Braves Jet Past Eagles 56-31

Photo Courtesy of Art Anderson!!

The Flathead Braves coming off a tough loss to Bozeman 49-34 wanted to put that game in the rear view mirror. They did that by catching fire right out the gate. One of the story lines on my spot board is "Start Fast" something coach Samson has mentioned to me many times this season. By the end of the 1st quarter leading 29-0, I don't know if you could have had a faster start. Flathead's offense had scoring plays of 62, 27, 10, and 19 yards. Remember the arcade game NBA Jam and if a player got hot they were on fire? Well Jaden MacNeil was on fire and so was Anthony Jones. After one quarter MacNeil threw for three touchdowns and ran for another. Anthony had three touchdown catches. The Braves would not let up the rest of the game. Big Sky scored 17 unanswered points to start the 2nd half but then Flathead settled in just giving the ball to the bell cow Blake Counts.

Offensive Firepower...

As I mentioned at the top the Braves offense was going gangbuster from the start. Jaden put together one hell of a performance. He had 7 total touchdowns, 5 throwing, 1 rushing, and 1 receiving. I think the only side of the ball Jaden has not scored on yet is defense. He had a punt return touchdown last year against Hellgate. Jaden now has put together back to back games with 200+ yards passing. Jaden has really grown as a passer and could make life even more difficult in the post season for the teams the Braves could face. I talk to several coaches this season and they say Jaden's ability to do all these things makes him so hard to stop. This QB is fun to watch and will only continue to get better with three weeks left in the season.

Anthony Jones is such an athlete and a gamer. His last touchdown of the night was probably one of his best in his career. He catches the ball around the 35 and ducks under one defender near the sideline and then houses it. I thought he was going to be knocked out of bounds when he caught it. Anthony had a huge game and even though defenses know they need to know where he is at all times, this game will instill even more fear. Anthony would finish the game with 11 catches 190 yards and 5 Touchdowns. in Anthony's last two games 16 catches 272 yards and 6 Touchdowns (by my numbers). While Anthony had a big night Logan Siblerud and Chance Sheldon Allen were big contributors because you have to know where those guys are on the field. They can hurt you just as much as Anthony Jones. Logan tossed his second touchdown pass of the season and Sheldon Allen just continues to be a weapon all over the field.

Blake Counts continues to lower that shoulder and strike fear into safeties. Another business like night for him as he had 25 carries 178 yards and a Touchdown. The last time Blake Counts didn't rush for over a 100 yards was at this time last year against Big Sky as he rushed 15 times for 60 yards. Dating back to last season 11 consecutive games with over 100 yards rushing. He has also had 11 consecutive games with a touchdown whether it be receiving or rushing.

The Oline; Patrick Hammond, Cole DeLager, Max Anderson, Sebastian Koch, and Andrew Siderius continue to plow the road and protect their guys. This group has played really well all season and even as this group has been banged up the past few weeks. This group will be leaned on even more as the temperature continues to drop and the wind starts picking up.

The Defense...

The Braves defense took the ball away three times and twice in the first quarter helping light the fire for that first quarter performance. Chance Sheldon-Allen picked off his third pass of the season, while Seth Moon got his first of the season. Tanner Russell continues to be a force on the field and off the edge. Remember those old NFL highlights of defensive ends hitting the unsuspecting QB from behind? Russell had one of those moments last night and made me cringe a little bit. Paxton Boyce filled in for the injured Landrum and did a great job. All three junior linebackers Brunner, Rieke, and Boyce made big stops against Colter Janacaro.

Overall and looking ahead...

I give credit to the Big Sky Eagles this was a team that wouldn't give up the fight and we new that coming in. They made things interesting scoring 17 points to start the 3rd quarter. This team took Senior to OT last week as well.

The Flathead Braves took care of business and got a win for homecoming. They keep pace with the upper echelon teams. They have CMR next week on the road. Going to Great Falls is never easy. No matter CMR's record. They did pick up a win last night over Skyview so this team will have some momentum going into that game. The Braves last three games @CMR; @Hellgate; vs Helena.