Trojans hang on for a 26-20 win in Idaho
Sep 17, 2024 11:16AM ● By Brian Shaw
Arena on the campus of Idaho State University was host to the Rocky Mountain Rumble Labor Day weekend. In one of the games on Saturday Aug.31, Morgan got past Idaho Falls Skyline, 26-20. Photo courtesy of Danny Canfield
A fourth-quarter injury to senior quarterback Beck Sheffield forced the Morgan Trojans' hand in Idaho Saturday Aug. 31, but senior Lincoln Gilson’s game-saving diving interception with 2:06 to play handed the Trojans a 26-20 win over Idaho Falls Skyline.
“That was a good win,” said head coach Jared Barlow. “Skyline is one of the top teams in Idaho, and having the opportunity to play them was awesome. I loved how we competed. We came out strong.”
For Morgan [3-0], it was a hard-fought victory against a program that won three of Idaho’s last four 4A state football titles.
“Loved playing at Idaho State, having that experience,” said Coach Barlow of his team’s Rocky Mountain Rumble game in 12,000-seat Holt Arena. “It was a playoff atmosphere in a playoff-type venue.”
In the first quarter, Jack Despain jumped a slant route intended for Skyline’s wide receiver, grabbing his first interception of the season.
The Trojans got their first points of the game when senior Beck Sheffield landed a pass in Gilson’s gloves for a 61-yard touchdown and 7-0 lead with the PAT.
On the ensuing kickoff though, Skyline scored on an 80-yard TD return on a double-reverse. The 2-point try was missed, however, giving Morgan a 7-6 lead with 6:03 left in the first quarter.
On the Trojans’ next drive, Sheffield connected with Boston Zack on a 35-yard pass to the Skyline 1—then called his own number for a 1-yard TD and 14-6 advantage after the PAT.
With 4:12 to go in the first quarter, the main issue for the Trojans was that Skyline’s receivers were finding soft spots in the Trojans’ zone coverage.
As Morgan [3-0] has demonstrated all season long though, getting yards on the ground on their defense is difficult. On 4th and 5 from the Trojans 6, Skyline’s QB threw to – nobody.
That gave the ball back to the Trojans, who celebrated. But the referees handed Morgan an excessive celebration penalty, backing them up to their own 3 with 10:04 left in the second quarter.
From that spot, the Trojans had a 9-play, 97-yard drive that chewed up about six minutes and forced Skyline to burn one of its timeouts. However, the Trojans fumbled at the Skyline 3.
That gave Skyline a little real estate, but the Trojans only let their opponent look around for about 10 yards. On fourth down, team captain Krew Galbraith smothered a designed run from Skyline's QB, forcing a three-and-out with 3:06 left in the first half.
A pooch punt then went horribly wrong for the Idaho school when Gilson caught it at Skyline’s 39 and ran it back to their 24, handing the Trojans prime possession in plus-territory.
After two pass completions on slants from the Trojans’ quick game, Sheffield fired one at Gilson for a 10-yard TD and 20-6 lead after a PAT missed its target.
On Skyline’s next drive, linebacker Nik Preece leapt in front of a toss at the Morgan 45, returning the ball to the Skyline 20-yard-line with 38 seconds before halftime.
Sheffield capped the drive with a 6-yard rushing TD and a 26-6 lead, but the Trojans 2-point try failed.
Over the final 24 minutes, Morgan’s defense coughed up two touchdowns: a 23-yard slant in the third quarter and an 8-yard fade into the corner of Morgan’s end zone in the fourth, with 2:27 left.
“Offensively we moved the ball well,” said Coach Barlow of his unit that totaled 510 yards. “We just hurt ourselves with penalties and turnovers.”
“In the second half we played well defensively but gave up too many big plays that kept drives alive for them,” said Coach Barlow of a group that caused eight tackles for a loss and had one sack.
Next up for the Trojans is a trip to Layton Christian this Friday Sept. 6.