Four running backs combined to rack up 427 yards rushing, elevating the Indians to their fourth straight outright Southwestern League crown after running past Durango, 30-14.
A spirited crowd stayed to the very end of the romp that was never really as close as the final score may indicate. After a brief team celebration, the Indians all broke out in a jog back toward their fans, many spilling over the rail, as all on the home side had one thing in common:
 Members of the Indian defense stuff a run play during second quarter action Friday night. (William Woody / Daily Press) Advertisement |
“This was a great night to put our best half of football together,” said Montrose coach Todd Casebier, who seems to have his Indians peaking at just the right time. “We had a great week of practice, and it carried right over into this game.
“These kids really wanted a piece of this special run we are having in this program.”
Durango, winless a year ago and perhaps the SWL’’s surprise team in a decade, simply could not get out of its own way most of the night. The Demons (3-2 SWL, 8-2 overall) — MaxPrep’s No. 8-ranked team statewide among 4A teams coming in — turned the ball over five times on the night, matching their season total through nine games coming in.
“Montrose didn’t show anything that we didn’t expect to see,” said first-year Durango coach Greg Wyatt, who engineered the Demons’ amazing turnaround this fall. “But they executed their gameplan well, and we didn’t. They deserved this win.”
No. 4 Montrose (5-0, 9-1) now awaits the release of the statewide playoff brackets this Sunday. A stout seeding and at least one first-round home game should be in order for the suddenly red-hot Indians.
Tailback Jordan Passehl picked the biggest stage yet this season to have his career night rushing. Seemingly running downhill all night, Passehl churned for a career-high 238 yards rushing and two scores on 25 carries, including 202 yards in the first half alone. Quarterback Nathan Robertson added another 107 yards on the ground, while halfback Glayden Berry — playing with a tweaked ankle — still rushed for 63 more yards on 16 carries.
“There were holes inside and lanes outside to run all night,” said Passehl, already a two-time 1,000-yard rusher. “Our line just dominated things out there.”
Two-way Durango star Jordan Gillen summed up the battle in the trenches afterward.
“Their (Montrose) line gets off the ball so quick,” he said. “They caused us problems on both sides of the ball.”
Montrose line coach Jim Scarry was impressed with how his unit played on both sides of the ball.
This was a matchup where Montrose had a distinct size advantage, yet showed its athleticism, too.
“We didn’t feel we played well last week,” Indian offensive guard Taylor Reed said. “So we wanted to come out on senior night and show what we can really do.
“There was so much on the line. How could you not be fired up for this? We really owned them up front, and our backs took it from there.”
The rout started early, with Montrose racing out to a 14-0 first-quarter lead, eventually bulging to 24-0 at the half. Berry capped the first 80-yard drive with a 2-yard plunge, followed by Robertson’s keeper that put paydirt on top of a 70-yarder.
A 35-yard field goal by Ricky Zataran made it 17-0 early in the second quarter, while Passehl scored the first of his two touchdowns to finish the first half scoring. His sweeps, in particular, were killers for Durango. The 6-foot-3, 202-pounder had four runs of 33 yards or longer before halftime.
And when it was Durango’s turn to counter back, turnovers got in the way. Interceptions by Passehl, Braxton Franz, Johnathan Sierra and Travis Duffle were timely, all. Moreover, the Demons posted just two first-half first downs, all but ensuring a first-round playoff game on the road.
Friday’s box
SWL
MONTROSE 30, DURANGO 14
At Montrose High School
DHS (3-2 SWL, 8-2 overall) — 00 00 00 14 — 14
MHS (5-0 SWL, 9-1 overall) — 14 10 00 06 — 30
SCORING SUMMARY
M — Glayden Berry 2 run (Nathan Robertson kick)
M — Robertson 2 run (Robertson kick)
M — Ricky Zataran 35 FG
M — Jordan Passehl 1 run (Robertson kick)
D — Dillon Lammon 25 pass from Joe Keresey (Easton Garcia kick)
M — Passehl 3 run (kick failed)
D — Gus Barnes 50 run (Garcia kick)
TEAM STATS
RUSHES/YARDS: DHS 36-126; MHS 61-427
PASSING YARDS: DHS 133; MHS 31
TOTAL YARDS: DHS 259; MHS 458
FIRST DOWNS: DHS 9; MHS 22
PENALTIES/YARDS: DHS 6-55; MHS 5-35
FUMBLES/LOST: DHS 2-1; MHS 3-2
INDIVIDUAL STATS
RUSHING: (MHS) Passehl 24-238; Robertson 15-107; Berry 16-63; (DHS) Barnes 15-117; Jordan Gillen 8-39; Keresey 8-(-37).
PASSING: (MHS) Robertson 5-7-31-0-0; Passehl 0-2-0-1-0; (DHS) Keresey 11-21-133-4-1.
RECEIVING: (MHS) Johnathan Sierra 3-25; Berry 1-1; Roland McLaren 1-5; (DHS) Barnes 2-25; Lammon 4-44; Gillen 2-29.
Brian Rumbaugh wrote on Nov 10, 2009 1:34 PM:
Football Mom wrote on Nov 7, 2009 8:42 AM: