Last Game and End of Season Party

The Buckskins finished off the season with what may be their best overall performance of the year. Although it took forever to drive all the way to San Tan Valley, it was worth it! The game started out quickly as we drove the ball down the field with runs by Kal, Tyson and Josiah – finishing the drive off with a short touchdown run by Tyson. The 2 point extra point try was a pass to Caden that wasn't quite there.

The defense held strong and actually drove the purple team back, and we got the ball back quickly. A sweep left by Tyson for about 40 yards and a touchdown was the result of that drive. This time Josiah took the ball left and cut-back for the extra point.

The defense held strong again and we ended up with a long run to the left by Josiah for a score. Another extra point pass attempt to Caden just slipped off his fingertips. After the kickoff, the purple team had an outside run to the right that looked like a sure touchdown, but with an outstanding effort play by Caleb, the runner was tracked down at the 1 yard line! The defense held strong and backed their offense up, but just before the half the purple team ran a fake reverse left that caught us by surprise and went for a touchdown.

The second half was all Buckskins. The O-line controlled the game with great work by Cole, Blaine, Aiden, Caleb and Caden. We had great runs by Tyson, Kal, Josiah, Tate, Tanner, and Sam. Two more touchdown runs by Tyson were outstanding, and Tate scored an extra point on a quick, shifty inside run. There was great defensive line play by Cam, Sam, Cole, Ryan, Blaine, Tate and Aiden. The secondary was strong with great pursuit by Josiah, Kal, Tyson, Brady, Caleb, Tate, Tanner, and Aiden. The final score was 32 to 6, and the post game treats/drinks were well earned!

Later in the evening there was a great party at Red Mountain Park – special thanks to Paula and Laronzo and all of the other parents that helped put that party together. We had great food, the boys all had a great time running around and playing, and the kids all received an awesome bag including a really nice trophy, a new football, some treats and the kids pictures.

Thanks to Coach Mike and Coach Josh and all of the boys for making this such a fun season!!!

First Post-Season Game

The Buckskins had their first 'playoff' game in the friendly confines of Freemont Jr. High Field. It was a game that the Buckskins dominated with offensive power and defensive grit. My stat sheet had to be turned in as our player participation report, so I don't recall the exact details of who scored, etc. However, the outcome of the game was really never in question with the Bucksknis pulling ahead by at least 2 or 3 scores and holding the other team to just 6 or 7 points. If you can recall more about the game, please post it in the comments, or email me and let me know and I'll update this post!

Scottsdale Game

In an extremely exciting game the Buckskins lost a heartbreaker in Scottsdale by a single point. The game was filled with stingy defense and great play, and by a mild case of heat induced dehydration for poor Tyson.

In the first half, the red team from Scottsdale moved the ball downfield with a few mammoth cutback runs and finished off with a touchdown pass. The Buckskins tried to answer but couldn't get things rolling. Just before halftime, the red team was driving and came all the way down to the 2 yard line, but the strong play by the Buckskins held them out of the endzone and kept the score 6 to 0 at halftime.

The second half started without our QB in the game, poor Tyson couldn't keep any liquids down and had to take a breather for several minutes. Josiah stepped in and made a great run downfield for a TD to tie things up. The defense fought hard and Tyson was able to get back in the game to help us move the ball, but the O just couldn't get things going. With just a couple of minutes to go, the red team drove down and scored a TD + 1 extra point to go up 13-6. It looked like the Buckskins were done, but Kal made an amazing kickoff return of about 60 yards for a touchdown! The coaches and team showed a lot of heart as they tried for the win with a 2 point pass play, but it was just missed and the game ended in a one point loss.

Buckskins vs. Bees - Game 3

I wasn't able to be at the 2nd game, and by what I hear it was a pretty tough outing, so we'll blow past that one and get to game #3.

Game 3 was an awesome performance by the Buckskins - truly a team effort and a great result. The Buckskins won by a score of 25 to 14!!!!

Here's a quick rundown of our scores:

Tyson scored our first TD on an off-tackle run to the right, going about 50 yards and leaving the defense behind him. We just missed completing a pass for the extra point that time.

Next we had Kal going about 55 yards - again on an outside run to the right - he made several defenders miss his flags and ran away from the defense for a TD.

After this we had Tyson making the defensive play of the season so far - stepping in front of a Bees receiver and snatching an interception that he took the distance (about 50 yards) for a TD. The Bees players didn't have a chance to turn around before Tyson was already gone. Truly a great play to see happen. Kal took a handoff in for the extra pont and this put us up 19 to 0.

Our final score came from a cutback sweep by Josiah that he took about 50 yards, making several would-be flag pullers miss on his way to the end-zone.

Our offense was highlighted by great blocking by the offensive line, a great effort by the following boys: Blaine, Cam, Caleb, Ryan, Sam, Caden, Aiden, and Cole. These boys worked to set up all 3 of the breakaway runs, as well as several other runs that got us moving down the field. It was no small effort, either, as the Bees had a couple of players that were not easy to push around -- I think one of their boys weighed at least 30 - 40 pounds more than any boy on our team! There was great running by all of the boys previously mentioned, as well as some great work by Tate and Tanner.

Our defense was tight all day - it started with the defensive line which was made up of Tyson, Blaine, Cam, Ryan, Sam, Caden, Aiden, Brady, and Cole. The corners and safetys were also right on the ball all day - Tate, Caleb, Tanner, Kal, and Josiah. Most players had at least one flag pull, and all were hustling and working hard. Stopping their run was a challenge as they had their big guy barreling down the inside at full speed. Poor Brady took a big hit and was sidelined for a bit, but judging by practice yesterday he's made a full recovery.

We're looking forward to another strong performance this week from the Buckskins - please forward me any pictures you have and I'll post a few to this blog!

Game 1: The Buckskins - 14, The Flame - 0

The Buckskins had a strong first game - everyone played great and we came out with a big W!!! Although they controlled the ball, we controlled the scoreboard.

Recap:

First Half - Buckskins kicked off, held off the Flame's first offensive attempt, and then scored after just 2 offensive plays! Cal took off for a 35 yard touchdown run, and Tyson just missed completing a pass for the extra point. We held off the Flame the rest of the half and had a 6-0 halftime lead.

Second Half - The Buckskins came out of halftime hungry, with Cal scoring on a 50 yard kickoff return. Tyson scampered in for a 10 yard 2 point conversion. This put the Buckskins up 14-0, and the rest of the half was marked by stifling defense. The Flame had a breakaway run that looked like a sure TD, but the Buckskins D chased them down and a fierce goaline stand in the last 2 minutes sealed up the shutout.

Stats:
Tate: 2 Tackles (Flag Pulls)
Tyson: 2 runs for 22 yards, 2 pass attempts, scored a 2 point conversion, 2 Tackles
Aiden: 3 Tackles
Cal: 1 run for 35 yards, 1 kick return for 60 yards, 2 TDs, 7 Tackles
Josiah: 3 Tackles
Brady: 1 Tackle

**These are my best effort - please post comments if you know of something I missed and we'll update the post to get it right!