by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
The Sheridan Broncs lost their first game of the season to Kelly Walsh and never tasted defeat again, as they claimed the Wyoming 4A State Championship on Saturday with a 40-15 win over the Cheyenne Central Indians at snowy War Memorial Stadium.
The Broncs got their championship started off with a bang when Kody Williams returned the opening kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown for an early 7-0 lead.
“We had made an adjustment from the first time we had played them in our kickoff return,” Sheridan head coach Don Julian said. “We thought that we might have a chance with the change we had made up front and it worked. It was very exciting.”
Cheyenne Central would come back on their opening drive with quarterback Connor Long hitting wide receiver Kyle Grott for a 10-yard touchdown pass to tie things up.
Sheridan would counter on their opening drive with an 18-yard touchdown pass to Will Hendrickson from quarterback Austin Woodward to regain the lead at 13-7 and that is where to two teams stood at the half.
The Broncs would pull away in the third quarter with two Woodward rushing touchdowns of 1 and 10-yards to build 26-7 lead after three.
Sheridan’s defense stepped up in the fourth quarter when linebacker Dan Zemski picked off Long and returned it 10 yards for a touchdown making the score 33-7 lead.
The Indians kept fighting when Long threw his second touchdown pass of the day to Grott and completed another pass to Grott for the two-point conversion cutting the score to 33-15.
However, Woodward would put the nail in the coffin of Cheyenne Central with his third rushing touchdown with just under two minutes to go for the final margin.
“Our defense really pulled together and we stopped the run and that made them (Cheyenne Central) pass and we stopped the pass somewhat. It’s a great team effort,” Woodward said.
“Without them I couldn’t do anything. On both sides they’re the most underrated line in the whole state,” Woodward said about the offensive lines. “We had a receiver move down to right guard and (we have a) 140 pound center. They’re great.”
Woodward had 190 total yards with 152 of that on the ground on 23 carries with three touchdowns and a fourth through the air to Hendrickson.
“Number four (Woodward) is a very quality football player and a very quality young man,” Julian said. “He’s been a three year starter both ways for us. I’m very fortunate to have had the opportunity to coach him.”
“He’s a good football player,” Cheyenne Central head coach Brick Cegelski added. “He ran through tackles and he ran some traps on us and he did a good job.”
Michael Davis led the Indians with 134 yards on 27 carries, while Long threw for 145 yards on 13 of 23 passing with one interception.
“I thought the one (penalty) that hurt us was the holding (call),” Cegelski said. “We had a little bootleg on the edge and we got a hold; I thought that was a big play for us because it took us from first-and-10 to first-and-25. Whenever you have a penalty like that it changes your momentum, especially in the first half because I thought we had a chance to get in the game there and maybe take the lead.
“Hats off to Donny (Julian),” Cegelski added. “I thought Donny did a great job with these kids. It’s good coaching by Donny and I’m proud of him.”
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Vikings roll to 6-man title
by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
The Guernsey Sunrise Vikings raced to a 63-8 halftime lead over Kaycee, leaving no doubt and rolling past the Buckaroos 76-16 for the Wyoming 1A-6 Man State Championship at War Memorial Stadium Saturday afternoon.
“This was our goal at the beginning of the season, to get to this point,” Guernsey- Sunrise running back Kyler Copsey said. “We knew it was going to take a lot of work and once we started rolling and figuring things out it all just came natural.”
These two teams met earlier this season, but the only difference today is Kaycee did not get shutout, as they lost the first meeting 67-0.
Copsey rushed for 167 yards on six carries, as a team the Vikings compiled 351 yards on the ground. Guernsey Sunrise was not so dominant last week against Hanna-Elk Mountain, as they had to come from behind to win.
“We needed that wakeup call last week,” Copsey said. “We came out here focused and we didn’t think about 67-0 when the first time we played. We wanted to come out and hit hard and set the tone early.”
“We said ‘hey, we got to get focused from the start’,” Guernsey Sunrise head coach Casey Moats said. “Fortunately, we had two or three scores right off the bat and that just let the kids relax and enjoy it and they played hard.”
Despite the outcome, Kaycee head coach Dustin Snipe was pleased with what his team accomplished in its first year of existence.
“My kids never give up,” he said. “We’re a brand new program, they’ve had to learn every game and learn how to take hits and keep their heads up. They’re just a bunch of tough kids who want to compete and want to play hard and they never gave up playing. We weren’t going to give up in that second half and we played a lot better in the second half.”
Guernsey-Sunrise had competition this season, outscoring its opponents by an average of 47 points a game this season.
“The kids just worked their tails off this year,” Moats said. “They just battled hard and came together, and as you saw today, they just did a nice job of becoming a team.”
Wyoming Sports.org
The Guernsey Sunrise Vikings raced to a 63-8 halftime lead over Kaycee, leaving no doubt and rolling past the Buckaroos 76-16 for the Wyoming 1A-6 Man State Championship at War Memorial Stadium Saturday afternoon.
“This was our goal at the beginning of the season, to get to this point,” Guernsey- Sunrise running back Kyler Copsey said. “We knew it was going to take a lot of work and once we started rolling and figuring things out it all just came natural.”
These two teams met earlier this season, but the only difference today is Kaycee did not get shutout, as they lost the first meeting 67-0.
Copsey rushed for 167 yards on six carries, as a team the Vikings compiled 351 yards on the ground. Guernsey Sunrise was not so dominant last week against Hanna-Elk Mountain, as they had to come from behind to win.
“We needed that wakeup call last week,” Copsey said. “We came out here focused and we didn’t think about 67-0 when the first time we played. We wanted to come out and hit hard and set the tone early.”
“We said ‘hey, we got to get focused from the start’,” Guernsey Sunrise head coach Casey Moats said. “Fortunately, we had two or three scores right off the bat and that just let the kids relax and enjoy it and they played hard.”
Despite the outcome, Kaycee head coach Dustin Snipe was pleased with what his team accomplished in its first year of existence.
“My kids never give up,” he said. “We’re a brand new program, they’ve had to learn every game and learn how to take hits and keep their heads up. They’re just a bunch of tough kids who want to compete and want to play hard and they never gave up playing. We weren’t going to give up in that second half and we played a lot better in the second half.”
Guernsey-Sunrise had competition this season, outscoring its opponents by an average of 47 points a game this season.
“The kids just worked their tails off this year,” Moats said. “They just battled hard and came together, and as you saw today, they just did a nice job of becoming a team.”
Bearcats roll to 3A crown
by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
The Douglas Bobcats scored the first 25 points of the game en route to a decisive 44-14 win over the Cody Broncs, capturing the Wyoming 3A State Championship at War Memorial Stadium Saturday afternoon.
Douglas overcame 10 first half penalties with big plays on the ground and through the air to pull away from Cody.
Running back Pierre Etchemendy got things started with a 1-yard run into the end-zone to give the Bobcats a 6-0 lead.
The next drive for Douglas, quarterback Hayden Barker ran 40 yards down the left sideline giving his team a 12-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter would not be any easier for Cody, as Barker connected with wide receiver Mitch Espeland for a 69-yard bomb to make it 18-0.
Barker was not done yet, this time he would hit wide receiver Justin Melton for a 48-yard touchdown pass to make the Bobcat lead 25-0.
Cody would finally get some momentum going when running back Brady Guide ran 73 yards down the right sideline before being stopped inside the 10 yard-line, which set up Matt Frost’s 4-yard touchdown pass to Jeremy Tuten to cut the lead to 25-7 going in at halftime.
However, the last minute touchdown to end the half did not give Cody the spark they needed, as Douglas continued to pile it on scoring the first 13 points of the second half for a 38-7 lead.
Cody would score another touchdown in the fourth quarter when Frost ran it in from 10 yards out to cut the score to 38-14, but Douglas would ultimately add one more touchdown for the final margin, shutting the door on the Broncs season, while finishing their season championship season undefeated.
“We just came out and did our thing,” Barker said. “We really didn’t change a thing. We just wanted to come out from the get go and show everyone what we could do.”
“We knew they were explosive and if we made mistakes, then they would make us pay,” Cody head coach Cris Williams said about Douglas. “We made a few mistakes in coverage and sometimes great athletes just make great plays, but our kids fought for four quarters, they battled and I couldn’t be more prouder of them.”
Barker accumulated 289 total yards in the game with 242 of those in the air on 10 of 14 passing for three touchdowns, while also rushing for 47 yards on four carries and one touchdown. Etchemendy amassed 152 yards on the ground on 28 carries for two touchdowns.
“We just got a real solid kid at every position,” Douglas head coach Jay Rhoades said. “To go 11 straight like they did this year, is pretty impressive. We never were behind in a game and there was never any real adversity in any game this year and that is so uncommon in a season and that’s just a tribute to the kids.”
Frost had 85 total yards with 57 in the air for a touchdown and 28 on the ground with a 10-yard touchdown.
Cody could not get much going against a tough and stingy Douglas defense.
“I can’t say enough about our defense, they played phenomenal,” Barker said. “They started the year strong and ended it just as strong.”
“Our defense has been tough from the beginning to this ending,” Rhoades said. “Even though we scored a lot of points today, it was a defensive win today too. That was a good Cody team that we stopped.”
Wyoming Sports.org
The Douglas Bobcats scored the first 25 points of the game en route to a decisive 44-14 win over the Cody Broncs, capturing the Wyoming 3A State Championship at War Memorial Stadium Saturday afternoon.
Douglas overcame 10 first half penalties with big plays on the ground and through the air to pull away from Cody.
Running back Pierre Etchemendy got things started with a 1-yard run into the end-zone to give the Bobcats a 6-0 lead.
The next drive for Douglas, quarterback Hayden Barker ran 40 yards down the left sideline giving his team a 12-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter would not be any easier for Cody, as Barker connected with wide receiver Mitch Espeland for a 69-yard bomb to make it 18-0.
Barker was not done yet, this time he would hit wide receiver Justin Melton for a 48-yard touchdown pass to make the Bobcat lead 25-0.
Cody would finally get some momentum going when running back Brady Guide ran 73 yards down the right sideline before being stopped inside the 10 yard-line, which set up Matt Frost’s 4-yard touchdown pass to Jeremy Tuten to cut the lead to 25-7 going in at halftime.
However, the last minute touchdown to end the half did not give Cody the spark they needed, as Douglas continued to pile it on scoring the first 13 points of the second half for a 38-7 lead.
Cody would score another touchdown in the fourth quarter when Frost ran it in from 10 yards out to cut the score to 38-14, but Douglas would ultimately add one more touchdown for the final margin, shutting the door on the Broncs season, while finishing their season championship season undefeated.
“We just came out and did our thing,” Barker said. “We really didn’t change a thing. We just wanted to come out from the get go and show everyone what we could do.”
“We knew they were explosive and if we made mistakes, then they would make us pay,” Cody head coach Cris Williams said about Douglas. “We made a few mistakes in coverage and sometimes great athletes just make great plays, but our kids fought for four quarters, they battled and I couldn’t be more prouder of them.”
Barker accumulated 289 total yards in the game with 242 of those in the air on 10 of 14 passing for three touchdowns, while also rushing for 47 yards on four carries and one touchdown. Etchemendy amassed 152 yards on the ground on 28 carries for two touchdowns.
“We just got a real solid kid at every position,” Douglas head coach Jay Rhoades said. “To go 11 straight like they did this year, is pretty impressive. We never were behind in a game and there was never any real adversity in any game this year and that is so uncommon in a season and that’s just a tribute to the kids.”
Frost had 85 total yards with 57 in the air for a touchdown and 28 on the ground with a 10-yard touchdown.
Cody could not get much going against a tough and stingy Douglas defense.
“I can’t say enough about our defense, they played phenomenal,” Barker said. “They started the year strong and ended it just as strong.”
“Our defense has been tough from the beginning to this ending,” Rhoades said. “Even though we scored a lot of points today, it was a defensive win today too. That was a good Cody team that we stopped.”
Friday, November 13, 2009
Cyclones win 4th straight title
by Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org
The Southeast Cyclones aren't a passing team and Friday's weather conditions reaffirmed to head coach Mark Bullngton that they needed to just stick to the game plan.
The Cyclones ran the ball all day, often in a driving snowstorm, and Tanner May was the beneficiary, as he rushed for 160 yards and scored twice as the Cyclones won their fourth straight championship, stopping Lingle-Fort Laramie 27-20 Friday in the Wyoming Class 1A state football title game at War Memorial Stadium.
The game was played under blizzard conditions, with the Jonah Field turf white for much of the contest. There were 13 fumbles in the game, 10 by Lingle-Fort Laramie, which lost three. With just six passes thrown between the two teams, the Cyclones, 10-1, relied on the hard running of May.
"It just made us use our big gun that we were going to use, Tanner May," Bullington said. "He has quick enough feet that he can cut a little bit on this type of surface. That first touchdown, you saw that, that little cutback that he made. He has quick feet."
May scored on a 32-yard run in the first quarter, one play after a high snap over the Lingle-Fort Laramie punter's head. May then broke a 14-14 tie on a 58-yard TD run in the third quarter.
Blake Herbst gave Southeast a 14-0 lead in the second quarter on a 1-yard run. The score was set up when May picked up a punt and ran it 30 yards to the Lingle-Fort Laramie 16-yard line.
Although he didn't get into the end zone on that play, Bullington said that type of effort enabled the Cyclones to have the upper edge.
"A lot of people would have just let it roll, but he picked it up and got us field position. It's harder to drive the field 80 yards. Field position plays a big part in high school football," Bullington said.
The Cyclones made it 27-14 when Skyler Kirchhefer recovered a Lingle Fort-Laramie fumble in the end zone with 1:53 left in the contest.
The game was far from over, though, despite only a couple of minutes remaining. Dakota Forkner's third touchdown of the game, from 5 yards out with 1:36 remaining, gave the Doggers some hope.
Although Lingle-Fort Laramie would get the ball back late in the game, the Southeast defense held strong and the Doggers wouldn't threaten.
Forkner had a big day for the Doggers, 9-2, as he opened the second half with an 87-yard kickoff return for a score. he also scored on a 7yard TD run in the third quarter to tie the game at 14-each.
For the Cyclones season, the win capped a successful career that ended with the first-place trophy each year.
"I think it means a lot to them," Bullington said of four straight titles. "These kids have never lost a last game of the season. They are 40-4 over four years. I tell you what, to be in that many games, that's 44 games. These kids have almost played another season and a half."
Wyoming Sports.org
The Southeast Cyclones aren't a passing team and Friday's weather conditions reaffirmed to head coach Mark Bullngton that they needed to just stick to the game plan.
The Cyclones ran the ball all day, often in a driving snowstorm, and Tanner May was the beneficiary, as he rushed for 160 yards and scored twice as the Cyclones won their fourth straight championship, stopping Lingle-Fort Laramie 27-20 Friday in the Wyoming Class 1A state football title game at War Memorial Stadium.
The game was played under blizzard conditions, with the Jonah Field turf white for much of the contest. There were 13 fumbles in the game, 10 by Lingle-Fort Laramie, which lost three. With just six passes thrown between the two teams, the Cyclones, 10-1, relied on the hard running of May.
"It just made us use our big gun that we were going to use, Tanner May," Bullington said. "He has quick enough feet that he can cut a little bit on this type of surface. That first touchdown, you saw that, that little cutback that he made. He has quick feet."
May scored on a 32-yard run in the first quarter, one play after a high snap over the Lingle-Fort Laramie punter's head. May then broke a 14-14 tie on a 58-yard TD run in the third quarter.
Blake Herbst gave Southeast a 14-0 lead in the second quarter on a 1-yard run. The score was set up when May picked up a punt and ran it 30 yards to the Lingle-Fort Laramie 16-yard line.
Although he didn't get into the end zone on that play, Bullington said that type of effort enabled the Cyclones to have the upper edge.
"A lot of people would have just let it roll, but he picked it up and got us field position. It's harder to drive the field 80 yards. Field position plays a big part in high school football," Bullington said.
The Cyclones made it 27-14 when Skyler Kirchhefer recovered a Lingle Fort-Laramie fumble in the end zone with 1:53 left in the contest.
The game was far from over, though, despite only a couple of minutes remaining. Dakota Forkner's third touchdown of the game, from 5 yards out with 1:36 remaining, gave the Doggers some hope.
Although Lingle-Fort Laramie would get the ball back late in the game, the Southeast defense held strong and the Doggers wouldn't threaten.
Forkner had a big day for the Doggers, 9-2, as he opened the second half with an 87-yard kickoff return for a score. he also scored on a 7yard TD run in the third quarter to tie the game at 14-each.
For the Cyclones season, the win capped a successful career that ended with the first-place trophy each year.
"I think it means a lot to them," Bullington said of four straight titles. "These kids have never lost a last game of the season. They are 40-4 over four years. I tell you what, to be in that many games, that's 44 games. These kids have almost played another season and a half."
Bobcats shock Herders for 2A title
by Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
The Thermopolis Bobcats came into a snow-packed War Memorial Stadium and left with the Wyoming 2A State Championship with a 22-20 upset win over the previously unbeaten and number one ranked Glenrock Herders at Jonah Field Friday afternoon.
Thermopolis stopped Glenrock on fourth down on its opening drive and then marched down the field 40 yards to set up quarterback Mitch Syverson’s 17-yard touchdown and the Bobcats would never trail. Syverson would keep it again running in from three yards out for the two-point conversion and the Bobcats led 8-0 over the number one ranked Herders after one quarter of play.
Glenrock would come back in the second orchestrating and 81-yard drive, which was highlighted by quarterback Kyle Farley scampering 63-yards down the right sideline before Tanner Cornwell of Thermopolis tackled him inside the 5- yard-line to save a touchdown. Running back Austin Smith would eventually punch it in from two yards out to bring the Herders within two. Dustin Worthington ran in the two-point conversion up the middle to nod things up 8-8.
Thermopolis would come back on their next possession going 68-yards with one big first down catch of 14-yards hauled in by Chris Leyba, before Syverson ran 50-yards down the left sideline for his second touchdown of the half regaining the lead for the Bobcats 14-8. The two-point pass failed and that’s where the score stood at halftime. Syverson finished the half with 141 total yards.
The first turnover of the game came on Glenrocks’ opening possession of the third quarter when the Herders attempted a fake punt on a pass by Farley that was picked off by Thermopolis linebacker Chris Ryan setting up the Bobcats in prime field position.
Leyba would get his second catch of the day on a 22-yard touchdown pass from Syverson to increase their lead to 12. The next play Leyba got his third catch on a three-yard two-point conversion from Syverson making the Bobcat lead 22-8.
The score stayed the same heading into the fourth, but Glenrock was knocking on the door after Farley hit Worthington for a 34-yard pass down to the one yard-line. Worthington then punched it in on the first play of the fourth quarter from two yards out to trim the deficit to 22-14.
A major turn of events would take place during the next minute of play when Matt Morgan recovered a fumble for the Herders on the ensuing kickoff. The next play Farley hit Worthington for a long pass and then he fumbled the ball right back to Thermopolis. Two plays later Syverson would make Glenrock pay with a 53-yard run to the Herders 39 yard-line.
However, Thermopolis would stall on the 38 yard-line and turn the ball over on downs to Glenrock giving the Herders new momentum.
Farley and Worthington would lead their team down the field once again and on third and goal, Cory Dewald capped the drive off with a four-yard run to cut the score to 22-20. Farley’s two-point pass was incomplete, so Thermopolis still remained on top by two with 5:41 to play.
“It was pretty tough being there on the sidelines. You want to be in there so bad,” Syverson said about his defense stopping the 2-point conversion. “All you can do is be a cheerleader for them and the defense did an excellent job; hats off to them.”
Thermopolis would try and run out the clock on their final drive and Syverson converted a big fourth and two from the 36 yard-line to keep the drive alive with 2:12 remaining and a two point lead. Glenrock could not stop the clock and the celebration was on for the Bobcats.
Syverson finished the game with 262 total yards completing 10-18 passes for 107 yards and touchdown, while rushing for 155 yards on 10 carries and two touchdowns. Kyle Larson had 64 yards on 11 carries and targets Herold and Kyle Pebbles each had four catches for 47 and 24 yards respectively.
“Doubling up our outside guys really opened up our running game,” Thermopolis head coach Chuck Syverson said. “Mitch (Syverson) had a 155 yards rushing and basically kind of controlled the game with our running game. It was one of those days you have to kind of do what you have to do to get the win and we were fortunate enough to do that.”
“Glenrock is a very good team,” Mitch Syverson said. “This is a team effort. We ran the ball very well, we got away from the pass and that really helped us a lot. The linemen did an excellent job, an excellent job up front by the D-Line. We felt like we had this one pretty wrapped up.”
On the defensive side, Leyba had a game high 19 tackles and Larson recorded 15 with a half-a-sack.
Dewald led Glenrock with 13 tackles, including one tackle for loss.
Worthington had 160 total yards in the game rushing for 85 of those on 21 carries and caught three balls for 75 yards. Farley had 179 total yards going 4 for 7 in the air for 97 yards, while getting 82 yards on the ground on just five carries.
“Our leadership has always been powerful,” Glenrock head coach Ray Kumpula said. “They showed their true colors today when they got down and still didn’t get down and fought back.”
“You got to take your hats off to them,” Kumpula said about Thermopolis. “They turned around their program, they got a spread offense and they got great athletes. They made the big play when they needed to, so they deserve the win.”
Wyoming Sports.org
The Thermopolis Bobcats came into a snow-packed War Memorial Stadium and left with the Wyoming 2A State Championship with a 22-20 upset win over the previously unbeaten and number one ranked Glenrock Herders at Jonah Field Friday afternoon.
Thermopolis stopped Glenrock on fourth down on its opening drive and then marched down the field 40 yards to set up quarterback Mitch Syverson’s 17-yard touchdown and the Bobcats would never trail. Syverson would keep it again running in from three yards out for the two-point conversion and the Bobcats led 8-0 over the number one ranked Herders after one quarter of play.
Glenrock would come back in the second orchestrating and 81-yard drive, which was highlighted by quarterback Kyle Farley scampering 63-yards down the right sideline before Tanner Cornwell of Thermopolis tackled him inside the 5- yard-line to save a touchdown. Running back Austin Smith would eventually punch it in from two yards out to bring the Herders within two. Dustin Worthington ran in the two-point conversion up the middle to nod things up 8-8.
Thermopolis would come back on their next possession going 68-yards with one big first down catch of 14-yards hauled in by Chris Leyba, before Syverson ran 50-yards down the left sideline for his second touchdown of the half regaining the lead for the Bobcats 14-8. The two-point pass failed and that’s where the score stood at halftime. Syverson finished the half with 141 total yards.
The first turnover of the game came on Glenrocks’ opening possession of the third quarter when the Herders attempted a fake punt on a pass by Farley that was picked off by Thermopolis linebacker Chris Ryan setting up the Bobcats in prime field position.
Leyba would get his second catch of the day on a 22-yard touchdown pass from Syverson to increase their lead to 12. The next play Leyba got his third catch on a three-yard two-point conversion from Syverson making the Bobcat lead 22-8.
The score stayed the same heading into the fourth, but Glenrock was knocking on the door after Farley hit Worthington for a 34-yard pass down to the one yard-line. Worthington then punched it in on the first play of the fourth quarter from two yards out to trim the deficit to 22-14.
A major turn of events would take place during the next minute of play when Matt Morgan recovered a fumble for the Herders on the ensuing kickoff. The next play Farley hit Worthington for a long pass and then he fumbled the ball right back to Thermopolis. Two plays later Syverson would make Glenrock pay with a 53-yard run to the Herders 39 yard-line.
However, Thermopolis would stall on the 38 yard-line and turn the ball over on downs to Glenrock giving the Herders new momentum.
Farley and Worthington would lead their team down the field once again and on third and goal, Cory Dewald capped the drive off with a four-yard run to cut the score to 22-20. Farley’s two-point pass was incomplete, so Thermopolis still remained on top by two with 5:41 to play.
“It was pretty tough being there on the sidelines. You want to be in there so bad,” Syverson said about his defense stopping the 2-point conversion. “All you can do is be a cheerleader for them and the defense did an excellent job; hats off to them.”
Thermopolis would try and run out the clock on their final drive and Syverson converted a big fourth and two from the 36 yard-line to keep the drive alive with 2:12 remaining and a two point lead. Glenrock could not stop the clock and the celebration was on for the Bobcats.
Syverson finished the game with 262 total yards completing 10-18 passes for 107 yards and touchdown, while rushing for 155 yards on 10 carries and two touchdowns. Kyle Larson had 64 yards on 11 carries and targets Herold and Kyle Pebbles each had four catches for 47 and 24 yards respectively.
“Doubling up our outside guys really opened up our running game,” Thermopolis head coach Chuck Syverson said. “Mitch (Syverson) had a 155 yards rushing and basically kind of controlled the game with our running game. It was one of those days you have to kind of do what you have to do to get the win and we were fortunate enough to do that.”
“Glenrock is a very good team,” Mitch Syverson said. “This is a team effort. We ran the ball very well, we got away from the pass and that really helped us a lot. The linemen did an excellent job, an excellent job up front by the D-Line. We felt like we had this one pretty wrapped up.”
On the defensive side, Leyba had a game high 19 tackles and Larson recorded 15 with a half-a-sack.
Dewald led Glenrock with 13 tackles, including one tackle for loss.
Worthington had 160 total yards in the game rushing for 85 of those on 21 carries and caught three balls for 75 yards. Farley had 179 total yards going 4 for 7 in the air for 97 yards, while getting 82 yards on the ground on just five carries.
“Our leadership has always been powerful,” Glenrock head coach Ray Kumpula said. “They showed their true colors today when they got down and still didn’t get down and fought back.”
“You got to take your hats off to them,” Kumpula said about Thermopolis. “They turned around their program, they got a spread offense and they got great athletes. They made the big play when they needed to, so they deserve the win.”
Friday, October 16, 2009
Plainsmen battle but come up short
Richard Anderson photos
Laramie halfback Jon Sorenson looks to get past Green River's Marcos Munoz Friday at Deti Stadium. At left, Laramie's Charles Swearingen, 45, and Tyler English, chase down Green River quarterback Drew Martinez.
By Richard AndersonWyoming Sports.org
A couple of subtle changes this week put the Laramie Plainsmen back in an offensive frame of mind.
It nearly paid off with a win, but Green River scored with just nine seconds left to hold off the Plainsmen 42-35 Friday night at Deti Stadium.
Despite the loss, the play of the Plainsmen have them thinking playoffs going into next week’s regular season finale against Cheyenne East. Both teams are 2-6 on the season and the winner will certainly move on to the second season.
Laramie head coach Bob Knapton pulled the trigger this week when he inserted sophomore Billy Hysong into the starting quarterback position, shifting previous starter Jon Sorenson back to halfback. Along with senior halfback Dan Estes returning from injury, the Laramie offense looked like a different beast out on the field against the Wolves.
Laramie had struggled at times offensively this season, including in last week’s tough 46-6 loss to Kelly Walsh. Friday night, Sorenson and Estes combined for 340 yards rushing and the Plainsmen matched the high-flying Wolves (6-2) yard-for-yard and point-for-point until the final seconds.
The game came down to the final minute, after Laramie tied the game at 35-each with 53 seconds left on a big 23-yard touchdown pass from Hysong to sophomore halfback Tanner Ibarra.
Unfortunately for the Plainsmen, too much time was left on the clock with University of Wyoming bound Drew Martinez at the helm. Martinez, who gave a verbal commitment to the Cowboys earlier this year, completed three long passes -- 21 yards to Zach Kennah and consecutive passes, 24 and 17 yards to Colter Rood, before Rood scored on an 8-yard run with 9.1 seconds left.
Laramie had one final try to get in the end zone, but fumbled to end the game.
“I thought our kids played hard and that’s exactly what we want them to do,” Knapton said. “If you play your butts off like that, that’s what we want to do. We have one more home game, and if we play like that, we’re going to fight it all of the way down to the end. Hopefully next week is a little different and we get into the playoffs.”
The two teams combined for 870 yards on offense -- 459 by the Wolves and 411 by the Plainsmen.
“You can’t say anything bad about the way that ended up,” Knapton said. “We knew that they would score points and people had been scoring on them, so we just stuck right in there with them. Boy, we just needed a couple of tackles at the end. We had some missed tackles and kind of waited for something better to happen. But we gave them a run for their money.”
The Plainsmen opened the Wolves eyes from the very beginning, when Estes took the first hand-off from Hysong and raced 81 yards for the score. Estes broke a couple of tackles after a short run, including an athletic spin move, and ran untouched the rest of the way.
It was off to the races from that point on, as Martinez and his offense were hard to stop as well, responding with two scores -- a 1-yard TD run by Cody Smart and a 38-yard scoring run from Rood.
Laramie pulled within one on a 2-yard run by senior fullback Charles Swearingen (the PAT failed) and then regained the lead on an 8-yard run by Estes. The Plainsmen got the point back on a two-point run by Estes.
Green River tied the game at 21-each on a 7-yard touchdown pass from Martinez to Kennah. That's how the score stood at halftime.
Again, the Plainsmen answered early in the third quarter on impressive 47-yard power run by Sorenson, only to be answered by the Wolves on a 33-yard touchdown pass from Martinez to Jordan Carroll.
The teams were tied at 28 heading into the fourth quarter.
After stopping Laramie on downs on the Green River 20, the Wolves struck pay dirt on a big 67-yard touchdown pass from Martinez to Rood, who bounced off several would-be Plainsmen tacklers for the score.
Laramie, however, wasn't done and put together a 12-play, 91-yard game-tying drive that was highlighted by the hard-running of Sorenson, who also threw a 14-yard pass to tight end Rylan Harding.
The Wolves, however, had one more drive in them.
Sorenson, who had averaged just 3.1 yards per carry from the quarterback position, found his comfort zone again in the backfield, leading all runners with 175 yards on 23 carries. Estes finished with 165 yards and Swearingen added 27 yards.
“We switched the offense to where we had two running backs coming at them, and they don’t know which way we’re coming from. I thought it worked really well,” Knapton said. "It was a good switch that we made.”
Hysong was 3 of 6 passing for 32 yards and the one score.
"He did a good job of coming in as a sophomore. He’s ready to play now,” Knapton said. “We gave him some time on jayvee to get him ready and he did a great job.”
Martinez, who won't play quarterback the Cowboys, still looked good at running the show, connecting on 8 of 12 passes for 194 yards. Rood caught three balls for 108 yards and added 85 yards on the ground on 11 carries.
“He’s a great athlete. And so is No. 4 ,” Knapton said of Martinez and Rood. “You can’t really start chewing on kids for missed tackles against guys like that because you know what they’re good. You don’t face guys like that every day.”
The Plainsmen need one more win to make the Playoffs and will get the opportunity next Friday at home against East. The T-Birds moved to 2-6 as well with a 34-27 overtime win over Evanston on Friday night.
“We have East next and we’re going to get after it. We’ll start studying on Saturday and get ready to go,” Knapton said. “We’re getting there. You have to get in the ballgame to have a chance to win it. We had our chance to win it, we just have to take one more step. We’ll do whatever it takes to do it. We’ll keep plugging away.”
Friday, October 2, 2009
Top-ranked Broncs too much for Plainsmen
SHERIDAN -- Top-ranked Sheridan had more than enough in the first half to stop Laramie 27-7 Friday night in Class 4A football action at Homer Scott Field.
The Broncs, 5-1 on the season, scored twice in the first half and led 21-0 at halftime, before cruising in the second half.
The Plainsmen, 2-4, made some defensive adjustments in the second half to hold Sheridan to two field goals in the final two quarters.
Although the Broncs turned the ball over on their first offensive play from scrimmage when Jon Sorenson intercepted quarterback Austin Woodward, Sheridan turned to its ground game to take control of the contest.
The Broncs got on the scoreboard with 6:53 left in the first quarter on a 14-yard touchdown run by Seth Carroll. Sheridan then made it 14-0 late in the opening quarter on a 45-yard touchdown run by Cody Williams.
Williams then scored for the second time of the game mid-way through the second quarter from 13 yards out.
The Broncs made it a 24-0 game in the third quarter on a 28-yard field goal by Andrew Sticker.
Laramie had its best offensive drive of the game early in the fourth quarter to get on the scoreboard. Sorenson capped a 12-play, 80 yard drive on a 16-yard touchdown run.
Stricker closed the scoring with a booming 48-yard field goal with 7:52 left in the game.
The Broncs finished with 322 yard of total offense, with 227 on the ground and 95 through the air. Williams finished with 78 yards on just five carries, followed by Woodward with 77 yards on 11 rushes. Woodward was also 7 of 16 passing for 95 yards.
Sophomore Tanner Ibarra led the Plainsmen with 67 yards rushing on six carries, with senior Mike Lanich adding 35 yards on 10 carries and Sorenson with 12 rushes for 29 yards. Laramie played the game without leading rusher Dan Estes, who was out with an injury.
Sorenson was 8 of 16 passing (two interceptions) for 90 yards. Nathan Cowper had three catches for 32 yards, with Kelby Wilkison and Rylan Harding adding two catches each.
The Plainsmen remain on the road next Friday when they face Kelly Walsh in Casper.
The Broncs, 5-1 on the season, scored twice in the first half and led 21-0 at halftime, before cruising in the second half.
The Plainsmen, 2-4, made some defensive adjustments in the second half to hold Sheridan to two field goals in the final two quarters.
Although the Broncs turned the ball over on their first offensive play from scrimmage when Jon Sorenson intercepted quarterback Austin Woodward, Sheridan turned to its ground game to take control of the contest.
The Broncs got on the scoreboard with 6:53 left in the first quarter on a 14-yard touchdown run by Seth Carroll. Sheridan then made it 14-0 late in the opening quarter on a 45-yard touchdown run by Cody Williams.
Williams then scored for the second time of the game mid-way through the second quarter from 13 yards out.
The Broncs made it a 24-0 game in the third quarter on a 28-yard field goal by Andrew Sticker.
Laramie had its best offensive drive of the game early in the fourth quarter to get on the scoreboard. Sorenson capped a 12-play, 80 yard drive on a 16-yard touchdown run.
Stricker closed the scoring with a booming 48-yard field goal with 7:52 left in the game.
The Broncs finished with 322 yard of total offense, with 227 on the ground and 95 through the air. Williams finished with 78 yards on just five carries, followed by Woodward with 77 yards on 11 rushes. Woodward was also 7 of 16 passing for 95 yards.
Sophomore Tanner Ibarra led the Plainsmen with 67 yards rushing on six carries, with senior Mike Lanich adding 35 yards on 10 carries and Sorenson with 12 rushes for 29 yards. Laramie played the game without leading rusher Dan Estes, who was out with an injury.
Sorenson was 8 of 16 passing (two interceptions) for 90 yards. Nathan Cowper had three catches for 32 yards, with Kelby Wilkison and Rylan Harding adding two catches each.
The Plainsmen remain on the road next Friday when they face Kelly Walsh in Casper.
Tickets for state football to go on sale
by UW Athletics Media Relations
The University of Wyoming athletics department has announced that beginning this Monday, high school football fans can begin purchasing their all-session tickets for the upcoming 2009 Wyoming High School State Football Championships.
The championship game for each of Wyoming’s five high school football classifications will be held in War Memorial Stadium on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 13-14.
“It is a great privilege for UW to be hosting the Wyoming High School State Championships ,and we will do everything within our power to host a great event,” UW Director of Athletics Tom Burman said. “We are hopeful that high school football fans and University of Wyoming supporters will purchase tickets and come to the games, but if they can’t attend the games, please consider purchasing tickets to show community support.”
On Monday, ticket orders for all-session passes will be taken by the UW Athletics Ticket Office either in person at the Arena-Auditorium box office, over the phone at 800-922-9461 or online at WyomingAthletics.com.
All-session tickets, which are good for all five games on both days, cost $15 for adults and $10 for youth.
Single-day tickets will be available at a later date, but likely not until the week of the events. Cost for single-day passes will be $10 for adults and $7 for youth.
All seating for the five championship games will be general admission in the lower sections of War Memorial Stadium. The home team for each contest will be seated on the east side, with the visiting team on the west side.
Sports fans in Laramie for the weekend of Nov. 13-14 will not only get to enjoy great high school football action, but they will also have access to multiple UW events taking place that same weekend.
The Cowboy basketball team will open the regular season by hosting South Dakota State on Nov. 13 at 7:30 p.m. A special ticket price of $5 has been set for that game.
The Cowboy wrestling team also will be hosting a big weekend of events, with a season-opening dual against Northwest College on Nov. 13 at 5 p.m., followed by the 37th annual Cowboy Open tournament, all day on Nov. 14. That event is presented by UniWyo Federal Credit Union and last season over 20 collegiate teams and 450 individuals competed, with an even larger field expected this year.
The final UW event of the weekend will take place on Nov. 15 when the Cowgirl basketball team will open their regular season against Montana at 2 p.m. Once again, a special ticket price of $4 has been established for this contest.
A schedule for the weekend’s high school games is included below.
2009 Wyoming High School State Football Championships
War Memorial Stadium
Friday - Saturday, Nov. 13-14
Fri., Nov. 13
- 11:30 a.m. - 1A Championship Game
- 2:00 p.m. – 2A Championship Game
Sat., Nov. 14
- 10:30 a.m. – 3A Championship Game
- 1:00 p.m. – 6-MAN Championship Game
- 3:30 p.m. – 4A Championship Game
The University of Wyoming athletics department has announced that beginning this Monday, high school football fans can begin purchasing their all-session tickets for the upcoming 2009 Wyoming High School State Football Championships.
The championship game for each of Wyoming’s five high school football classifications will be held in War Memorial Stadium on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 13-14.
“It is a great privilege for UW to be hosting the Wyoming High School State Championships ,and we will do everything within our power to host a great event,” UW Director of Athletics Tom Burman said. “We are hopeful that high school football fans and University of Wyoming supporters will purchase tickets and come to the games, but if they can’t attend the games, please consider purchasing tickets to show community support.”
On Monday, ticket orders for all-session passes will be taken by the UW Athletics Ticket Office either in person at the Arena-Auditorium box office, over the phone at 800-922-9461 or online at WyomingAthletics.com.
All-session tickets, which are good for all five games on both days, cost $15 for adults and $10 for youth.
Single-day tickets will be available at a later date, but likely not until the week of the events. Cost for single-day passes will be $10 for adults and $7 for youth.
All seating for the five championship games will be general admission in the lower sections of War Memorial Stadium. The home team for each contest will be seated on the east side, with the visiting team on the west side.
Sports fans in Laramie for the weekend of Nov. 13-14 will not only get to enjoy great high school football action, but they will also have access to multiple UW events taking place that same weekend.
The Cowboy basketball team will open the regular season by hosting South Dakota State on Nov. 13 at 7:30 p.m. A special ticket price of $5 has been set for that game.
The Cowboy wrestling team also will be hosting a big weekend of events, with a season-opening dual against Northwest College on Nov. 13 at 5 p.m., followed by the 37th annual Cowboy Open tournament, all day on Nov. 14. That event is presented by UniWyo Federal Credit Union and last season over 20 collegiate teams and 450 individuals competed, with an even larger field expected this year.
The final UW event of the weekend will take place on Nov. 15 when the Cowgirl basketball team will open their regular season against Montana at 2 p.m. Once again, a special ticket price of $4 has been established for this contest.
A schedule for the weekend’s high school games is included below.
2009 Wyoming High School State Football Championships
War Memorial Stadium
Friday - Saturday, Nov. 13-14
Fri., Nov. 13
- 11:30 a.m. - 1A Championship Game
- 2:00 p.m. – 2A Championship Game
Sat., Nov. 14
- 10:30 a.m. – 3A Championship Game
- 1:00 p.m. – 6-MAN Championship Game
- 3:30 p.m. – 4A Championship Game
Friday, September 25, 2009
Plainsmen edge Red Devils in OT
Richard Anderson photos
The Laramie Plainsmen picked up their second win of the season with a thrilling 24-17 overtime win over Evanston Friday night at Deti Stadium. At top, head coach Bob Knapton joins in the celebration after the final play. At left, Rylan Harding shows the ball after the game-winning touchdown catch in overtime, and at right, Dan Estes hauls down Corey Huntley after a short gain.
By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org
When Charles Swearingen knocked down Evanston quarterback Jack Lambert’s fourth down pass in overtime, the Laramie Plainsmen almost knocked down head coach Bob Knapton.
Wyoming Sports.org
When Charles Swearingen knocked down Evanston quarterback Jack Lambert’s fourth down pass in overtime, the Laramie Plainsmen almost knocked down head coach Bob Knapton.
The second-year coach was in the middle of the festivity of what was a 24-17 overtime win over the Red Devils Friday night at Deti Stadium.
After three extremely difficult and lop-sided losses, the Plainsmen felt what it was like to be winners again.
“That’s how it should be. They should be excited, they should be happy they won that game,” Knapton said. “They played hard and that is exactly what we needed, that’s exactly what the doctor ordered. They never gave up and they won the game. That is exactly what this program needed.”
After opening the season with a win over Rock Springs, the Plainsmen not only lost three straight, but were crushed by a combined score of 105-14 to Gillette, Casper Natrona and Cheyenne Central.
Yet, the heads were still up in practice this week as the anticipation grew for Friday’s matchup for Evanston, another 1-3 team.
“You just have to get through the adversity,” Laramie senior quarterback Jon Sorenson said. “Those three games were tough, against a No. 1 and a No. 2, and against a good football team in Natrona. You just have to go out there and execute every day. In practice this week, we did an excellent job of conditioning and really working hard as a team.”
Although Sorenson had 108 yards rushing, the game-winner came from his arm, as he found receiver Rylan Harding in the right corner of the end zone for a 7-yard touchdown pass.
“Jon and I talked before the play happened in the huddle,” Harding said. “We said we were going to fake the run and I would chip down on the block and go out on the flat. He put it right on the money.”
Harding, who now has three touchdown catches from his five season receptions, went low to his knees and secured the football, as he needed at least one foot in bounds.
“I made sure of that,” Harding said with a smile.
Even if the Plainsmen would not execute the play as planned, they would have had one more chance to get into the end zone. They didn’t want to take any chances on fourth down, though.
“You have to think that you have another down, but we had to go after it hard and execute,” Sorenson said.
On fourth down and long, Knapton said the defense suddenly has the advantage, something his D did when Evanston had the ball.
“You don’t want to get in that situation where it is fourth down and they know what you are going to do,” Knapton said. “I wanted to stay in that formation and pop them with that pass quick. It’s a great formation and if you have three or four yards, they have to respect the run. We pulled it out, threw a great pass and made a great catch in the corner of the end zone.”
The Plainsmen then came alive on defense and stopped the Red Devils on two short runs and an incomplete pass. On fourth down, Laramie pressured Lambert as Swearingen easily swatted the pass, setting off a wild, jubilant Plainsmen sideline that drifted onto the field.
While the Plainsmen scored the last touchdown of the game, they got things started with an impressive eight-minute drive to open the game, getting into the end zone from 8 yards out on a scamper by senior halfback Dan Estes, who later scored in the second quarter from yards out.
Evanston added a 36-yard touchdown run by Corey Huntley in the first quarter and a 27-yard field goal by Gilber Delgado to make it a 14-10 game by halftime.
After a scoreless third quarter, Evanston took its only lead of the game with 8:44 left on a 1-yard plunge by Lambert.
Laramie came back to tie the game as place-kicker Isaac Hayward, on his birthday, hit his first field goal of the season from 43 yards out to make it as 17-17 contest with just 3:35 to play.
The Plainsmen got a big break when Nate Clark recovered a fumble after Lambert connected with Matt Eddington to the LHS 26-yard line, only to see Luke Knapton separate Eddington from the ball.
The Plainsmen tried to win the game in the final seconds of regulation, but Hayward was short and wide on a 43-yard attempt. Hayward also barely missed on an earlier 52-yard attempt, as well as a 57-yard try.
While Laramie’s performance on Friday was buoyed by the opening drive, its confidence picked up throughout the game. Yet, it all started earlier in the week in practice.
“We just had to approach this game with more intensity than the last three weeks. We came out hard in the first quarter,” Harding said. “It gave us confidence, definitely. We just have to keep our heads up and come out even harder next week in practice.”
The Plainsmen have some momentum again, although it doesn’t get any easier. Laramie travels to Sheridan Friday to face the Broncos, who will likely be the No. 1 team in the state after knocking off top-ranked Gillette 23-14.
“Now they know that hard work can play off for them. It was a great win. They needed that,” Bob Knapton said.
At 2-3, the Plainsmen are now back in the thick of things, as they strive to make the Class 4A playoffs this season. The win also enables the Plainsmen to feed off of their emotion even higher as they prepare for the Broncs.
“Our heads will be a little higher and turned up a notch,” Sorenson said.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Indians thump Plainsmen
By Wyoming Sports.org
CHEYENNE -- The Laramie Plainsmen continued to struggle against some of the top teams in the state, falling to second-ranked Cheyenne Central 36-0 Friday at Riske Field.
In their last three games against top-ranked Gillette, Casper Natrona and Central, the Plainsmen (1-3) have now been outscored 105-14. It was also Central's 10th straight win over Laramie.
While the Plainsmen showed some improvement in moving the football against the Indians, turnovers killed any momentum this time. Laramie turned the ball over six times, including four times in 11 plays in the second half alone.
The Indians, 4-0, took advantage most of the time. Central also used big plays to get on the scoreboard.
The Indians took a quick 6-0 lead scoring less than two minutes into the game. Central quarterback Connor Long hit wide receiver Kyle Gott with a 16-yard touchdown pass to cap a 5-play, 80-yard drive.
Laramie then turned the ball over on downs to give the Indians prime field opposition, when punter Jon Sorenson tried to a fake punt and was stopped a half-yard short near mid field.
The Indians took it to the end zone on just four plays and used a little trickery, as receiver Josh Borm threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to fellow receiver Kevin Cox.
Central then made it 20-0 in the second quarter in a 62-yard run up the middle by Mike Davis.
The Plainsmen had their best drive of the game nullified when Central picked off Sorenson in the end zone with just 15 seconds left in the first half.
Laramie then gave the Indians two more quick chances to score in the third quarter and Central obliged. On just their second play, Laramie fumbled and Central moved five plays and 35 yards for the score on a 21-yard pass from Long to Grott. Two plays later the Plainsmen fumbled again and the Indians scored on an 18-yard run by Davis. With 8:40 left in the third quarter, the Indians led comfortably 33-0.
Central actually got the ball back two more times because of Laramie turnovers, but missed a pair of field goals. The third time was a charm for Borm, as he connected from 34 yards out after another pass interception.
The Indians finished with 412 yards of total offense -- 227 yards on the ground and 185 through the air. Davis led the way, rushing the football just nine times for 135 yards and his two scores. Long was 10 of 19 passing for 141 yards and two touchdowns.
The Plainsmen finished with 201 yards of offense -- 149 on the ground and 52 through the air.
Senior halfback Dan Estes led the way with 44 yards on 13 carries, while senior fullback Charles Swearingen added 43 yards on nine carries. Sorenson finished with 39 yards on 15 carries.
Sorenson was 5 of 13 passing for 42 yards and the three interceptions. Billy Hysong was 1-of-2 for 10 yards.
Estes had three catches for 27 yards.
Laramie will look to get back in the win column Friday when it hosts Evanston, beginning at 7 p.m. at Deti Stadium.
CHEYENNE -- The Laramie Plainsmen continued to struggle against some of the top teams in the state, falling to second-ranked Cheyenne Central 36-0 Friday at Riske Field.
In their last three games against top-ranked Gillette, Casper Natrona and Central, the Plainsmen (1-3) have now been outscored 105-14. It was also Central's 10th straight win over Laramie.
While the Plainsmen showed some improvement in moving the football against the Indians, turnovers killed any momentum this time. Laramie turned the ball over six times, including four times in 11 plays in the second half alone.
The Indians, 4-0, took advantage most of the time. Central also used big plays to get on the scoreboard.
The Indians took a quick 6-0 lead scoring less than two minutes into the game. Central quarterback Connor Long hit wide receiver Kyle Gott with a 16-yard touchdown pass to cap a 5-play, 80-yard drive.
Laramie then turned the ball over on downs to give the Indians prime field opposition, when punter Jon Sorenson tried to a fake punt and was stopped a half-yard short near mid field.
The Indians took it to the end zone on just four plays and used a little trickery, as receiver Josh Borm threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to fellow receiver Kevin Cox.
Central then made it 20-0 in the second quarter in a 62-yard run up the middle by Mike Davis.
The Plainsmen had their best drive of the game nullified when Central picked off Sorenson in the end zone with just 15 seconds left in the first half.
Laramie then gave the Indians two more quick chances to score in the third quarter and Central obliged. On just their second play, Laramie fumbled and Central moved five plays and 35 yards for the score on a 21-yard pass from Long to Grott. Two plays later the Plainsmen fumbled again and the Indians scored on an 18-yard run by Davis. With 8:40 left in the third quarter, the Indians led comfortably 33-0.
Central actually got the ball back two more times because of Laramie turnovers, but missed a pair of field goals. The third time was a charm for Borm, as he connected from 34 yards out after another pass interception.
The Indians finished with 412 yards of total offense -- 227 yards on the ground and 185 through the air. Davis led the way, rushing the football just nine times for 135 yards and his two scores. Long was 10 of 19 passing for 141 yards and two touchdowns.
The Plainsmen finished with 201 yards of offense -- 149 on the ground and 52 through the air.
Senior halfback Dan Estes led the way with 44 yards on 13 carries, while senior fullback Charles Swearingen added 43 yards on nine carries. Sorenson finished with 39 yards on 15 carries.
Sorenson was 5 of 13 passing for 42 yards and the three interceptions. Billy Hysong was 1-of-2 for 10 yards.
Estes had three catches for 27 yards.
Laramie will look to get back in the win column Friday when it hosts Evanston, beginning at 7 p.m. at Deti Stadium.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Mustangs roll over struggling Plainsmen
Richard Anderson photo
Laramie halfback Dan Estes looks for some running room early on Friday against Casper Natrona.
By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org
It was apparent Casper Natrona was better than its 0-2 record going into Friday night‘s match with the Laramie Plainsmen at Deti Stadium.
After the Mustang’s 38-7 thrashing of the Plainsmen, and including last week‘s 24-point loss to Gillette, Laramie head coach Bob Knapton is wondering out loud if his team's efforts lately are good enough to compete with the best teams in the state.
“It’s very frustrating,” Knapton said. “We’re going to make some changes and find some kids who want to suck it up a little more, start showing up and getting after it. We have a little work to do. It was disappointing today."
The Plainsmen, 1-2, were hanging in with the Mustangs, trailing just 7-0 with about three minutes left in the first half. But three quick scores -- two to end the opening half -- put the game away. In all, the Mustangs scored on five straight possessions to pout the game away for another lop-sided win over Laramie.
Natrona, which hadn’t played in Laramie since the 2001 season, has now won three straight games against the Plainsmen, including outscoring LHS 86-14 in the last two contests.
Natrona, like Gillette last week, dominated the frontline offensively and defensively on Friday. The Mustangs finished with 374 total yards on offense to just 155 for LHS.
“We have to block people, we have to hit people, we have to catch the ball when it is thrown to you,” Knapton said. “We had our opportunities, we have to make plays happen. When you are playing a good team, it is time to step up and play ball.”
Only trailing by one touchdown, the Plainsmen had a couple of promising drives that were either stalled by penalty or downs, enabling the Mustangs to turn a close game into a rout.
The Mustangs first score came early in the game on a 4-yard run by Brownell. The drive was set up on a 44-yard pass from the team’s other QB -- Cody Parke -- to 6-foot-4 wide receiver Taylor Villegas.
The tide began to turn late in the second quarter when the Mustangs struck twice in the final three minutes. Natrona made it 14-0 on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Brownell to halfback Cole Montgomery. He score was set up[ on a 25-yard run by Parke on third and 10.
After the Plainsmen went three and out, Montgomery’s big punt return to the Laramie 9-yard line set up another quick score. Two plays later Parke scored from 4 yards out.
Playing with a great deal of momentum, the Mustangs took what little steam was left in the Plainsmen just one play into the third quarter. Parke, who finished with 192 yards passing in the game, hit Villegas on a short bump and coverage pass, and Villegas took it 80 yards to the end zone.
Although the Plainsmen would finally get on the scoreboard in the fourth quarter, they had no answer the rest of the way.
Natrona closed its scoring on a 36-yard field goal by Derek Gibbins and an 11-yard touchdown pass from Parke to fullback Paul Miller.
The Plainsmen finally got on the board with 6:26 left in the game on a 29-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jon Sorenson to receiver Rylan Harding.
Parke was 7 of 13 passing for 192 yards, while Brownell adding 33 yards passing on 2 of 4 attempts. Parke also led the way on the ground with 71 yards on 15 carries.
“Their No. 9 (Villegas) is a good receiver and they threw a ball perfect to him. They did that the last game, too, when they got down there,” Knapton said. “Our game plan was to shut the run down, and we shut the run down, but we have to be able to cover people. Obviously, if we can’t cover them man-to-man, then we have to switch up quite, zone to man, zone to man. When you blitz and put pressure on people, you start with cover zero and we have to learn to cover people."
Senior halfback Dan Estes had his best game of his short football career, as he led the Plainsmen with 53 yards on 15 carries. Sorenson, the team’s leading rusher, however, had a negative 6 yards on 10 carries. Sorenson was also 7 of 15 passing for 89 yards and the one score.
The Plainsmen will look to bounce back next Friday in Cheyenne against Central, beginning at 6 p.m.
Knapton said they have a lot of work in store next week if they want to turn things around.
“It’s time to step up and play,” Knapton said. “We’ll take a look at the film and see what we have to do, but we have to find some kids who want to get the job done. Some of them … I don’t know.”
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Plainsmen look to rebound against Natrona
By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org
Two weeks into the season, just where do the Laramie Plainsmen stand?
In week one, the Plainsmen dominated a Rock Springs team at home that has given up 87 points in two games.
In week two, defending state champion Gillette had little trouble against Laramie in Gillette.
The Plainsmen return home Friday night to face a Casper Natrona team that is much better than its 0-2 record. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Deti Stadium.
As much as the Laramie coaching staff preached to not take things for granted after the season-opening 35-14 win over Rock Springs, Plainsmen head coach Bob Knapton saw a glimpse of that against Gillette in the next week. The result was a 31-7 defeat to the second-ranked Camels.
“They came out and beat Rock Springs and they thought, ‘Oh, this is great, we’re good now,’” Knapton said. “We told them that they have to get better than they were last week because people start scouting you, people will try to stop what you are doing right. That whole mix is going to be tough and we have to get through it. Our goal is to get to the playoffs and we have the potential to do that this year.”
As talented as the Camels are, Knapton said his team made it easier to get beat last Friday night.
“Even though you are playing a very good team in Gillette, you have to come out and make them beat you,” he said. “You can’t make it easy for them to beat you, and that is what we did. We made it pretty easy to score on us.”
So what do the Plainsmen have to do to be competitive against a good Natrona team?
For Knapton, it is all about being ready to play, executing like they know and firing off the ball and giving 100 percent.
“That’s what I want to impress on our kids. If you do that, then we’re going to be a tough team to beat,” Knapton said. “That’s what you want to be. You want to be tough to beat because then you will find out that other teams will start making mistakes. Either you are going to be in the ball game or you are not going to be in the ball game.”
After opening the season with a tough 19-17 loss to Central, Natrona was surprised at home by Evanston 27-14 last Friday.
Yet, the Mustangs are ranked first overall in the state offensively, averaging 411 yards a game. Natrona, however, has lost the ball nine times in two games, including seven in the defeat to the Red Devils.
Cole Montgomery is second in the state in rushing, averaging 136 yards a game, while quarterback Cody. Parke is fourth in the state in passing, completing 24 of 45 attempts for 388 yards, with three touchdowns and three interceptions.
“Natrona is a tough team,” Knapton said. “They have been putting up good numbers on offense rushing the ball; they do a good job of executing and running hard. The turnover ratio is killing the. They are negative five in two games. You’re talking about throwing picks, dropping the ball and stuff like that. They’ll move it down and all of the sudden they will fumble or throw a pick. I’m sure they are trying to clean that up and when they do, they’ll be a tough team.”
After putting up 326 yards against Rock Springs, the Plainsmen were held to 186 yards against the Camels. As a team, the Plainsmen are ranked sixth in the state in rushing (158 yards per game) and sixth in passing (98 ypg), but ninth in overall offense at 256 yards a game.
Individually for the Plainsmen, quarterback Jon Sorenson is 10th in the state in rushing, averaging 80 yards a game and sixth in passing, completing 12 of 25 passes for 196 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
Defensively, the Plainsmen are second overall, giving up 277 yards per game. Senior linebacker Luke Knapton is third in the state, averaging 21.0 defensive points a game.
With 2-0 Central slated for next week, the Plainsmen are in a three-game stretch that can only help them down the road in their efforts to improve and qualify for the state playoffs.
“You’re talking about some of the top teams in the state, year-in and year-out, that you have three games in-a-row,” Knapton said. ‘We have to get through them and play as tough as we can and hopefully knock off one or two of them. We just have to just keep playing and keep fighting. We’re too good to start going down, we want to go in the other direction. If we can go out and play tough ball and play with Plainsmen pride and walk off the field with our head up, that’s what is going to get us through, that is what is going to get us more wins.”
Wyoming Sports.org
Two weeks into the season, just where do the Laramie Plainsmen stand?
In week one, the Plainsmen dominated a Rock Springs team at home that has given up 87 points in two games.
In week two, defending state champion Gillette had little trouble against Laramie in Gillette.
The Plainsmen return home Friday night to face a Casper Natrona team that is much better than its 0-2 record. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Deti Stadium.
As much as the Laramie coaching staff preached to not take things for granted after the season-opening 35-14 win over Rock Springs, Plainsmen head coach Bob Knapton saw a glimpse of that against Gillette in the next week. The result was a 31-7 defeat to the second-ranked Camels.
“They came out and beat Rock Springs and they thought, ‘Oh, this is great, we’re good now,’” Knapton said. “We told them that they have to get better than they were last week because people start scouting you, people will try to stop what you are doing right. That whole mix is going to be tough and we have to get through it. Our goal is to get to the playoffs and we have the potential to do that this year.”
As talented as the Camels are, Knapton said his team made it easier to get beat last Friday night.
“Even though you are playing a very good team in Gillette, you have to come out and make them beat you,” he said. “You can’t make it easy for them to beat you, and that is what we did. We made it pretty easy to score on us.”
So what do the Plainsmen have to do to be competitive against a good Natrona team?
For Knapton, it is all about being ready to play, executing like they know and firing off the ball and giving 100 percent.
“That’s what I want to impress on our kids. If you do that, then we’re going to be a tough team to beat,” Knapton said. “That’s what you want to be. You want to be tough to beat because then you will find out that other teams will start making mistakes. Either you are going to be in the ball game or you are not going to be in the ball game.”
After opening the season with a tough 19-17 loss to Central, Natrona was surprised at home by Evanston 27-14 last Friday.
Yet, the Mustangs are ranked first overall in the state offensively, averaging 411 yards a game. Natrona, however, has lost the ball nine times in two games, including seven in the defeat to the Red Devils.
Cole Montgomery is second in the state in rushing, averaging 136 yards a game, while quarterback Cody. Parke is fourth in the state in passing, completing 24 of 45 attempts for 388 yards, with three touchdowns and three interceptions.
“Natrona is a tough team,” Knapton said. “They have been putting up good numbers on offense rushing the ball; they do a good job of executing and running hard. The turnover ratio is killing the. They are negative five in two games. You’re talking about throwing picks, dropping the ball and stuff like that. They’ll move it down and all of the sudden they will fumble or throw a pick. I’m sure they are trying to clean that up and when they do, they’ll be a tough team.”
After putting up 326 yards against Rock Springs, the Plainsmen were held to 186 yards against the Camels. As a team, the Plainsmen are ranked sixth in the state in rushing (158 yards per game) and sixth in passing (98 ypg), but ninth in overall offense at 256 yards a game.
Individually for the Plainsmen, quarterback Jon Sorenson is 10th in the state in rushing, averaging 80 yards a game and sixth in passing, completing 12 of 25 passes for 196 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
Defensively, the Plainsmen are second overall, giving up 277 yards per game. Senior linebacker Luke Knapton is third in the state, averaging 21.0 defensive points a game.
With 2-0 Central slated for next week, the Plainsmen are in a three-game stretch that can only help them down the road in their efforts to improve and qualify for the state playoffs.
“You’re talking about some of the top teams in the state, year-in and year-out, that you have three games in-a-row,” Knapton said. ‘We have to get through them and play as tough as we can and hopefully knock off one or two of them. We just have to just keep playing and keep fighting. We’re too good to start going down, we want to go in the other direction. If we can go out and play tough ball and play with Plainsmen pride and walk off the field with our head up, that’s what is going to get us through, that is what is going to get us more wins.”
Friday, September 4, 2009
Camels thump Plainsmen
By Wyoming Sports.org
GILLETTE -- The anticipated matchup between two of the top five teams in the state turned into a mismatch early as Gillette rolled to a 31-7 win over the Laramie Plainsmen on Friday night.
Gillette, 2-0 and rated second in the state by WyoPreps.com, jumped on Laramie early, leading 17-0 at halftime. The loss dropped the fifth-ranked Plainsmen to 1-1 on the season.
It was the first time the two teams faced off since the 2001 season. Nothing had changed throughout the years, as the Camels continued it dominance over Laramie with its seventh straight win over the Plainsmen.
The Camels took advantage of a Laramie turnover and got on the boards just a couple of minutes into the game on a 9-yard pass from quarterback Alan Sisel to Matt Mordecai. The score was set up by pass interception by Mordecai to the Laramie 38-yard line.
With the Laramie offense struggling, the Camels then made it a 14-0 early in the second quarter on a 32-yard touchdown pass from Sisel to Brek Carper. It was 17-0 at halftime after a 29-yard field goal by Hinkle.
One of the big keys in the game came early in the third quarter. The Plainsmen stopped Gillette on defense and moved to the 22-yard line, but lost the ball on a fumble by quarterback Jon Sorenson.
The Camels came right back and scored two plays layer and added another touchdown to put the game away. Sisel hit Steven Turpin on an 82-yard touchdown pass and then connected again with Mordecai from 17 yards out.
Laramie’s only score came on the first play of the fourth quarter when Sorenson hit receiver Rylan Harding from 2 yards out.
The Plainsmen finished with just 186 total yards on offense. Sorenson was 9 of 18 passing for 122 yards, but Laramie had just 64 yards rushing on 35 carries. Senior Dan Estes led the way with 38 yards on 12 carries, with Sorenson adding 27 yards on 16 rushes.
The Camels finished with 364 yards of offense -- 232 passing and 132 rushing. Sisel was 13 of 21 through the air for 235 yards and four touchdowns, while halfback Jordan Roberts led the way with 114 yards on the ground.
Laramie returns to action Friday when it hosts Casper Natrona. Action begins at 7 p.m. at Deti Stadium.
GILLETTE -- The anticipated matchup between two of the top five teams in the state turned into a mismatch early as Gillette rolled to a 31-7 win over the Laramie Plainsmen on Friday night.
Gillette, 2-0 and rated second in the state by WyoPreps.com, jumped on Laramie early, leading 17-0 at halftime. The loss dropped the fifth-ranked Plainsmen to 1-1 on the season.
It was the first time the two teams faced off since the 2001 season. Nothing had changed throughout the years, as the Camels continued it dominance over Laramie with its seventh straight win over the Plainsmen.
The Camels took advantage of a Laramie turnover and got on the boards just a couple of minutes into the game on a 9-yard pass from quarterback Alan Sisel to Matt Mordecai. The score was set up by pass interception by Mordecai to the Laramie 38-yard line.
With the Laramie offense struggling, the Camels then made it a 14-0 early in the second quarter on a 32-yard touchdown pass from Sisel to Brek Carper. It was 17-0 at halftime after a 29-yard field goal by Hinkle.
One of the big keys in the game came early in the third quarter. The Plainsmen stopped Gillette on defense and moved to the 22-yard line, but lost the ball on a fumble by quarterback Jon Sorenson.
The Camels came right back and scored two plays layer and added another touchdown to put the game away. Sisel hit Steven Turpin on an 82-yard touchdown pass and then connected again with Mordecai from 17 yards out.
Laramie’s only score came on the first play of the fourth quarter when Sorenson hit receiver Rylan Harding from 2 yards out.
The Plainsmen finished with just 186 total yards on offense. Sorenson was 9 of 18 passing for 122 yards, but Laramie had just 64 yards rushing on 35 carries. Senior Dan Estes led the way with 38 yards on 12 carries, with Sorenson adding 27 yards on 16 rushes.
The Camels finished with 364 yards of offense -- 232 passing and 132 rushing. Sisel was 13 of 21 through the air for 235 yards and four touchdowns, while halfback Jordan Roberts led the way with 114 yards on the ground.
Laramie returns to action Friday when it hosts Casper Natrona. Action begins at 7 p.m. at Deti Stadium.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Plainsmen on the road to Gillette
Richard Anderson photo
Laramie head coach Bob Knapton talks to his team during a timeout Friday against Rock Springs. Laramie, 1-0, will hit the road for the first time Friday at Gillette, beginning at 7 p.m.
Class 4A Statistics
Class 4A Rankings
By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org
Momentum … these Laramie Plainsmen aren’t used to it. Gillette … these Laramie Plainsmen have never played the Camels.
These Plainsmen are in unchartered territory.
It’s been a while since the Plainsmen have begun the season with a win over a Wyoming team (2003, 20-17 over Evanston). The Plainsmen rolled over Rock Springs 35-14 last Friday.
It’s been a while since the Plainsmen have faced perennial power Gillette … since the 2001 season, to be exact.
Playing with some much-needed momentum, fifth-ranked Laramie will hit the road for the first time this season at second-ranked Gillette, taking on the defending-state champion Camels Friday at 7 p.m.
“They weren’t in our league; we didn’t play them. So, there is not a lot of history there,” second-year Laramie head coach Bob Knapton, who is also getting his first crack at the Camels. “Our kids know that they are one of the team’s that is always in the playoffs and in state championship games, so they know that this is a chance to play against a top team, to show them what they got.”
Knapton’s advice, especially to his seniors: It’s time to step up.
“When you talk to your seniors, you say, ‘Hey, this the first time you have played them and this is the last time (in the regular season) that you’ll play them. This is your shot,” Knapton said.
Knock on wood, Knapton said he hopes that they can, “Find out how to play on the road, how they can get ready to motivated football again, like they did last week against Rock Springs.”
Throughout his coaching career, Knapton said there is always that one or two games a year against a rival that the team is focused and “it is amazing how they play.”
Knapton then thinks to himself, “Why can’t we play that way every week?” he said.
That’s a key ingredient.
“That’s what I am going to try to find out, if we can play that way every week, and that is how you get to the playoffs,” he added.
Knapton said football should be fun. He admits that he is getting to the point that he isn’t sweating what is out of his control.
“I’m like, ‘You know, we’ve done everything we can do, we’ve done a lot of stuff in the off-season with these kids. It’s time to just turn them loose on Friday night and have fun, have people come out and enjoy the game because it is high school football,” he said. “We all want to look good, play good. I’m going to do my best to get them ready and I think they are.”
The Plainsmen looked good last Friday, likely as good as they have looked under Knapton. Laramie finished with 344 yards of offense – 272 yards rushing and 72 yards passing, scoring five touchdowns. Quarterback Jon Sorenson led the way with 144 yards rushing and 72 yards passing. Charles Swearingen added 72 yards form his fullback position.
On defense, the Plainsmen gave up just 170 total yards, tops in the state. Linebacker Luke Knapton had 23 defensive points, which is good for fourth int he state.
Before last week's game, Bob Knapton said they needed to open with a win in the worst way. That has the Plainsmen thinking, he said, “Why not more of the same?”
Plainsmen said his players have to have the attitude of: “We just beat them, and they start looking around the state and thinking there are other teams they can beat,” he said. “Their mindset going on is, ‘We have a chance now. Let’s keep going and let’s show people how tough we are.’”
Of course, there is a difference between Rock Springs and Gillette in caliber of play. The Camels did start slow, but beat Evanston on the road in their opener, 23-14.
“They have the tall receivers, they have the fast running back and they have the d-line that can come at you,” Bob Knapton said. “They have the personnel; they definitely have enough kids up there. We have kids playing both ways, so that is a concern for us because we had kids cramping up, we had kids who were a little tired.”
Individually, the Camels are led by Jordan Roberts with 169 yards rushing in 17 carries and quarterback Alan Sisel was 16 of 29 passing for 151 yards. Stephen Turbin and Cameron Quinn lead the way with five and four catches respectively.
On defense, Alex Coolidge is third in the state with 23.5 defensive points, with Cammry Nelson adding 21.
“We’re going to have to shut them down and get good field position,” Bob Knapton said. “We’re going to have to have some kids playing hard and getting after it.”
Friday, August 28, 2009
Plainsmen get their revenge against Tigers
Richard Anderson photos
Laramie quarterback Jon Sorenson looks for some running room in a scrum Friday against Rock Springs. Sorenson broke the tackle and finished with 142 yards rushing in the 35-14 win. At left, senior Dan Estes wraps up a Rock Springs runner as the Plainsmen defense dominated the game as well.
By Richard AndersonWyoming Sports.org
When push came to shove last season against Rock Springs, the Laramie Plainsmen backed off down the stretch.
On Friday, that concern soon went by the wayside as the Plainsmen were the aggressor for much of the night, especially late in thumping the Tigers 35-14 to open the season at Deti Stadium.
“We came out and we were busting them in the mouth; we were going 100 percent and that’s what we need to do. It paid off,” Laramie senior linebacker Luke Knapton said.
Last year, the Plainsmen led 21-7 heading into halftime and 28-7 going into the fourth quarter. They would eventually lose by seven in overtime.
Friday night, the Plainsmen took a 21-7 lead into the locker room at halftime.
Second-year head coach Bob Knapton was not exactly at ease during the 20-minute break.
“It was kind of déjà vu. We go into at halftime with the same score than last time, so that was kind of concerning,” Bob Knapton said. “We came out and scored, then they scored. I was kind of getting on some of the kids to suck it up and get going. It’s great to get a win like that at home, to come back and play that hard in the second half to just take over.”
The turning point in the second half came early in the fourth quarter after the Tigers cut the lead to 28-14 and had the Plainsmen pinned back on their own 3-yard line. But quarterback Jon Sorenson turned to a punter and delivered a beauty for 57 yards and the Tigers would never threaten again.
Laramie’s hard-hitting defense forced Rock Springs to punt and the Plainsmen offense took over for the final score a little later to put Bob Knapton’s mind at ease.
“That’s where you have 20 seniors and that happens,” Bob Knapton said of the team remaining calm. “People are looking for somebody to step up."
Sorenson said they couldn't get down despite being pinned deep in their own territory.
“You have to focus up and know that you have worked hard and you can get out of this," Sorenson said. "We punted, got the stop on D and then we scored right. That’s what we have to do with our mentality every day.”
Take away a little second-quarter lull and a brief Rock Springs comeback and the Plainsmen dominated on both sides of the football. Laramie’s double wing spread offense clicked well at times, led by the hard running of Sorenson and fullback Charles Swearingen.
The Plainsmen finished with 271 yards on the ground, including 142 from Sorenson. Swearingen was a bull between the tackles with 74 yards on 16 carries and two touchdown runs. Laramie added 72 more yards on 3 of 7 passing from Sorenson, with Luke Knapton catching two big third-down catches in the second quarter for 28 yards. Senior receiver Kelby Wilkison added a nice 44-yard grab in the first quarter.
“We had a great offensive game plan from Coach (Josh) Barge. We knew what we needed to do,” Sorenson said. “The line got a great push and held their blocks. Our receivers did a great job of blocking down-field as well.”
It all started early for the Plainsmen, as hey moved the ball well on their first possession, but lost the football on a fumble. On their second try, they completed a 7-play, 77-yard drive on a 5-yard touchdown run by Swearingen. The score was set up by the 44-yard pass from Sorenson to Wilkison.
“We came out firing and at first we were moving the ball very well. We were consistently getting yards on every play,” Sorenson said. “We had a little slip-up with the fumble and we came back on the second drive and got a touchdown, and we just built momentum off of those two drives.”
The Plainsmen made it 14-0 late in the first quarter on a 2-yard touchdown run by senior halfback Dan Estes.
Rock Springs cut the lead in half on a 5-yard touchdown run by Ethan Thomas, but the Plainsmen answered with just 12.8 seconds left in the first half on a 1-yard plunge by Sorenson. That capped a 12-play, 72-yard drive.
Taking advantage of a fumble on the first play of the third quarter on the Tigers' 10-yard line, Estes scored his second TD of the game from 2 yards out.
A bad snap on a punt attempt forced Sorenson to scramble later in the quarter and it backfired, as the Tigers took over on downs on the Laramie 38-yard line. Rock Springs quarterback Wesley Padilla, who led the Tigers with 123 yards rushing, scored on a 23-yard scamper to make it a 28-14 game.
That set up the big punt and two defensive stops by the Plainsmen and Laramie never looked back. Swearingen closed the scoring on another 5-yard TD run, capping a six-play drive that was highlighted by a 39-yard run by Sorenson to the Rock Springs 29-yard line.
As sharp as the Laramie offense looked at times, the Plainsmen on defense were just as dominant. The Tigers had just 171 yards of total offense, with a bulk of it coming from the strong running of Padilla.
“The defense did a good job. They kept us in good field position and shut them down pretty good,” Bob Knapton said. “After they scored, we changed up our D and put our ends out a little wider. That’s the good thing about this defense, we can run a 50 out of it, we can run a 40 out of it; we can do a lot of things. I think they are a little ore familiar with it and they can do a better job this year.”
Luke Knapton finished with 20 defensive points on four assisted tackles and five unassisted tackles. Sorenson had 11 defensive points, followed by senior Tyler English with nine points and seniors Nathan Clark and Estes with eight points each.
“When we start hitting them hard, we start getting in their head and mistakes start happening. We capitalized off of that,” Luke Knapton said.
After just one win last season, the Plainsmen are off to the type of start they have envisioned all along. Bob Knapton said it is not only a relief for him and his coaching staff, but for the players as well.
“That’s just like grabbing that monkey off of my back and tossing him,” Bob Knapton said. “That feels good and the kids are like, “this is how we like to feel.’ I think you are going to see the kids scrapping in there and their goal is to get to the playoffs.”
The Plainsmen, however, had a tough stretch ahead of them that includes a matchup on the road next week against defending state champion Gillette.
“The first (win) is great going into Gillette. It will build us a lot of confidence,” Sorenson said. “But Gillette will be tough. They are the defending state champions and they have a lot back, so it should be a great game.”
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Plainsmen ready to roll
Richard Anderson photo
The Laramie Plainsmen will unveil a tweak of their double wing offense Friday night when they open the season by hosting Rock Springs (7 p.m.). Pictured, quarterback Jon Sorenson (middle, back) will run the offense out of the shotgun. Also pictured is halfback Dan Estes (1) and fullback Charles Swearingen (45).
By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org
Jon Sorenson will basically get to touch the football on every offensive plays this season. That makes him smile, and if things go right, it will make the Plainsmen smile as well.
Laramie's leading rusher last season, Sorenson has been moved over to quarterback to run a version of their double wing offense. The offense will be similar to last year's except for one thing -- Sorenson will direct it from the shotgun.
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Second-year Laramie head coach Bob Knapton said this tweak will free Sorenson up to do a lot of different things.
“He’s a great running back, so we put him in position to use him as a running back because we’re going to run him a lot," Sorenson said. “He can throw it so now people are going to have to watch what we are doing. They’re going to have to read a little better, so if some of them are not taught to do that, we’re going to find some open holes. He can run off of that, he can pass off of that. We can hand off to our motion back. We have more quite a few more tricks to do and quite a few things to open him up.”
Sorenson, who ran for nearly 800 yards last season and has a strong arm (he’s a catcher in American Legion baseball), likes the options this offense will give him.
“It opens up our offense a lot more," Sorenson said. "As Coach (Josh) Barge said, it adds a whole different dimension. We can pass or run on the same play. With a lot of speed that we have in the backfield, it opens up the option in trap plays and speed outs. It really helps us as an offense and as a group."
Heading into Friday night’s season opener against Rock Springs (7 p.m., Deti Stadium), senior halfback Luke Knapton said that Sorenson has done a good job this preseason in running the offense.
"Jon has been doing a really good job out of the shotgun," Luke Knapton said. "We have a lot more plays that we can run, and it will help our offense get going. We have more speed and that will be helpful."
More focus
One of the Plainsmen’s problems last season in Bob Knapton’s first year was focus -- or the lack of focus. Laramie was hampered by inexperience and penalties in the 1-8 campaign.
The Plainsmen have the experience this season, with nine returning starters on defense and eight on offense, along with 22 seniors.
The focus has been there to date.
"We just have to keep our heads and no stupid penalties like we had last year, and just go out there and play the whole game and play hard," Luke Knapton said. "I think we have a lot more focus. Guernsey helped us come together a lot. I think we’re ready for this game."
Bob Knapton said they are miles ahead of where they were at this time last season.
"We are much better than we were last year, and we have much of the same kids back," he said. "We have nine returning starters on defense. They know the checks, the calls. Last year, they had some problems in the first couple of games. People caught us not quite in the right coverage. It was the first time some of them were on the varsity field. I don’t think they quite knew what to do. But this year they know what to do, we’re making our checks.
"We have a lot of seniors and that builds confidence right there. They are good leaders and they have been working hard. We’re looking to get out there and be ore positive about what they are doing. I think it will show up."
Sorenson, who was voted a team captain along with Luke Knapton, said he is looking forward to his senior season for many reasons, including the opportunity to be a leader on and off the field.
"It’s a lot different, but it is a good different," Sorenson said. "You go through your freshman, sophomore and junior years looking at your seniors and you like with them and you just try to be the best senior that you can. All of the seniors have put a lot of time and effort in and it all comes together your senior year. You’re excited to be out here when you know that you are at your best."
Time for payback?
Among the eight losses for the Plainsmen last season was a very difficult to swallow 35-28 defeat in overtime to the Tigers in a game Laramie seemingly had won. The Plainsmen took a 28-7 lead into the fourth quarter.
The Plainsmen don’t need to be reminded about what happened last season.
"Hopefully, as soon as we have them down, we'll stay tough throughout the game," Luke Knapton said.
At the same time, Laramie knows that any win is crucial this season as the big change statewide has all 4A teams playing each other.
Bob Knapton said they need a win and they need it now.
"We need a win against Rock Springs if we are looking to get into the playoffs," Bob Knapton said. "We need to start the season out with a big win. It’s good to have them first, right off the bat. Maybe we’ll have a little extra motivation. They know they should have won last year. I think they are a little more focused on getting ready for this game."
The Tigers finished 3-7 last season and look to improve under the tutelage of head coach Tony Yerkovich. Rock Springs returns all-conference quarterback Wes Padilla and all-conference receiver Corey Patek.
"They are a good, solid team. They don’t start school until the 8th, so they have more time than anybody to get ready," Bob Knapton said. "They are going to be ready to go. We’ll just have to go out there and play. We have over 20 seniors and we expect them to have leadership and we’re going to get after them."
Monday, August 10, 2009
Plainsmen short on numbers, but not optimisim
Richard Anderson photos
The Plainsmen work on their conditioning on Monday during the first practice of the season. At bottom, head coach Bob Knapton begins his second season at the helm.
By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org
Bob Knapton and the Laramie Plainsmen have the attitude that you can only play 11 players at a time.
They just hope the best 11 players are out on the gridiron at a consistent pace.
The Plainsmen opened the 2009 season with the first practice Monday morning with a positive attitude, but a concern for depth. There were only about 50 players in grades 9-12 reporting for the first day.
“I’m a little concerned about numbers right now,” Knapton said. “A lot of these guys don’t have physicals or they didn’t get their stuff turned in. That’s disappointing. We have to start teaching them that they need to be ready to start when the season starts.”
At the same time, Knapton and seniors Jon Sorenson and Tyler English both think that the players out for the team are looking good.“I think we came in sharp and crisp and other guys came in and filled in spots like quarterback and running back and really stepped up,” Sorenson said. “That’s what they are going to have to do, sophomores to the varsity level. It was good to see those guys come out and be crisp right away.”
With that said, physical fitness is a top priority for the Plainsmen this season.
“If we’re going to be little low in numbers, we’re going to be in shape,” Knapton said. “That’s our main plan now. We’re going to be in shape. You have to put 11 on the field, so the 11 we put on their will be in shape.”
English said they had more top players work out in the off-season and that should help them down the road.
“We came out and ran every morning, we’re in better shape and we’re looking more upbeat,” English said. “We’re going to have a lot of people playing both ways, so we need a lot of strength at the end of the fourth quarter to finish games. We have to put our best out there, so we have to be in shape.”
If the Plainsmen aren’t in shape as of yet, it won’t take long. They embark Tuesday on what has turned out to be a traditional journey to Camp Guernsey. They’ll work out three times a day until returning on Sunday.
“I think the guys who have been out there all along are looking pretty good,” Knapton said. “The guys that showed up in shape are ready. The ones who aren’t, we’re going to have to get them there.”
The trip is also an opportunity for team unity. There’s no television in Guernsey, no video games, basically nothing to do but eat and sleep football.
“There’s a lot of team building and we were a closer team the last time we came out of there,” said English, who last went two seasons ago as a sophomore. “We were definitely in better condition the last time we came out of there. It is fun to bring back the old traditions. Hopefully, we can put that back in, the winning tradition.”
For seniors like Sorenson, Camp Guernsey and the season as a whole is all about leadership. He said they have to not only lead by example, but help out the underclassmen any way that they can.
“We just have to be positive with the younger kids,” Sorenson said. “I’ve been around kids who just barked, so we have to help them out when we can, give them good motivation and good positive words, and I think they will come around.”
It will be a successful trip, Knapton said, if they come back to Laramie ahead of where they were at this point last season.
“We’re going three practices a day; I think that will do it,” he said. “When you go on one of these, you don’t get a lot of time off. There’s nothing to do at Camp Guernsey.”
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The Plainsmen open the season on Aug. 28 when they host Rock Springs.
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