2016 ASAA Football Bowl
November 26, 2016 by admin
Filed under Provincial and Territorial News
ASAA 2016 FOOTBALL CHAMPIONS |
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6-MAN | St Joseph’s Crusaders over Ribley Spartans, 74 – 12 |
Tier I – 12 Man | St Francis Browns over Bev Facey Falcons, 16-11 |
Tier II – 12 Man | Foothills Falcons over St Joseph’s Celtics, 37 – 4 |
Tier III – 12 Man | Cochrane Cobras over Holy Rosary Raiders, 29-20 |
Tier IV – 12 Man | Bow Vally Bobcats over Stettler Wildcats. 22-13 |
6 Man – St Joseph Crusaders
Tier II – Foothill Falcons
Tier IV – Bow Valley
St. Francis Browns defeat Bev Facey Falcons in provincial final
Yards and subsequently points were at a premium on Saturday night at Hellard Field, but in the dying minutes the St. Francis Browns found their offensive groove.
With a drive starting at their own 45-yard line, the Browns methodically worked their way downfield and when Jacob Izquierdo leapt over the pile and into the end zone with 27 seconds left in the game, the Browns had achieved provincial supremacy.
The Browns, the third-ranked high school football team in the province, eked out a hard-fought 16-11 victory over the top-ranked Bev Facey Falcons to win the Tier I provincial crown.
“I don’t know if a tougher game makes it sweeter,” said St. Francis head coach Tyler Park. “But it’s exhausting, too. Very proud of our boys.”
The fateful drive included a couple of nice catches by Daniel Perry, a direct snap to Izquierdo which went for 25 yards and a quarterback sneak by Cole Belway which put the ball on the one yard line.
“Our offensive coordinator was going through his playbook going ‘I don’t know what else to run’,” admitted Park. “All the Xs and Os, the things we do, it comes down to a basic dive play and he ends up popping it out and gaining some yards for us. Hard fought game, hats off to Bev Facey, very talented team, very tough team, but our boys stuck with it and pulled it out at the end.”
“We persevered for sure,” said Belway. “We weren’t down whatsoever. We knew we if we could drive the ball, we’d get back in this game.”
The scoreboard in the first half was particularly barren as both teams stuck to the run and both defences made it a tough slog. The Browns knew they had to find a way to keep the dynamic Chuba Hubbard in check, but the speedy running back still churned out 133 yards in the first 24 minutes. He also fumbled the ball twice, though.
A field goal and a point single accounted for the Falcons scoring, while a late field goal by Jaden Sheilan put the Browns on the board with 15 seconds left in the half.
Hubbard – who’s on his way to Oklahoma State University – was shaken up early in the third quarter and when he returned wasn’t as effective, as he finished with a total of 177 yards on the ground.
“Our goal was to be physical with him, try to get as many helmets on him as possible,” said Park. “He’s a great athlete with a big future, but we did our best tonight to stop him.”
“We were just swarming to the ball, contain number 30 (Hubbard), he’s a good athlete, but we just rallied to the ball,” said defender Tyler Stambene, who snared a couple of fumbles. “A big key to the game. If you shut down 30, then that’s how we won the game. It’s unbelievable. It’s a great way to go out, on a win.”
The Falcons scored their touchdown at the 8:52 mark of the third when Ty Smith stepped in front of Izquierdo and took the Belway pass back to the end zone.
St. Francis answered with a major at the end of that quarter, when Belway found Perry on a 59-yard pass-run play.
Fumbles were a huge part of the game throughout, as the Falcons lost the ball three times and the Browns once. Penalties, too, helped Bev Facey’s downfall as the Edmonton squad was flagged 14 times for 101 yards.
In the other division finals, #2 Foothills Falcons defeated #1 St. Joseph’s Celtics 27-4 in Tier II, top-ranked Cochrane Cobras shaded #2 Holy Rosary Raiders 29-20 in Tier III and, in Tier IV, #6 Bow Valley Bobcats dumped #5 Stettler Wildcats 22-13.