Runaway victory
MOSCOW, Idaho – The Lake City High offensive linemen kept telling their coaches to just load up and follow them.
It took Lake City’s coaches a half before they listened Friday. When the Timberwolves abandoned all attempts at finesse and became physical, LC’s offense was like an out-of-control bulldozer rolling downhill in the IHSAA/United Dairymen of Idaho 5A state championship football game.
LC exploited Highland’s undersized defensive line, especially between the tackles, as the No. 1-ranked Timberwolves rolled over traditional power Highland 35-6 before an estimated crowd of 6,000 at the University of Idaho’s Kibbie Dome.
“They kept telling us every time we’d meet on the sideline (between series) to run it,” LC coach Van Troxel said. “Finally at halftime we got the message. We went with the big boys and two backs. They’re awful tough to stop. They’re a physical bunch of kids.”
LC scored four second-half touchdowns, three by senior fullback Brandon Hanna, and one for a second straight week by junior defensive lineman Byron Hout, who latched onto a deflected pass by teammate Brandon Lopez and sprinted 60 yards for the back-breaker that extended the T-Wolves’ lead to 28-6 with 9:14 remaining.
Highland coach Gino Mariani said prior to the game that his defensive line was the strength of a stout defense. But when the Rams took away LC’s perimeter running game, the T-Wolves used their sizable line to bury Highland’s small defensive tackles.
The Rams tried to defend LC with a pair of tackles that averaged 5-foot-10 and 170 pounds.
“They outsized us and (with) their physicality they came after us,” Mariani said.
After spotting Highland (10-2) a 6-0 lead, LC shut out the Rams the final three quarters while scoring 35 unanswered points to finish its first perfect season (12-0) in school history.
While the offense was unstoppable the second half, LC’s defense got tougher and tougher each time it took the field. The defense had plenty of time to rest, too, thanks to an offense that possessed the ball 15 minutes and 25 seconds of the final 24 minutes.
“These guys are the best,” LC defensive coordinator Russ Blank said. “They knew they could do it. They just tried to find a better seam and a better alley in the second half. They just hammered it – just like they did all year.”
Hout’s TD was the ninth the LC defense scored this season. The defense met its game average of three takeways – all in the second half.
“They exploited our weakness on the offensive line – our inexperience,” Mariani said of LC’s defense. “They did a lot of twisting and a lot of slanting. Physically they beat us up front. They did the same thing defensively. Hats off to Van and his team. They’re a very good football team. They deserve it.”
Hanna’s final TD, a 1-yard plunge, accounted for the final margin with 4:44 to go. Hanna finished with a season-high 121 yards on 15 carries. LC gained 310 of its 352 yards on the ground.
It didn’t surprise Mariani that LC was able to run it so effectively.
“We have quickness, not size,” Mariani said. “Physically, they’re bigger and stronger. That showed.”
Highland quarterback Mike Davenport scored on a 1-yard sneak to give the Rams their only lead at 6-0 with 1:25 to go in the first quarter.
LC scored its first TD when quarterback Garren Hammons darted 3 yards behind right guard. Patrick Jewell’s point-after kick put the T-Wolves ahead 7-6 with 8:25 to go before halftime.
LC should have tacked on more points. But the T-Wolves were their worst enemy. Hammons fumbled at Highland’s 31 as he was trying to pick up extra yardage after a 7-yard gain on first down.
It appeared the T-Wolves would score moments before intermission when they picked up a first down at the Rams 13-yard line after Highland was called for interference. But on third-and-10, Hammons’ poorly thrown pass was picked off in the end zone by Alex Carlson with 58 seconds remaining.