Canyon (1-0) was seemingly in control in the first half leading 20-2 with a fast start, however, the Wildcats didn’t go away when running back Kash Roberts raced 89-yards around right end late in the first half to cut the Canyon lead to 20-15 putting the Eagles on their heels.
That’s as close as Clovis would get. The ensuing possession found the Eagles facing a fourth and nine from the Wildcats 23 with under a minute remaining in the half. That’s when junior gunslinger Boston Bell found his running back Colt Cruth down the visitor sideline for 16 yards and a first down. The versatile Christian McGuire then found paydirt for the second time in the half from 7-yards out as that touchdown gave Canyon a 27-15 lead while starting a 23-point unanswered spurt that led to the Eagles putting the game away.
“I was proud of how we competed,” Canyon head coach Todd Winfrey said. “We jumped out of the locker room ready to play. We got an interception on the third play of the game, and we were ready to roll. We have some things to fix on special team, but I thought we closed the half strong. When they closed the gap as was proud of how we boucned back and I thought minus some plays we were fantastic on defense. We have a lot to work on but I’m just excited we came away with the victory.”
That same Canyon defense that gave up the long run was effective early in this one. Safety Aiden Lewis picked off Clovis’ signal caller, Jett Stone, on the third play from scrimmage and brought the ball back deep into Wildcat territory.
Eagles hard charging running back Sam Johnson then found the end zone on the first play from scrimmage from 18 yards out to give the Eagles a quick 6-0 lead. The extra point, however, was blocked and returned the full length of the field by Clovis for the rare two-point conversion.
On the Wildcats next possession, Clovis drove deep into Eagle territory but back-to-back sacks on Stone turned the ball back to the home team and they made them pay.
Burris, who received a key block from Santiago Sanchez, then broke a tackle and sprinted in for the score and a 13-2 lead.
Facing another fourth down on their next possession at the Wildcats 43, McGuire broke off right tackle and found the sidelines before making a man miss at the five and going in for the score and a 20-2 Canyon lead.
Clovis then answered the bell with back-to-back scores including that long run from Roberts to cut into Canyon’s advantage.
“We had some mental mistakes,” Winfrey said. “Option football can lead to that. You can play great, but if you don’t play one play right it can go to the house like that one.”
Winfrey certainly was right as the Eagle defense held Clovis to 204 total yards on the evening with almost half of that coming on that long run. Winfrey was also proud of his offensive line where he felt everything started at.
“The big boys up front have to mash,” Winfrey said. “We made some play calls that were strictly dependent on how they played”.
That line was the key to the balanced attack for the home team as they totaled 213 yards passing and 251 rushing.
Bell was effective in the pocket going 15-of-20 for 213 yards and three scores. Burris led the way receiving with four catches for 86 yards and two touchdowns while Johnson and McGuire did their work on the ground combining for 140 yards and three scores.