Here's how the bracket looks after Team Newt defeated Team Metcalf yesterday in the play-in game.
Today's matchup is a clash of the #4 and #5 seeds.
It's Team Davis led by
QB Steve Young DL Ryan Denney
RB Ronny Jenkins DL Lenny Gomes
RB Brian McKenzie LB Rob Morris
WR Jonathan Pittman LB Jordan Pendleton
WR Ben Cahoon DB Corby Eason
WR Matt Odle DB Omarr Morgan
TE Gordon Hudson
versus ...
Team Drew made up of
QB Jim McMahon DL Jan Jorgensen
RB Mark Atuaia DL Shawn Knight
RB Hema Heimuli LB Shay Muirbrook
WR Chuck Cutler LB Colby Bockwoldt
WR Luke Ashworth DB Aaron Francisco
WR Nick Kurtz DB Preston Hadley
TE Matt Bushman
Date: 8/4/2020
Location: Woods Cross High
Odds: EVEN
Over/Under: 52.5
First Half Recap
There are a few QB-WR combos in our league that played on the same teams in real life -- Taysom and Hoffman, Hall and Michael Reed, Bosco and Devon Blackmon11. Lol. -- but at the peak of their powers none were as unstoppable as the Team Davis combo of Steve Young and Gordon Hudson.
It's old times in the first quarter as Young hits Hudson three times on an opening drive touchdown. Colby Bockwoldt and Shay Muirbrook are visibly frustrated -- what do you do? Spy Young? Double Hudson? On the rare occasions they manage to contain both primary threats, Young flips the ball to Jenkins in the flat. It's smooth sailing as Young leads Team Davis to scores on their first three possession, two TDs and one FG.
The only problem? Jim McMahon is on the other sideline.
McMahon leads his team to scores on their first three possession too, but the difference comes on the third drive. Facing a fourth and goal on the 6-yard line, Coach Drew sends in the field goal unit.
And McMahon sends them right back off.
"Get out of here, go home, we aint kicking no $%@! field goals tonight. This isn't the WAC or the Holiday Bowl. This is a blogger's fantasy football tournament! This means something!"
The fourth and goal pass finds Chuck Cutler in the endzone, and as happy as Cutler is to have a 21-17 lead, he's happier to be playing with a good QB after spending the majority of his career in the QB abyss that transpired during the post-Bosco and pre-Detmer years.
Both teams trade another pair of touchdowns before halftime -- Team Davis behind the my-turn your-turn running tandem of Jenkins and McKenzie; Team Drew on a methodical drive that ends with a Bushman TD strike -- leaving the score 28-24 as the players run to the locker rooms.
It's a classic BYU passing performance for Steve Young in the first half: 14 completions, 10 of which went to TEs and RBs, and only 4 of which went to receivers. On the other side of the ball Team Drew doesn't hand the ball off once. With possibly the weakest running back duo in the league, McMahon is very content to throw throw throw.
Second Half Recap
Luke Ashworth and Nick Kurtz weren't much to write home about during their stay in Provo, but they have a decided height advantage over the Davis duo of Corby Eason and Omarr Morgan. In the first half McMahon exploited this to the tune of 28 points. But size isn't everything. In the second half Morgan has adjusted and intercepts the first pass thrown Kurtz's way. Team Davis sees Team Drew's reliance on the pass and decides to zag by running on 6 straight plays. It's a democratic approach: two runs a piece for McKenzie, Jenkins, and Young, culminating in a Young TD. It's 31-28 for Team Davis. We've hit the over of 52.5 total points and we're only minutes into the third quarter.
The tournament's first showdown of Tier 1 QBs22. My Tier I BYU QBs are McMahon, Young, Detmer, Bosco, and Max Hall. If you have a problem with Max's inclusion, click here. is proving as entertaining as expected. McMahon bounces back from the interception to lead a 4 play scoring drive, featuring yet again, not a single run. It's 22 yards to Cutler, 18 yards to Bushman, 32 yards to Kurtz, and 12 to Cutler for his third receiving TD of the game. Rob Morris pressures McMahon twice but can't manage a sack.
Team Davis continues with their running approach -- it's 1996 all over again with the McKenzie and Jenkins duo. But the yards don't come as easily this drive. Coach Drew has been in the face of Jorgensen and Knight and the lineman are rising to the call. A stuff on a 3rd and 1 leads to a punt and Team Drew has a chance for their first double digit lead of the game.
They take it ... on a run! Heimuli's first carry of the game is a halfback draw that leaves the entire Davis defense in shambles. It's the worst a BYU defense has looked against a running play since the 2014 BYU-USU game where that linebacker ran all over Nick Howell and company. With 9 minutes left in the fourth Team Drew leads 42-31.
Needing 11 points in limited time, Coach Davis is ready to tap the Young-Hudson combo again. But on the sideline Young knows his opponents will be expecting a passing attack, which is blood in the water for pass rushers like Knight and Jorgensen. Young confers with Coach Davis and says four words:
"It's Air Force time."
Team Drew doesn't know what him him. On first down Young fakes the dive to McKenzie, then sprints to the right with Jenkins running parallel. As Muirbrook closes in on Young, he pitches to Jenkins who gains a breezy 19 yards before being pushed out of bounds by Aaron Francisco. The next play the roles are reversed. The dive is faked to Jenkins, and this time Young pitches to McKenzie on an option left. 13 yards. Rinse and Repeat. Jenkins takes a dive for 7. Young keeps for 10. Young pitches to McKenzie for 9. Young pitches to Jenkins for 6. It takes three minutes for Team Davis to score and make it a 42-38 contest. Now Team Davis needs a stop on defense.
Team McMahon has relied on the pass all game, but it's clock milking time now and Coach Drew is left with the age-old conundrum: dance with the one who brought ya (aka stick with the passing game) or try and drain the clock by running the ball. Emboldened by Heimuli's success on his one rush, Drew calls for the hand offs. Two plays later it's 3rd and 5 with just under 4 minutes remaining. Coach Drew dials up a play action toss which fools Jordan Pendleton ... but doesn't fool him enough. Pendleton bites initially on the fake, yet is athletic enough to backpedal right into Matt Bushman's route and deflect the pass to force fourth down.
Peyton Manning once said he'd rather be down by four than three at the end of a game because his offense knows they have to score a TD -- there's no option to settle for a FG. Steve Young considers rallying the troops with this same message before realizing he doesn't need to. He knows this game is over because the option can't be stopped.
Team Davis runs it 7 times, draining the clock to under 30 seconds when Jenkins finally plunges into the endzone for the go ahead TD. It's 45-42 for Team Davis and the only danger now is if McMahon can recreate the Hail Mary magic of the Holiday Bowl.
He can't. The Hail Mary is batted down and Team Davis advances.
Final Score
Team Davis 45
Team Drew 42
Player of the Game
Ronney Jenkins 24 carries, 162 yards, 3 TDs; 6 receptions, 51 yards
Other Noteworthy Performances
Jim McMahon 42/55, 437 yards, 6 TDs
No comments:
Post a Comment