Oct 2, 2020 4 min read

CARMICHAELS – The Carmichaels football team came into Friday having scored more than 40 points in each of its first three games, all wins. The Mikes also had allowed just 10 points per game over the first three weeks.

West Greene kept the game close throughout the first half, but Carmichaels pulled away late thanks to dominant rushing efforts from quarterback Trenton Carter and running back Bailey Jones and a stout defense over the final three quarters to win 26-7 to improve to 4-0.

“My hat has to go off to West Greene – they’re a tough team,” said Carmichaels head coach Ron Gallagher. “The only thing I can say is we wore them down to the fourth quarter, and that was what gave us some success at the end here. Our kids played resilient tonight.”

According to West Greene head coach Brian Hanson, there was a lot of good to take away from his team’s performance.

“We played the best football team that we’ve played so far and I think the positives from the game are that they played the best football that they have all year,” said Hanson. “Negatives are that we still have to learn how to win football games. We are just a young football team. Overall, I think this was positive considering all circumstances.”

Both teams got on the scoreboard quick in the first with long rushing touchdowns on each of their first respective drives. Carter broke through on a fourth-and-short play for a 47-yard touchdown just 3:31 into the game to give the Mikes a 7-0 lead. Then, West Greene’s Colin Brady escaped for a 57-yard score just 1:26 later to tie the score.

Carmichaels answered on the ensuing drive, taking the ball 76 yards on 12 plays capped off by a Jones six-yard run with 1:28 left to go in the quarter. A missed extra point gave Carmichaels a 13-7 advantage.

Each team struggled to move the ball throughout the second half, with four of the final five drives ending in turnovers – a fumble and interception for each side. Carmichaels took that 13-7 lead into the second half.

The Mikes worked quick to start the third quarter, immediately forcing a three-and-out and then scoring on their first offensive drive. Carter scored his second rushing touchdown of the night from four yards to extend Carmichaels lead to 19-6 with 7:24 remaining in the third.

West Greene managed to get the ball into Carmichaels territory on a few occasions in the second half but was unable to capitalize as the Carmichaels defense limited the Pioneers from many substantial gains.

Carmichaels added the dagger with an 11-play touchdown drive that started with 6:11 to go in the fourth and ended with just 27.4 seconds left on the clock, as Jones eventually punched in his second score of the night from the one-yard line to bring the game to its final of 26-7.

Carter finished with 15 carries for 212 yards and two touchdowns while completing 11-of-19 passes for 101 yards. Jones ended up with 116 yards on 22 totes and two touchdowns.

For West Greene, Brady had the most success by piling up 119 yards on 12 carries, with the lone touchdown. The Pioneers had a pretty even offensive split on the night, attempting 15 passes and rushing the ball 25 times, something that is a little different this year for them.

“We have to stay balanced,” said West Greene head coach Brian Hanson. “We can’t be like last year where Ben (Jackson) or Kolin (Walker) are taking 90 percent of the runs. We have a little bit more of a passing game this year. I thought (Carmichaels) did a good job on coverage, but we just have to stay balanced and stick with it and we’re going to be OK.”