Saxons can’t keep pace

TACOMA – The balance was absolutely paralyzing.

Ferris football coach Jim Sharkey’s worst fear was realized as his Saxons couldn’t contain Skyline’s multiple weapons.

Running and passing with equal ease, the Skyline Spartans captured a third straight state championship, flattening Ferris 45-21 in the State 4A final Saturday night in the Gridiron Classic at the Tacoma Dome.

Skyline (12-2) secured the win when a pair of Spartans sandwiched Ferris quarterback Connor Halliday, forcing an errant pass that was picked off by lineman Jake Carlson and returned to the Saxons’ 11-yard line with 8:37 remaining.

Two plays later, quarterback Jake Heaps hit Connor Brandt on a short post for a 15-yard touchdown as Skyline extended its lead to 38-21 with 7:51 to play.

“We’re pleased with the effort. We played hard,” Halliday said. “It just came down to we didn’t have any type of running game and we couldn’t stop theirs. (I was) real impressed with their balance. Usually with a high school team you can pick on a couple guys. Their defense, there wasn’t one weak link to pick on. Top to bottom they’re a great team.”

Sharkey agreed.

“We played real hard. They’re just better than us, especially up front,” Sharkey said. “Their offensive and defensive lines, their team speed on defense … they’re a real special group.”

Skyline started to put the game out of reach in the third quarter. Ferris (10-4) tried a trick play in which wide receiver Jordan Tonani took a lateral from Halliday and threw a deep pass. But it was picked off.

The Spartans made the turnover hurt, scoring in eight plays when the Brigham Young University-bound Heaps lofted a 26-yard pass that future NCAA Division I signee Kasen Williams ran under in the end zone. The touchdown widened the Spartans’ lead to 31-14 with 5:28 left in the third quarter.

The Saxons pulled within the halftime margin 10 seconds into the final period when Halliday found Tonani on a 1-yard pass on fourth-and-goal, making the score 31-21.

Sharkey knew Skyline’s balance would be difficult to thwart.

“We knew that coming in,” Sharkey said. “We were hoping to get a couple of turnovers, but they took care of the ball.”

Tonani could only praise the Spartans.

“They’re a very solid team,” he said. “It’s pretty hard to beat a team like that. They can run the ball just as well as they can throw it. That’s something you don’t see on film. But when you get out here and play, they’re so good.”

Ferris, which was seeking to capture the Greater Spokane League’s fifth state title, had to feel fortunate to still be in the game after a Spartan-dominated first half.

On the Saxons’ opening possession, they needed a 22-yard run by Gage Orosco on a fake punt to keep their possession alive. Ferris capped the 13-play, 71-yard possession with a 3-yard touchdown pass from Halliday to Jason Bates with 7:17 showing on the clock.

Then Ferris forced Skyline to punt on its first possession.

But the Saxons’ fast start seemed to only stall the inevitable. The Spartans forced a three-and-out by Ferris.

Skyline evened the score when Heaps hit Williams for a 15-yard TD.

Williams started in motion out of the backfield and somehow got behind a Saxon cornerback for the score with 1:41 remaining in the first quarter.

Halliday had three straight incomplete passes on the next series. Skyline immediately seized momentum when running back Nick Washburn took a direct snap and dashed 5 yards for a TD, giving the Spartans a 14-7 lead with 11:47 to go before halftime.

Skyline piled up 246 yards of total offense in the first half to the Saxons’ 136 in taking a 24-14 lead. Halliday accounted for all but two of those yards as he completed 16 of 27 passes.