ARVADA — Noah Applegate got to go back to his middle school days on Saturday.
The Faith Christian senior reprised the role of fullback for the first time since, well, long before he could grow the full beard currently wrapped around his jaws.
“I kind of expected to get a couple carries,” said Applegate, who admitted he wasn’t planning to start against Eagle Valley.
Applegate got 17 carries and scored three touchdowns as the Eagles rode out a 28-7 Class 2A nonleague victory over the Devils in a Zero Week opener.
The Eagles’ control of the line of scrimmage accounted for their fast start and ability to hang on as their momentum ebbed and the Devils responded with a stronger second half. Faith Christian quarterback Micah Twedell handed off to six different backs as the Eagles outrushed the Devils 257-89 and gained 12 more first downs than their visitors from Gypsum.
Twedell connected with Ian Henery for a 13-yard touchdown pass 20 seconds before halftime. The junior completed 5-of-8 passes for 100 yards in the first half.
“That’s our philosophy on offense — we try to spread the ball around as much as possible,” Eagles coach Blair Hubbard said. “Micah did a great job off the play-action stuff hitting his receivers. . . . If we’re able to do that, it really forces the defense to choose what they’re going to defend.”
The Devils, who got a 1-yard touchdown run from Harrison Neal to make it 21-7 early in the fourth quarter, were given a nasty first challenge. Without a scrimmage under their belts, the two-way Devils had to deal with the Eagles’ depth and their no-huddle offense.
In typical August fashion, the teams combined for seven turnovers and 15 penalties.
The Devils were stout in the third quarter as their in-terior line of Eric Nevarez, Pollo Almanza and Zak Thrall put a dent in the Eagles’ ground game. Offensively, the Devils were able to grind downfield by riding the fullback trap and a few misdirection plays.
“Not very well,” was Almanza’s verdict on the Devils’ effort. “We just made too many mistakes dropping the ball.”
Applegate led the Eagles with 72 yards. He has been a lineman the past three years and dropped 10 pounds to fit the fullback position. Fellow fullback Garrett Bundick ran for 59 yards on 13 carries, and running back Derek Lepore had 52 yards.
John Crawford led the Devils with 41 yards rushing.
Eagle Valley 0 0 7 0 — 7
Faith Christian 7 14 0 7 — 28
FC — Applegate 1 run (Passarelli kick). FC — Applegate 1 run (Passarelli kick). FC — Henery 13 pass from Twedell (Passarelli kick). EV — Neal 1 run (Ray kick). FC — Applegate 8 run (Passarelli kick).
