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Grande gridiron report, 10/11/11

Published: Tuesday, October 11, 2011 10:02 AM MST

Ed Petruska, Sports Editor

Sports Editor Ed Petruska reviews last week’s Vista Grande and Casa Grande Union football games

Vista Grande

Thursday night’s 22-7 victory over Marana was the 99th of coach Carlo Hernandez’s career, according to records kept by the Casa Grande Dispatch. Hernandez went 91-21 with two state championships at Coolidge from 2000-08 and is 8-10 with the Spartans, who are playing their second season of varsity football.

Some believed that Thursday night’s win was the 100th for Hernandez.

“It’s a bigger deal to other people than it is to me,” he said of the milestone. “I truly don’t care. I want the (focus) placed on the kids. Those wins are because of the kids, not me.”

The Spartans (3-4) were proficient on both sides of the ball in defeating Marana (0-7) to snap a two-game losing streak. They put together two eight-play scoring drives, outgained the Tigers 361-184 in total yards and held Marana scoreless until its eighth and final possession.

“We did a lot of positive things,” Hernandez said.

On offense, Vista Grande scored on its second and third possessions to take a 14-0 halftime lead. The Spartans were 4 for 6 on third-down conversions in the first half and 7 for 12 overall.

On their last touchdown drive, quarterback Levi Durnil had pass completions of 32 yards to Daniel Robbins on third and 20 and 22 yards to Brandon Ortega on third and 9.

“We have some athletes and they were able to get open on those key downs,” Hernandez said. “We have a quarterback and receivers who can make plays.”

Durnil also rushed for 112 yards, going 51 yards for Vista Grande’s first TD on a third-and-1 sneak.

Hernandez said the offense could have been more productive had he called more straight-ahead rushing plays.

“We didn’t do it enough, and that’s on me as the offensive coordinator,” he said. “Maybe I was reaching a little bit. I try to keep teams guessing, and maybe I outguessed myself.”

Marana had some success moving the ball, picking up 12 first downs. Four came on the Tigers’ second series, when they drove from their 4 to the Vista Grande 36 before Robbins made an interception on third and 7.

After reaching the Vista Grande 32 on its first series of the second half, Marana came up empty when Daevon Coles dropped the ball carrier for a 4-yard loss on fourth and 3.

“Our defense did a great job,” Hernandez said. “We were in position and made plays. Marana moved the ball, but our guys did their jobs when it got down to it.”

With kicker Austin Myers sidelined by a knee injury, the Spartans went for two points after each of their three TDs. They converted twice, both on runs by Coles, who also ran for two touchdowns.

Hernandez said it’s possible that Myers could be cleared to play for this week’s game at Williams Field (6-1), although he wouldn’t be kicking or punting. Myers has 15 receptions, and leads the team in receiving yards (311), average yards per catch (20.7) and receiving TDs (five).

Casa Grande Union

Special teams played a significant role in five of the eight touchdowns scored in Friday night’s game, which Florence won 35-20.

A blocked punt by Sherice Loggins and Keon Savage’s recovery of a muffed punt led to the Cougars’ first two scores, and Tramel Jones returned a kickoff 89 yards for their final TD. CG Union had to drive only 14 yards for the game’s first touchdown following Loggins’ block on the Gophers’ initial possession. The Cougars capitalized on Savage’s recovery at the Florence 34 for a TD that gave them a 14-13 lead with 17 seconds left in the third quarter.

Florence tied it 7-7 in the third quarter six plays after Robert Lewis returned a punt 57 yards to the Union 39, and his 42-yard kickoff return to the Union 38 set up a TD that put the Gophers (6-1) ahead to stay at 21-14 with 10:05 remaining.

“We’ve been pretty good all year (on kick placements),” CG Union coach Keith Brown said. “The punt was right in the middle of the field, but the kickoff was right where we wanted (along the sideline). Even when you kick it right, it can sometimes cause problems.”

Although the Cougars were up 7-0 at halftime, the lead could have been larger. For the second game in a row, CG Union lost a fumble inside the opponent’s 35-yard line on its opening series.

“That’s very deflating,” Brown said. “When that happens, it definitely sets a tone and affects the momentum.”

The Cougars reached the Florence 13 in the second quarter during the course of a 19-play drive that ended with a missed field goal.

“Even though we did exactly what we wanted to in the first half, we left points off the board,” Brown said.

CG Union’s 70 offensive plays — its fourth-highest total since that statistic started being kept — produced 263 total yards (3.8 average). The Cougars were 8 for 17 on third-down conversions, but Florence came up with enough stops to win the ballgame.

The Gophers were ahead 28-20 when CG Union’s Josh Smith recovered a fumble at the Florence 36 with 4:13 remaining. But on fourth and 3 from the Florence 29, a low snap led to a 13-yard loss for the Cougars and effectively sealed their fate.

The Gophers kept running back James Colbert under wraps, tackling him seven times behind the line of scrimmage while limiting him to 66 yards on 24 carries. Although quarterback Nick Elliott rushed for 102 yards, just four of CG Union’s 46 attempts gained 10 or more yards.

The Cougars played excellent defense in the first half, holding Florence to 87 total yards and three first downs. But they couldn’t contain Deshaun Davis in the second half (156 yards and three TDs on 12 carries). Davis had six runs of 20-plus yards on the night and finished with 214 on 18 attempts. Florence’s 289 rushing yards were a season high for a CG Union opponent.

“(Florence) obviously made some adjustments, but we have eight guys going both ways and they kind of got tired,” Brown said. “They started arm-tackling instead of being squared up.”

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