Saxons Soar to Familiar Spot in Semis

Ferris displays offensive diversity, physicality on defense in win over unbeaten Eisenhower

         By Ryan Minnerly

Another week of high school playoff football has come and gone, and the mighty Saxons remain. Ferris continues to prove itself as a top-notch playoff contender, knocking off opponent after opponent in its quest to the Tacoma Dome.  This week, it was the Eisenhower Cadets that fell victim to defeat, as Ferris traveled down to Zaepfel Stadium in Yakima to serve up a whoopin’ to Ike on their own turf (I suppose a final score of 24-14 isn’t quite considered a “whoopin’,” but that’s beside the point). The boys are now on their way to the semifinals with this win over the previously unbeaten Cadets.

The Saxons won the coin toss to start the game. Coach Sharkey wisely deferred his decision to the second half, knowing he wanted to play with the wind, rather than against it, in the second half. The Saxon D, which has been nothing short of fantastic in the postseason, went onto the field and did what they have been doing for the past few weeks – that is, protect their territory.  The territorial defense held the Cadets, allowing the Ferris offense to come onto the field. It didn’t take long for Ferris to get on the scoreboard. From 16 yards out in Cadet territory, Division 1 bound quarterback Connor Halliday drilled junior slot receiver Jordan Tonani for six points. Kicker Alex Belling drilled the extra point, putting Ferris up 7-0 in no time. The start of the game was a punch in the mouth for Eisenhower, and a promising sign for the Ferris population. Ferris wasted no time in showing the unbeaten Cadets that they were on a mission, and they were here to win.

The scoring for Ferris slowed for a while after that. But it didn’t matter. Obviously it would have been much more comforting for the travel weary fans and players alike to have a huge lead going into halftime. The reason it didn’t matter, though, is that Ferris has proved themselves as a balanced team here in the postseason. The robust defense for the Scarlet and Silver didn’t allow a single point for the entire first half of the game. Some of us in the stands were marveling at how long it took the Ike offense to even break past the 50 yard line into Saxon territory.

The next points to show up on the scoreboard came from Alex Belling’s reliable leg. “BOOM goes Belling!” sounded from the student section as Alex sent his kick through the uprights from 22 yards away, giving Ferris a 10 point lead. From that point until halftime, the game was heavily defensive, which, as indicated by the halftime score (10-0), was no problem for Ferris. But the game was far from boring. In fact, perhaps the most bizarre happening of the game was in the second quarter. Near the end of the half, Ike’s record-setting MVP running back, Joe Fuerst, was ejected. The refs penalized Ike for unsportsmanlike conduct after the Ferris D swarm tackled Fuerst on an 11 yard run. After being tackled, Fuerst kicked senior middle linebacker Peter Anderson in the stomach (the papers report he was kicked in the head, but I’ve been told by some players that Pete had a good welt on his stomach from the kick). On top of the penalty against Eisenhower, Fuerst was ejected from the game, finishing with 82 yards on 12 carries. The replacement for Fuerst, Isaac Sarate, filled in quite well however, giving his team 95 yards on his 15 attempts, 45 of them coming on a touchdown run in the third quarter.

Eisenhower came out prepared in the second half. They got the ball back after kicking off to Ferris to open the half.   A three yard touchdown run produced by quarterback James Lopez on a bootleg play lifted Ike to within 3 points. Naturally, Ferris answered, and not how you would expect. The unfavorable weather conditions forced Ferris to prove themselves on the ground. And prove themselves they did. Gage Orosco busted off a 76 yard dash, making defenders miss left and right, en route to a 17-7 lead for Ferris. The extra point was not so automatic, though, as Ferris was penalized for a questionable excessive celebration call. Kicking into the wind, Belling booted it from some 25 or 30 yards out. It got caught in the wind for what seemed like forever, and made it just over the goal post. Orosco rushed for a season high 166 yards on thirty carries in Saturday’s game– way to go Gage! But Ike didn’t give in. With a little time left in the third quarter, Cadet running back Isaac Sarate ran for 45 yards and a score, bringing Eisenhower back to within 3 points. They would not go quietly.

All game, the Saxons chipped away at the Ike defense. The defensive backs for Ike started pretty far off the ball usually. Ferris took advantage of the openings that left, and threw countless short out-routes and hitches, taking all the little yardage the defense was giving.  All that scrapping was a set up for what came next. To retake their 10 point advantage, Ferris slot receiver Jordan Tonani, who had the first touchdown of the game and an interception in the first half, did a double move. He did a short out-route, and Halliday performed a well timed and convincing pump fake. The Eisenhower DB bit on the fake, and Tonani took off up field. With no one within 15 yards of Jordan, Halliday delivered a strike, accounting for the blustering wind. Tonani snagged the ball out of the air, and strolled right on into the end zone, putting Ferris back up by 10. That would be the final scoring of the game. Final score: 24-14, Ferris.

The Cadets were knocking on the comeback door a few times, but the Ferris D forced two red zone fumbles in the fourth quarter. Two very clutch turnovers. The second fumble was not so much a fumble recovery as something else. Heavy pressure came from the defensive line of Ferris, led by senior Kjelby Oiland. Kjelby and another Saxon defender got to Lopez simultaneously. One went for the tackle, and Kjelby went for the ball. He hit Lopez, took the ball from him, and stumbled his way for about 5 yards before being tripped up. After that, it was nothing but coasting for Ferris on their way to victory.

This was the most exciting game the Saxons have had in their playoff run. A bus full of die hard Saxon parents and students made the trip, and had a jolly good time on the way home, singing and celebrating that their boys live to fight another day. Connor Halliday had another great game, completing 25 of his 39 attempted passes for 284 yards and just one interception. Orosco stepped up big time on Saturday, showing that Ferris is capable of bringing diversity to their offense, and that future opponents must respect both aspects of the Saxons’ offense. Defense has been key as well, as Ferris has allowed just 30 points combined in their last two playoff games. Junior starting cornerback Cody Sorenson suffered an ankle injury in the third quarter of Saturday’s game, and we wish him a speedy recovery!

Good luck next week boys - everyone get out there and support the team!

OLD MAN MINN NOTES:  OMM missed the game, so this will be short :) .... Finding a way to win, through the air, on the ground - the Saxons are putting together complete efforts to win and that is key....Heard Riley Stockton had a big hit - nice to hear, he's been due for a big hit...Practicing on Thanksgiving - there is nothing better!!....Next is Skyview, 1:00pm at Albi stadium....third straight appearance in the state semis, could this be the year to break through to the championship?.....