By Terry Mosher
Editor, Sports Paper
BREMERTON ‑ Bremerton High School football coach Nate Gillam wasn’t sure how his new group of players (29 seniors graduated from last year’s team) would respond, but he didn’t have to worry.
They did just fine.
Junior running back Calvin Cardwell ran for 185 yards and four scores, junior quarterback Connor Mahoney showed he is more than a capable replacement for departed Olympic League offensive MVP Mikey Lawrence, throwing for one touchdown and 99 yards, and Florida transfer Michael Brown, also a junior, was a wow factor defensively, offensively and as the team’s kicker (he added six PATs and a 25-yard field goal), as the Knights overcame an early mistake to blow past visiting Foster, 51-6.
There are only eight seniors on this 2013 edition of the Knights, but two of them ‑ Terrick Houston-Sims and Skyler Mullins ‑ play critical roles in an offensive and defensive line that clearly manhandled Foster on both sides of the ball, recovering five fumbles and holding the Bulldogs to 137 total yards, most of which came against Bremerton reserves in the second half.
“They have been working really hard,” said Gillam of his linemen. “That is the one place we got actual experience this year. We got a brand new set of skill kids. But we got Terrick Sims, Taylor Saylor (also a junior), Skyler Mullins and Keith Moore is a sophomore, but is a real good solid sophomore. And then we kind of rotate between Tim Riders and Ryan Aaro at center until we figure that out.
“We weren’t sure how the skilled kids were going to be tonight, but it kind of takes the pressure off the skill kids to have a good offensive line. And same thing on defense. We didn’t have to stress our DBs out as much as we were afraid too.
“But, yeah, we weren’t sure. This is a brand new team.”
Although Foster wasn’t a real good test, the smashing success Gillam’s team had is sure to create nervous reaction from future OL foes. The Knights were 9-2 last year while annexing their first league crown in Gillam’s nine years as head coach, and league opponents may not see any drop off from this edition of the Knights.
It didn’t look good at the start last night, though. Mahoney threw an interception on the third play of the game and Foster’s Anthony May returned it 48 yards for a quick 6-0 Bulldog lead.
The Knights, though, regrouped and took over the game. A 13-play drive resulted in the first wave of a tsunami that would engulf the visitors and create a running clock mid-way through the fourth quarter, per rules established by the WIAA
Cardwell’s two-yard run finished the drive.
Buddy Gaines, another one of the young skilled kids (he’s a junior), rolled eight yards for the Knights’ second score four plays after a Foster fumble, which became a recurring theme for the Bulldogs.
Another Foster fumble set up a 17-yard TD run by Cardwell and a 35-yard interception return by freshman DB Deboreae McClain set up a 43-yard scoring scamper by Cardwell that made it 27-6. The speedy Cardwell juked a Foster defender out of his cleats on the 35 to break away for the score.
Gaines, another breakaway threat, romped 51 yards for an apparent touchdown on a punt return. It was called back by penalty and Brown tacked on three points with a 25-yard field goal.
Brown, defensive back-wide receiver, gives the Knights a kicking threat they have not had for a while. His family is from here – his mother and an aunt went to school at Bremerton in the early 1990s with Gillam. They decided to come back to Bremerton from Florida, and Gillam couldn’t be happier they did.
Brown had several tackles, booted six extra points (one was blocked), kicked the field goal, caught three passes for 51 yards and rushed for 31 yards in just three carries.
The Knights turned out the lights on Foster by halftime (30-6) and Gillam pulled back his starters in the third quarter to spare further embarrassment for the Bulldogs. Even so, he could not stop his team from scoring after gift fumbles. Gaines caught a 22-yard TD pass from Mahoney in the corner of the end zone over a defender, Cardwell finished his night with another scoring run, and then the freshman, McClain showed his stuff after replacing Mahoney at quarterback.
McClain ran 44 yards on one run, scored on a four-yard run, and rang up 79 yards in just six carries.
“It’s the first time for him playing on Friday night,” said Gillam, who wanted to get him some experience at QB in case he might be needed later in the season if something – God forbid – should happen to Mahoney.
Altogether, the Knights ran for 364 yards and passed for another 99 for 463 total yards. And it might have been 600 yards if Gillam hadn’t called off his young pups.
“They are awesome,” said Cardwell of his offensive line. “We have a lot to prove. So this is a good start to show our talent this year.”
Moore added, “We went out there and dominated. We knew from the start we were going to kill. So we went out and tried our best.”
Houston-Sims said, “We had a little bad start, but once we got going we didn’t stop. Once they got a touchdown it lit a fire under us and we didn’t let them score again. We are bigger than we were a year ago. We got more strength. We have been in the weight room working together.”
For Gillam, it could not have been better. It was almost like he would have wished it to be drawn up.
“It was good to give these young kids some confidence as we go into our next preseason game,” said Gillam.
That next “preseason” game is this coming Friday at Wilson in Tacoma. Wilson gave Bremerton its lone regular season loss last year, 21-14, in a game the Knights probably should not have lost, and Gillam would like some revenge.
“Wilson got us last year,” Gillam said. “They are pretty solid. We got to make sure we are ready to go. We can’t get too cocky, we got to be ready to come back to practice and get ready.”
Foster 6 0 0 0 – 6
Bremerton 14 16 14 7 – 51
Team Scoring:
First quarter
F – Anthony May 48 interception (pass failed)
B – Calvin Cardwell 2 run (Michael Brown kick)
B – Buddy Givens 8 run (Brown kick)
Second Quarter
B – Cardwell 17 run (kick blocked)
B – Cardwell 43 run (Brown kick)
B – Brown 25 field goal
Third Quarter
B – Gaines 22 pass from Connor Mahoney (Brown kick
B – Cardwell 6 run (Brown kick)
Fourth Quarter
B – Deboreae McClain 4 run (Brown kick)
Individual Stats:
Rushing – F: Randy Tippins 13-16; Alvin Noa 8-29; Justice Muna 3-5; Sergey Pristupa 1 (-2); Zane Jacobson 1-10. B: Calvin Cardwell 23-185; Connor Mahoney 6-0; Buddy Gaines 4-24; Darren Circulado 4-20; Michael Brown 3-31; Deboreae McClain 6-79; Anthony Lopez 3-15.
Passing – F: Tippins 13-6-1-63; Jacobson 2-1-0-16. B: Mahoney 13-6-1-99.
Receiving – F: Onopene Lemaota 2-26; Anthony May 2-18. Noa 1-14; Maleko Lemaota 1-5; Patrick Straight 1-14; Charlee Simpson 1-2. B: Brown 3-51; Gaines 2-42; Cardwell 1-6.