Finally able to play, Post Falls rallies to top University 37-27

One area grocery store emphasizes freshness as a selling point.

It doesn’t have anything on the Post Falls football team.

Post Falls coach Blaine Bennett firmly believed his team’s freshness was the difference late, as the visiting Trojans rallied for a 37-27 win over the University Titans in a nonleague game on Saturday.

“One thing that we have going for us is we’re a two-platoon team,” Bennett said. “I think that showed up in the second half. We were able to be a little more fresh than maybe their big guys were.”

University (1-1) plays six players on both sides of the line of scrimmage. Post Falls (3-0) plays 22 different players.

The Titans ran up and down the field with their ground-and-pound attack, piling up 377 yards. But after U-Hi took a 27-20 lead with 9:51 to go in the third quarter, the momentum began to turn Post Falls’ way.

Post Falls went on to score two touchdowns and a field goal to finish off the Titans.

Braden Vaughan’s 30-yard field goal with 1:35 to go thwarted the Titans’ comeback hopes.

U-Hi owned the first half, and it was reflected in more than the score. Sure, they led 20-13 at intermission, but they ran 37 offensive plays to Post Falls’ 18.

It turned in the final two quarters. Although U-Hi finished with more offensive plays, the Trojans had nine more than the Titans in the second half.

The teams were pleased to play after a strange week where neither team could practice outside because of poor air quality.

“No. 1, it’s not anything you can control,” Bennett said of the smoke-filled skies. “We talk a lot about that – handle the things you can control. If you can’t control them you do the best you can. I thought our kids handled it pretty well. A little bit of a slow start but we played better in the second half.”

Post Falls pulled even at 27-27 when quarterback Nate Buer scored from 2 yards out with 5:40 to go in the third.

The Trojans took their first lead at 34-27 after Buer hit wide open Quin Bennett on a 16-yard connection at the 10:04 mark of the fourth.

“It was a little bit of adversity but we got through it,” Buer said of the week. “It was way different going inside the gym all week. There’s no contact inside so it was hard to get things done.”

Buer completed 18 of 30 for 205 yards and a touchdown. He ran for two other TDs.

“U-Hi is a very good football team,” Bennett said. “They’re very physical and much bigger than we are up front and it showed in the first half.”