Game proves to be defensive grind

Matt Unrau

Defense was the name of the game on Friday. At the outset of the game, Coach Doug Padden of Thompson Falls centered his defensive game planning on containing Savage Horsemen Quarterback Reiley Winebrenner. “Our big push was to eye Reiley and keep him from slipping(out of the pocket),” says Padden, and although Winebrenner still gained 126 yards rushing and rushed for Plains-Hot Springs only touchdown, the game plan was still effective.

Plains-Hot Springs scored their lowest amount of points for a game during the season and was held well below their 24.7 points per game average. As for Winebrenner he gained 126 yards, but it took 23 carries for him to accomplish the feat netting him 5.48 yards per carry, almost three yards per carry less than his season average of 8.07 yards per carry.

“Defensively I was very happy,” says Padden. “It was top-notch.”

For the Savage Horsemen three weeks ago after their only loss to Big Fork it looked like the potential downfall for the team was going to be on the defensive side of the ball. However, since that loss they have only given up an average of 8 points per game. A streak that includes holding an offensively powerful Eureka team to 12 points when they average 31 points per game.

“At this point of the season you’ve got to peak and play your best football, and I guess that’s what they’re doing,” says Plains-Hot Springs defensive coach Jim Lawson.

Lawson is a big advocate for the “bend, but don’t break defense.” “It’s what I tell them all the time, keep the points off the scoreboard. I don’t care about giving up yards as much, as long as they’re keeping points off the scoreboard.”

Defensively Lawson had geared his team to stop Thompson Fall’s short passing game, but the Blue Hawks surprised him by almost soley going with the run in the first half. It wasn’t until the third quarter that Padden’s squad opened up the passing game leading to their only touchdown, a 12 yard strike from quarterback Will Dalby to Wide Receiver Brandon Wakefield in the corner of the end zone.

However, in the fourth quarter Thompson Falls had two consecutive drives where they failed to make a first down to a stringy Savage Horsemen defense. The lack of first downs kept them pinned far back near their own end zone and eventually cost them the game. Senior running back Richard Lyons of Thompson Falls says, “they just played better defense than our offense was blocking.”