Defense lifts Ferris

The Ferris Saxons got one big play and just enough offense elsewhere, then let the defense do the rest to beat visiting Jackson 24-7 in a State 4A football opener Saturday afternoon at Joe Albi Stadium.

The win advances Ferris to next weekend’s quarterfinals for a rematch with Central Valley. The teams shared the Greater Spokane League championship.

CV, which defeated Southridge 28-14 in Kennewick, is the host team, tentatively on Friday. League secretary Randy Ryan said CV’s stadium is an approved playoff site, although discussion has centered around playing the game at Albi to accommodate the crowd.

“It’s out of our control,” said coach Jim Sharkey, whose Saxons won at CV 27-23 earlier this year before an overflow audience. “Wherever they want to play we’ll show up and play.”

Ferris (10-1) never seemed in danger of losing its game to Jackson (9-2), but the Timberwolves’ physical play made sure the hosts never became entirely comfortable in thinking a win was assured.

The Saxons managed just 227 total yards.

“It was a strange game,” Sharkey said. “It felt like we were always in control, but we were teetering at times.”

An early 3-0 lead was followed by Garrett Saiki’s interception. But the Saxons came up short at the goal line on their second series.

It took an exceptional catch in the back of the end zone by Jason Bates 3 minutes later to make it 10-0 and give Ferris some second-quarter breathing room. Bates, a 6-foot-3 junior, went high to take the ball away from a perfectly positioned defender for the 28-yard catch and score.

That was one of just eight plays for the Saxons in the period. Jackson held on to the ball for the final 4 minutes, 6 seconds and nearly 8 minutes of the quarter overall.

It turned out that Jackson’s time-consuming offensive ways, even as the scoring disparity grew, became as much an ally for Ferris as was the Saxons’ defensive proficiency. The game barely took two hours to play.

Initially, Ferris backed up the Timberwolves and gave the offense the ball near midfield. But six plays later it settled on sophomore Alex Belling’s 33-yard field goal with 7:42 left in the first quarter.

Ferris quarterback Connor Halliday found Jackson defensive lineman Paul Sparks impenetrable more than once and came up short of the goal early in the second period.

But it took the Saxons just two plays and Bates’ catch, to atone following a defensive stop.

“Jason stepped up,” said Ferris linebacker Nate Tonani, back in the lineup full time on defense for this game. “A lot of our wide receivers stepped up.”

Ten points isn’t a big cushion in a playoff game, but for Tonani and his fellow defenders, it proved to be enough. They limited the Timberwolves to 74 yards of offense in the first half and 215 for the game.

Seventy-four of that came on the only scoring series for the visitors, in the fourth quarter with Ferris already ahead 24-0.

The Saxons came out after halftime and, buoyed by Saiki’s 37-yard kickoff return, marched the rest of the way. Halliday completed four passes for 25 of the 55 yards the drive covered, hitting Gage Orosco for the 3-yard score.

The other drive of the half covered 69 yards, beginning late in the third period and ending with another Halliday 3-yard TD pass, this one to Aaron Roberts, with 9:08 left to play.

“Their goal-line stuff kind of overloaded us,” Sharkey said. “I thought in the second half we got some things out of our tight end and ‘empty’ packages.”

Tonani said the key in this game defensively was containing backs Taylor Cox and Riley Carr, which Ferris did, limiting the pair to a combined 61 yards on 20 carries. When quarterback Andy Gay opened up in the fourth quarter, he completed seven passes for 100 of his game high 150 yards and the touchdown. By then it was too late.

“That was one of the more physical teams we’ve played all year,” said Tonani.