Badger football delivers another shutout win
(Photo by Victor Corral Martinez) The football team and coaching staff take a photo after their scrimmage match in August.
OROFINO — Badgers made the long trek to central Idaho to play against the Orofino Maniacs and came out of the matchup, winning with 35 unanswered points.
However, head coach Travis Hinthorn said it took a while for the Badgers to get warmed up and started the first quarter slow.
Hinthorn said, “We always talk about good versus great,” Hinthorn said. “We are good, but for us to be great, we need to get off of the bus and be ready to play, no matter how far we travel.”
While Badgers received the ball, it was a quick three and out. The Maniacs then went on a 13-play drive that took up most of the first quarter but turned the ball over on downs at the Badgers’ 20 yard-line.
The first quarter saw no points scored, but Badgers quickly scored 21 points in the second quarter.
“They had a good drive on their first series, luckily we stopped them defensively,” Hinthorn said. “I think if they would have scored, the momentum would have been a big issue.”
The Badgers woke up in the second quarter, and quarterback Teigan Banning found Blake Rice for a 39-yard touchdown; Sky Reinhardt made the extra point.
In the next possession, Rice found Charles Henslee on a halfback pass for a 43-yard connection. Rice continued his momentum with a 57-yard interception at the Maniacs’ 4-yard line.
Wilson Newell followed up by punching through to the goal in the next play, and the Badgers were quickly up 21-0.
Orofino drove down the ball to the Badgers’ 20 just before the half, but their final possession of the second quarter fell out of bounds, ending the first half.
The second half of the game started with Orofino in control of the ball, but in the first drive, Travis Petersen caused a fumble, which Josh Pinkerton recovered for the Badgers.
Banning started the Badgers’ drive finding Rice for a 60-yard touchdown completion. Another successful kick by Reinhardt made the score 28-0 early in the third quarter.
The Badgers defense forced another three and out by the Maniacs, and after a bad snap over the punter’s head, the Badgers were in scoring range on the Orofino 8-yard line.
Newell carried the ball for 7 yards on the first play and then went in untouched for his second touchdown of the afternoon.
The Badgers defense had their third shutout in a row with Eli Richards leading the Badgers with 18 tackles; Petersen added 11 tackles and caused a fumble.
Rice had 8 tackles and an interception, Pinkerton had five tackles and a fumble recovery.
“Defensively we are playing well and having fun and it was nice to have Josh Pinkerton back,” Hinthorn said. “He really helped us today.”
It was Pinkerton’s first game back after he suffered an ankle sprain on the third play of the Badgers’ first game and missed a couple of weeks.
The Badgers are 3-1 and play Riverside High School in Chattaroy, Wash., on Sept. 24. The junior varsity will kick off at 3:30 p.m., with the varsity starting at 7 p.m.