BADGERS CONTINUE TO ROLL
WITH WIN OVER PIMA
by Tyler Hughes

The Badger Defense Continue Its Dominance

The Snow Badgers concluded their pre-season schedule at home versus WSFL conference member, Pima Community College. This game; however, did not count in the league standings. Nonetheless, the Badgers cruised towards a 52-0 win.

Snow was able to jump out to an early 7-0 lead as the offense moved the ball 53 yards in 10 plays which saw Soni Sotele finish the drive with a 1 yard touchdown run.

Following Snow’s opening drive score, the Badgers defense held the Storm to a quick three-and-out. Punting on 4th down, Pima saw a blocked punt be recovered for a Badger touchdown for the second consecutive year as freshman wideout Andrew Castaneda blocked the Storm’s punt with Kimball Burton recovering the loose ball for the score. Burton’s recovery marked the second week in a row in which he scored a special teams touchdown. The week prior he ran a kickoff back for a touchdown.

Pima forced to take the field trailing 14-0 early on was unable to get anything going offensively for the second possession in a row as Snow College took possession of the ball following a Storm punt on Pima’s 49 yard line. Snow moved quickly to the 20 yard line, but stalled which setup a 37 yard field goal by Ryan McNamara.

The Badger defense continued its dominance as Pima’s quarterback, Ryan Morgan, was under constant fire from the Badger defensive line and linebackers. Morgan and back-up quarterback Jordan Garcia were sacked on eight different occasions throughout Saturday’s action. This pass rush was backed up by tremendous secondary play as Pima’s receivers were blanketed by Snow’s secondary. Pima was able to generate just 54 yards worth of passing.

As Snow’s defense continued to play at a high level, the offense did their part as well. Already leading 17-0, the Badgers reeled off an 8 play, 74 yard drive capped off by a 31 yard scoring jaunt by Tanner Brown which gave them a 24 point advantage.

Snow’s lead, already mounting, saw a 21 yard scoring strike from Jon Eastman to Regan Buck on their following possession as the Badgers were in complete control while leading 31-0.

Pima saw their only real scoring chance develop late in the first half as two penalties against the Badger defense extended their drive. Facing a 4th down and 10, Pima’s offensive line was unable to hold up against a fierce pass rush as sophomore linebacker Shane Hunter recorded one of his 2.5 sacks on the day while ending the Storm’s drive.

The Badger offensive attack was able to move quickly with a 6 play, 70 yard scoring drive. However, the big gains were made on the ground while Snow’s offensive line dominated. The Storm forced Snow into a 4th and 1 situation. Snow turned to Soni Sotele again. This time he broke a 44 yard run aided by solid play up front and a great down field block by Kimball Burton to spring the score.

As Snow came out of the halftime break, already leading 38-0, Jon Eastman connected with Regan Buck on a 75 score as the Badgers were completely in control as they built a 45 point lead.

And as the offense was able to find their way into the end zone, the Badger defense was particularly daunting for Pima. Snow held Pima to just 55 yards of total offense while forcing two turnovers. Pima simply did not have any answers for a relentless Badger team as their quarterbacks rarely, if at all, had opportunities to throw the ball down the field.

The Badgers were able to conclude the scoring with a 15 yard run by Niu Takai which put Snow ahead, 52-0. Snow saw their best rushing output since 2005 when they tallied 343 yards versus New Mexico Military. Snow gained 294 yards on the ground on just 43 carries which was a 6.8 yard per carry average. For the game, they produced 475 total yards.

“Our guys are preparing well for game day during the practice week which has enabled them to have success on Saturday. We still have a long way to go. Nobody has given us anything nor will they in the future. We must continue to keep working at our fundamentals, our schemes and to improve our overall game. That goes for the coaches as well as our players,” said head coach Steve Coburn.

The Badgers are in action again this weekend when they travel to Yuma, Arizona to take on Arizona Western. The game site is set for 7:00 PM (Arizona Time) and can be heard locally on www.snowbadgers.com or on 650 AM – KMTI Radio.