Siuslaw slams brakes on Huskies’ football playoff hopes

Scott Swanson

Sweet Home’s football team ended a difficult season Friday with a 49-21 loss to No. 6-ranked Siuslaw.

The host Vikings ran over and around the visitors in a display of offensive discipline, using veer and spread offenses to keep the Husky defenders off-balance for most of the evening and roll up 385 yards.

That, and some big breaks that went Siuslaw’s way, helped pave the road to victory.

“We made mistakes and they didn’t,” said Head Coach Dustin Nichol. “Being inside the 20 yard line four times and coming out scoreless – either because of turnovers or turning it over on downs. That’s what killed us, right there.”

Siuslaw quarterback Preston Mitchell, a sophomore filling in for junior Joseph Dotson, who was hospitalized after an injury the Vikings’ previous-week loss to North Bend, masterfully directed the hosts to a three-touchdown lead by halftime, one of them coming after Siuslaw intercepted a pass by Sweet Home’s Cole Horner.

“They had a rallying point,” Nichol said. “They lost their quarterback and everybody else knew they had to pick up the slack.”

He said Sweet Home correctly surmised that the Vikings would go “back to basics,” running their veer offense and trying to spread the field, which is exactly what Siuslaw did.

What happened then was that Siuslaw executed their game nearly perfectly – up and down the line.

“Their linemen stepped up,” Nichol said. “We were ready for a fight, but not so much for that type of one. We had guys in position to make plays and they weren’t able to make them.

“When we put people in every one of the gaps, they get three to four yards at will, there’s a problem. It’s not like we didn’t try. We went through our entire bench. We just couldn’t get them stopped.”

When the Huskies focused on the run, that opened up the play-action passing game for Dotson, who finished with 10 completions in 13 attempts for 216 yards, 138 to Sam Johnson.

“We just didn’t play our best, I don’t think,” said senior defensive leader Austin Horner. “I’m sure injuries played a role, we don’t have a lot of the guys our team started with, but a lot of guys stepped in and were doing good. I just don’t think we played very good today.

“I think they (Siuslaw) played really hard. They played to win and they did.”

Sweet Home came out of the locker room fired up and scored on its second play of the third quarter, when Horner hit Hunter Jutte with a 45-yard touchdown pass, putting the Huskies on the scoreboard for the first time. The Huskies scored again on a nine-yard run by Brandon Keenon and then put their final points on the board with 1:50 left in the game, when Keenon scored on a six-yard run, and Horner hit Austin Rice for a two-point conversion.

Turnovers were a problem for Sweet Home for the second straight week. The Vikings scored after two of the three interceptions they got off of Horner and recovered a fumbled on-side kickoff attempt from Siuslaw, which led to another score for the hosts.

Nichol said that was a turning point in the game for the Huskies.

“The turning point in the game and the moment that defined our season was when we went for that on-sides kick,” he said. “It worked out perfect. Three of our guys were there to get ball and were fighting over it, and one of their players jumps over our guys and gets the ball. Right there they go down and score.”

That touchdown, with 3:40 left in the third quarter, made it 42-13 and left the Huskies visibly depleted.

Midway through the fourth quarter, Siuslaw got a break when Sam Johnson fumbled on a run from the 13 yard line, and the ball rolled into the end zone, where Kenneth Thrall fell on it.

Sweet Home scored one more time, on a six-yard run by Keenon with 1:50 left in the game, and Horner hit Austin Rice for a two-point conversion, but that was it for the Huskies’ season.

“It was a rough night for the entire team,” said junior receiver and defensive back Eric Flierl. “Nobody wants to end on a loss, especially like that.”

He said the combination of turnovers and penalties were a problem.

“Injuries definitely played a key role in all of that. Nine injuries is going to damage a team, no matter how good you are. I don’t really know if there is any specific reason why we weren’t able to capitalize in the red zone – the penalties. We just have to get ready for next year now.”

Nichol noted that Austin Horner and Keenon, along with Jutte and Chris Melcher “played very hard.”

“They tried to get people motivated, to get people going.

“All of our players did the best with what our season has given them, with the cards they have been dealt, injury-wise.

He said one thing that stood out in the game was Siuslaw’s sportsmanship and that multiple players mentioned it.

“When they made a hard tackle, they’d help you up,” he said of the Vikings, who next take on Tri-Valley Conference champion Gladstone. “They were well-coached and very respectful. They are a good team. I’d like to think we are a lot that way. It’s nice to have that reciprocated back.”

Flierl was one of those.

“Siuslaw is a good football team,” he said. “Hopefully, they will go far into the playoffs and we wish them luck for the rest of the season.”

Scoring Summary

SH – 0 0 13 8 – 21

Siuslaw – 7 14 21 8 – 49

1st Quarter

S – Andrew Tupua 5 run. Kenneth Thrall kick. 2:58

2nd Quarter

S – Tupua 6 run. Thrall kick. 4:04

S – Sam Johnson 1 pass from Preston Mitchell. Thrall kick. 1:07

3rd Quarter

SH – Hunter Jutte 45 pass from Cole Horner. Jutte kick. 11:40

S – Johnson 5 pass from Mitchell. Thrall kick. 9:23

SH – Brandon Keenon 9 run. Kick failed. 7:33

S – Tupua 18 pass from Mitchell. Thrall kick. 3:54

S – Johnson 43 pass from Mitchell. Thrall kick. 3:40

4th Quarter

S – Thrall fumble recovery in end zone. Thrall kick. 8:51

SH – Keenon 6 run. Austin Rice pass from Horner. 1:50

Individual Statistics

Rushing – Sweet Home Total 24-120; Brandon Keenon 14-120; Hunter Jutte 3-0; Austin Rice 4- (-2); Cole Horner 2-(-9); Cole Ashcraft 1-11. Siuslaw Total 40-169; Andrew Tupua 13-59; Christian Jakobsen 10-55; Preston Mitchell 8-42; Sam Johnson 3-22; Brad Snow 1-2; Kenneth Thrall 2-7; Keenan McClellan 3-5; Markel Bliss 2-1; Maverick Michael 2- (-2).

Passing – Sweet Home: Cole Horner 13-30-3-187. Siuslaw: Preston Mitchell 10-13-0-216.

Receiving – Sweet Home: Hunter Jutte 5-121; Eric Flierl 4-59; Austin Rice 2-6; Ryan Adams 1-0. Siuslaw: Sam Johnson 6-138; Brad Snow 3-52; Andrew Tupua 1-18; JB Dodson 1-8.

Total
0
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