Behind Gross, G-Prep cruises past Mead 43-14

They preach brotherhood at Gonzaga Prep, and one of the tallest standing brothers Thursday was senior quarterback Ryan Gross.

Gross threw four two touchdowns and rushed for one as the eighth-ranked Bullpups passed their first 4A Greater Spokane League test, handling the Mead Panthers 43-14 in a steady rain at Albi Stadium.

The 6-foot Gross started at receiver last year, but switched positions with the graduation of Liam Bell.

G-Prep coach Dave McKenna knew it would take some time for Gross to adjust.

“It’s not easy. He’s talented and we knew he had it in him,” McKenna said. “He just had to get some reps. It’s timing and execution of all 11 guys, not just one guy. Sometimes he executed very well but others around him didn’t. Now we’re starting to come together a little bit.”

Gross passes for 110 yards and rushed for 76. G-Prep finished with 428 yards total offense, 318 on the ground.

“The coaches have done a great job with me transitioning,” said Gross, who has given Sacramento State an oral commitment to play baseball (catcher). “I had to transition my throwing from a baseball to a football. I’m a lot more comfortable and I’m reading my reads.”

The Bullpups improved to 5-2 overall, 3-0 in league. Mead slipped to 4-3, 1-2.

All one needs to know about Mead’s first half is the start and finish.

G-Prep’s Philip Reynolds recovered a fumble on the Panthers’ first play, which the Bullpups turned into a touchdown.

Then the Bullpups’ Kea Vargas intercepted a pass in the end zone off Mead receiver Joseph Heitman’s hands, and G-Prep drove 80 yards aided by two 15-yard personal foul penalties before Kasey Anthony scored from six yards out to give his team a 29-7 lead going into halftime.

In between, G-Prep controlled play, especially with its ball control, time chewing veer option.

“There was some adversity for both teams but our kids responded on both sides of the football,” McKenna said. “I was really, really pleased with how the offense executed. On defense we really ran well to the ball. we didn’t execute like we wanted to all the time but give Mead credit.”

Gross scored on an 8-yard run to extend G-Prep’s lead to 14-0 with 3:16 to go in the first quarter.

The Bullpups’ multi-headed rushing attack was effective. Kasey Anthony and Connor Halonen combined for 170. Anthony had three TDs.