Grizzlies Showcase Depth In Road Victory
Plenty of things have changed from last season to this season for the Grace Grizzly football team. Gone are the nine strong seniors from last year’s graduating class as well as Coach Newby who stepped down after taking Grace to the playoffs for four straight seasons. Heck even their uniforms have changed. The Grizzlies will show off their new uniforms Thursday night during their home opener. While some things have changed some have stayed the same. Coach Travis Draper has taken over as head coach a promotion from offensive coordinator that he previously held. Coach Draper also retained Jason Kimball from last year’s staff as well as bringing back a Grace legend Coach Millward who coached the Grizzlies to a state championship appearance back in 2010. Also back is senior quarterback Gavin Draper along with several of his classmates in key skills positions. One area of concern for the Grizzlies was their offensive line. Grace lost their center and both guards to graduation meaning they would have a whole new front line. Coach Draper was confident in filling those spots with experienced players but when a few boys elected not to play this season he was left scrambling. Draper does have one experienced lineman in senior Case Williams but filling the other two key roles fell to a pair of Juniors with little experience in those positions. Mack Jorgensen and Landry Crane have stepped up and for the time being will be who Draper will count on to help move the ball.
The Grizzlies opened their season on the road at Oakley. The Hornets have been a traditional powerhouse in eight man football but currently find themselves near the bottom of that rollercoaster ride that many small schools have to ride out. The Grizzlies who have been in that same position several times had no sympathy for the Hornets as they rolled into town with their stable of skill players and new line. The Grizzlies ran roughshod over the Hornets all night long. Gavin Draper spread the ball around completing fifteen passes to six separate receivers for two hundred and thirty-six yards. The Grizzlies also picked up two hundred and seven yards on the ground from six different players. Bryant Moss led the way in scoring with two touchdowns one on the ground and one through the air. Kade Kimball, Carter Kimball, Keathen Edwards, Chase Smith and Parker Yost also walked away with a touchdown each.
The Grizzly defense also played very well with no one player really outshining the others. The stats show that it was a real team effort on the defensive side of the ball as Grace held the Hornets scoreless until late in the game when most of the Grizzly starters were pulled out. Grace easily defeated the Hornets by the score of 52-6.
It’s always good to open the season with a win and the Grizzlies have done so now four years in a row. That being said, this week’s game gets a whole lot tougher as the Grizzlies will host the Raft River Trojans on a rare Thursday night edition of Friday night lights. The Trojans beat the Grizzlies in a hard fought tough game last season in Malta. Grace will need to come ready for this one. I expect it to be a very entertaining game. So if you are looking for something to do on Thursday night where the temperatures are expected to be cooler head to Grace and see some great eight man football action.
