Sunday, September 18, 2016

9/17/16 Warriors vs Northern Utah Brigade Recap

Last Saturday, the Warriors, fresh off a 40-0 win against the WolfPack, took on the Northern Utah Brigade. The Brigade (0-1) are relative newcomers to this league, but are a great group of guys  known for their heart and always putting up a good fight. The game began with a quick defensive stop highlighted by a DE Ryan Jensen sack, forcing a Brigade punt. The Warriors offense began their day with a 30-yard run by Warrior captain Zach Geurts. QB Jeff Wissler then found receiver Scott Bryson open in the corner of the endzone for the touchdown. Wissler then capped the two-play drive with another quick throw to Bryson for the 2-point conversion, putting the Warriors up 8. The defense once again forced a three-and-out, giving the Warriors the ball back. After driving the field with a couple of long runs from Geurts and IK Ubani, Wissler hit WR Bryan Engstrom for the score. The Warriors then got the 2-point conversion with a HB pass as Geurts lobbed it up for Bryson to go get, putting the score at 16-0. The defense rose up once more as CB Donze Palmer-Randolph intercepted the pass and returned it inches from the endzone. RB Ubani was able to punch it in from there, followed by a quick strike from Wissler to WR Brady Young for the 2-point conversion and 24 point lead. Things were looking good for the Warriors.

The Brigade showed their never-say-die attitude and returned the ensuing kickoff past midfield, but a desperate throw deep was intercepted by LB/S Stephan Cook. With time short in the half, the Warriors dove into the bag of tricks and attempted a triple-reverse pass. Wissler found Bryson once again, who followed Ladale Jackson’s block and scored as time expired. Ubani punched the ball in for the conversion, putting the Warriors up 32 to 0 at halftime.

The Warriors’ Jackson then fielded the second half kickoff and had an amazing return, taking it past midfield, one shoestring tackle away from a touchdown. Wissler then found WR Travis Anderson for the big gain, followed by a touchdown pass to Geurts. Wissler capped the drive by finding Vic McKenzie sneaking out of the backfield all alone in the endzone for the 2-point conversion. This would be the last time the Warriors offense would touch the ball as the Brigade put together a long and time consuming drive, aided by several Warrior penalties, that ate up the rest of the second half. But the defense held strong and maintained the shutout, winning 40 to 0 for the second week in a row.

This week’s gameball goes to one of the Warrior originals, receiver Scott Bryson, who hauled in two touchdowns and two 2-point conversions. And once again, the defense deserves credit, this week not allowing even one complete pass all game long and totaling three sacks and two interceptions. Next week, the Warriors (2-0) will battle against the Spartans (1-1). The Spartans are the UTFL’s oldest operating team and are known for always boasting a hard-nosed defense. The battle will begin on Saturday at noon. Rain is in the forecast, but it should be clearing up by kickoff. No matter what, expect a muddy and wild game this week!

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