​Eagles football offense and defense dominates in 65-0 win over Bears

by Michael Smith, Grain Valley News
 
 
If players on the Grain Valley football team are wearing the headsets the coaches normally do, that’s a sign things are going well for the Eagles.
 
In recent years, head coach David Allie’s coaching staff lend their headsets to some of the starters when there is a blowout in their favor.
 
That happened Friday against William Chrisman as the Eagles’ offense scored at will and the defense dominated. Seniors like Jack Fuller, Will Page and Logan Bennett got to talk to the coaches in the press box through the headsets in a 65-0 rout of the Bears at Moody Murray Memorial Field.
 
“Those are pretty expensive pieces of equipment to hand over,” Allie said. “They work hard and they want to have fun. They eat that up, they love getting on their headsets and hearing themselves talk.”
 
Grain Valley gave the opportunity for its players to wear those headsets because of how its offense could do whatever it wanted and the defense shut down Chrisman.
 
The Eagles (2-1) scored three touchdowns in their first four plays, which included two scoring runs of 75 and 48 where the offensive line blocked so well, he got into the end zone both times untouched. The other score came off a play-action pass when senior quarterback Chase Neer hit tight end Landon Marriott on a short pass that went 59 yards for a touchdown.
 
“The line executed their assignments and they knew what they were doing,” Aumua said. “Like I said before, I am nothing without them. I wouldn’t have had the stats I had today without them.”
 
Aumua got his third TD with 4:05 left in the first half where he nearly got tackled on a pair of occasions but kept his balance for a 39-yard jaunt. He finished with 175 yards on just four carries, and has begun the season with three consecutive games with over 100 yards rushing.
 
“It’s one of my strengths to keep my balance,” Aumua said. “I was able to stay on my feet and keep going.”
 
Neer was not in the game for very long as he was pulled with 9 minutes left in the second period as Grain Valley had a comfortable lead. He completed both of his passes for 96 yards and two touchdowns, one which came on a deep pass to junior Terrell King for 43 yards.
 
Neer’s last play resulted in a 6-yard TD run for sophomore Dawson Head on a pitch play in which the ball hit the turf, but the ball bounced right back into the hands of Head and he went in to score at the 9-minute mark in the second period. It was just that kind of day for the Eagles.
 
“It was fun, but you definitely want to be able to play a little bit more, but it’s a good feeling when you’re winning,” Neer said.
 
Grain Valley went into halftime up 57-0. It also scored on a safety on a bad snap on a punt from Chrisman; a 43-yard TD pass from sophomore backup quarterback Cohen Morris to King; and a 19-yard TD run by sophomore Bordy Davis.
 
In the second half, sophomore Dylan Daringer scored on a 1-yard run, and senior quarterback DJ Pechar hit Aiden Schaaf for a 2-point conversion following a broken extra-point attempt.
 
Meanwhile, the Eagles’ defense held the Bears to just 27 yards of offense. The Bears' biggest play came on a 33-yard pass from quarterback Lukas Yutzy to wide receiver Jervin Riddle III when the Eagles’ backups were late in the game.
 
The Bears had 10 plays go for negative yards and Eagles senior defensive tackle Maui Sua, a transfer from Kansas City Northeast, was responsible for three of those. He had a sack of Yutzy and two tackles for loss as he was in the Chrisman backfield often.
 
At 6-foot-3 and 250 pounds, he has a combination of size and speed that has made him an effective player for the Eagles up front.
 
“He’s a difference maker,” Allie said of Sua. “He’s a playmaker and he caused some fits tonight. He’s a high energy positive kid. Our kids have bought into him and he’s leading sprints. He’s a great player and human being.”