Westran Runs Through Knox County Eagles
Westran Runs Through Knox County Eagles
By David Sharp
Running back Bryce Enyard and quarterback
Tyler Hunt ran around and through a normally strong Knox County defense for 284
yards rushing during a 29-6 Hornet victory at Westran.
The September 4, 2009 varsity football
contest saw tenth ranked Westran’s Division I prospects break numerous tackles
and run around the Eagles.
Knox County (1-1) was hit hard by injuries
as well. Junior Davin York was in the process of his best varsity football
performance when he suffered a knee injury in the first half. York made several
gritty runs and was in all likelihood claiming the starting tailback position
when his left knee gave way on a run around the left side of the KCHS offense.
Davin York rushed six times for 18 tough
yards while the Eagles were having trouble getting anything going offensively
early in the game.
Preliminary reports suggested a problem
with his Medial Collateral Ligament. The injury will definitely sideline one of
the Eagles’ defensive playmakers for the upcoming Homecoming football game with
Slater and probably longer.
The quick Hornet defense forced a Knox
County punt on their first series. Westran marched swiftly from their 47 yard
line to the goal line.
The Hornets had two penalties inside the
Knox County five yard line. Westran had a touchdown called back by penalty.
The football was moved back to the Eagle 28
yard line, first and goal. Hornet quarterback Tyler Hunt eluded a strong KCHS
pass rush and found Bryce Enyard for a 28 yard touchdown pass at the 6:39 mark
of the first quarter.
Bryce Enyard made a remarkable catch with
KCHS defensive back Tristan Lonberger draped all over the front of the 6’2” 190
pound Enyard. Tyler Hunt’s kick gave Westran a 7-0 lead.
Westran was in the process of stalling the
Eagle offense again when Keenan Gillaspy executed a great option play and raced
72 yards from his 25 yard line deep inside Westran territory.
Knox County’s offensive line opened a hole
for Davin York to score on a five yard touchdown run with 5:50 remaining in the
first quarter. The Eagles tried a fake kick on the conversion, the pass failed
and the Hornets clung to their 7-6 edge.
Westran (2-0) responded with a 63 yard drive
for a touchdown. Tyler Hunt found Tyler Albur for an eight yard scoring strike
with 2:47 remaining in an action packed first quarter. The kick failed and the
Hornets held a 13-6 lead.
Davin York converted a fourth down and
three situation into a first down on the ensuing drive. A fourth down pass was
broken up and the football moved from the Eagle 35 to the Hornet 35 yard line
with Westran in possession.
Knox County suffered the first of what
could prove to be three very damaging injuries. Senior linebacker Andy Greenley
left the game with an ankle sprain. Greenley gutted it out and later returned
to the contest.
Knox County held a 319-281 unofficial lead
in net yardage. Knox County turned the football over two times, once on the
Hornet five yard line in the fourth quarter.
Westran runners slipped through Knox County
tackles far too often to hold down a state ranked team. “Our kids just have a
lot of heart,” said Westran coach Curtis Jasper. “Give a lot of credit to Knox
County. They ran the ball extremely well on us.”
“They played very physical with us. Our
kids really dug down deep when they got close to the end zone,” said Coach
Jasper. “They played with a lot of heart and got a couple of turnovers close to
the end zone. It’s all about the off season for our whole team.”
“We were 1-9 in our first year,” said the
third year Hornet coach. “We have faced a lot of adversity. Big plays were the
difference in the game. We did some scheme changes from last year to this year
to help stop the run.”
Bryce Enyard capped a 65 yard drive with a
spectacular 11 yard run for a score at the 7:14 juncture of period two. Matt
George ran in the two point conversion for a 21-6 lead.
Knox County lost Davin York on the next
series. The teams exchanged punts. Knox County took the football on their own
15 yard line with 1:25 remaining in the first half.
The Eagles showed heart and drove to the
Hornet 17 yard line as the half ended. Keenan Gillaspy hooked up with Leighton
McCabe for a 44 yard pass closing the first half with Westran on top of a 21-6
score.
Halftime stats were close with Westran
holding a 12-10 edge in first downs. The Hornets rushed ten fewer times but
gained four more yards (177-173). Knox County was 1-3 in the passing category
for 44 yards to Westran’s 3-7 for 53 yards and two touchdown performance.
Westran was flagged for six penalties for
65 yards in the first half compared to 2-15 for the Eagles. The Knox County
turnover was a stripped fumble recovered by Dallas Stufflebean.
The Eagles did a much better job of overall
tackling and team defense in the second half. The first two Hornet drives
resulted in punts. Knox County turned the ball over on downs at the Hornet 48
yard line on their first drive of the third quarter.
Keenan Gillaspy got the Eagles out of a
hole with a 40 yard punt from his five yard line with 5:16 showing on the third
quarter clock. Westran took advantage of a 45 yard short field for another touchdown.
The Hornets converted a fourth down and
seven dilemma on the Eagle 23 yard line with 2:33 remaining in the third
period. Tyler Hunt eluded the KCHS defense for a first down run to the seven
yard line. Bryce Enyard raced 12 yards to the house after another Hornet
penalty.
The game’s final touchdown was scored at
the 1:41 mark of the third quarter. Tyler Hunt ran in the two point conversion
for a 29-6 Westran lead.
Knox County moved the ball well late in the
game but could not score. The Eagles drove from their 27 yard line to the
Westran five. The possession lasted over eight minutes.
Keenan Gillaspy hooked up with Leighton
McCabe for a 16 yard gain. Gillaspy aggravated a shoulder injury and was not
able to return to action. Reserve quarterback Brady Morton made several good
runs. The Eagles fumbled the football on the Hornet five.
Knox County forced a Westran punt. The
Eagles got the ball back on their 25 yard line with 1:33 to play in the game.
Knox County moved the ball well again but could not get closer.
Knox County held Westran to four first downs
in the second half defensively. The Eagles had seven second half first downs,
narrowing the gap to 18-17 in favor of the home team.
Keenan Gillaspy led Knox County in rushing
with ten carries for 123 yards. Brady Morton ran north and south from the
quarterback slot and finished with nine carries for 56 yards. Tristan Lonberger
rushed five times for 29 yards. Cody Pegg had nine carries for 33 yards. Pegg
has the inside track for a starting running back job against Slater.
Davin York had six attempts for 18 yards
and a touchdown. Knox County rushed 49 times for 284 yards unofficially. The
Eagles passed six times for 70 yards as a team. Keenan Gillaspy was 2-5 for 60
yards. Brady Morton completed a ten yard pass to Leighton McCabe for ten yards.
Leighton McCabe hauled in all three KCHS
passes for 70 yards. Knox County was whistled four times for 35 yards
unofficially. Westran was led in rushing by Bryce Enyard with 17 carries for
182 yards and two scores. Enyard has been scouted by the Missouri Tigers.
Tyler Hunt rushed 15 times for 114 yards.
Chris Campbell was the only other Hornet to run the ball, rushing once for
seven yards. Westran rushed 33 times for 296 yards and a pair of scores unofficially.
Tyler Hunt has been looked at by Mizzou as
a baseball pitcher. Hunt has thrown the shot put 43 feet and has a 20 plus
strikeout game to his credit in two seasons at Westran. Tyler Hunt pitched a no
hitter against Knox County last spring.
Tyler Hunt passed 13 times, completing four
for 65 yards and two touchdowns. Westran was penalized ten times for 80
unofficial yards. Wade Willhite recovered the KCHS fumble on his five yard
line. Knox County lost the turnover battle by a minus two.
The Eagles host Slater on September 11,
2009 for their Homecoming football game. Knox County faces the possibility of
playing without heir entire starting offensive backfield.
Slater lost 53-7 at Paris in week two
action. “We talked about how we had to wrap up (Bryce) Enyard, and we just
didn’t,” said Knox County head football coach Steve Ramer.
“They are a tough team to hold under 28
points. We figured we would have to score 29 points to win the game. We had
over 300 yards of offense tonight and only got six points out of it,” commented
Coach Ramer.
“That’s courtesy of a couple fumbles and
bad penalties. When you play a good team, you just can’t make those kind of
mistakes. We had dumb, not needed penalties on first down away from the ball.”
“We lost the turnover battle and we lost
the game. When you do that against the tenth ranked team in the state with two
studs like that…”
“We finished the game with our second
string quarterback and our third string halfback,” said Ramer. “We have got to
find some toughness. Guys just have to step up and play better. That’s all.”
