OSAA rankings. The Eagles will be a good measuring stick for where the Huskies are heading into conference play.
Scoring Summary
1 2 3 4
SH 0 13 8 0 – 21
CC 0 0 0 0 – 0
2nd Quarter
SH – Hayden McDonald 5-yard run (Austin Stevens kick) 4:19
SH – Colton Smith 69-yard pass to Keegan Holly (Pat missed) 1:47
3rd Quarter
SH – Austin James 3-yard run (2-pt conversion Smith to Nathan Virtue)
Individual Statistics
Rushing: SH – Hayden McDonald 10-114; Austin James 11-67; Colton Smith 3-(-8). CC (leaders) – Kyle Brady 13-111; Jacob Kieffner 6-45; Colton Burkhardt 8-19; Jason Slawter 3-7.
Passing: SH – Colton Smith 8-17-0-106; CC – Colton Burkhardt 10-17-2 -97; Brody Connell 3-7-0-47.
Receiving: SH – Keegan Holly 3-82; Casey Tow 2-11; Austin James 1-8; Nick Marler 1-5. CC (leaders) – Dominick Langley 5-74; Jacob Kieffner 2-26.