DAVID BARBER

davidb@vanzandtnews.com

Two Van Zandt County football rivals returned to the scene Sept. 30 of their memorable classic contest from a year ago as the Van Vandals visited Norris Birdwell Stadium to take on the Canton Eagles.

Last year’s game came down to a final kick by Canton that bounced off the crossbar and back onto the playing field which allowed Van to escape with a 55-54 win.

In the rematch played on Sept. 30, the visiting Vandals made sure that the game would not be decided on the final play as they raced to a 14-0 first quarter advantage and never looked back shutting out the Eagles, 45-0.

Coach Jared Moffatt’s Vandals are now 4-2 overall and 2-0 in District 8-4A, Division 2, play as they will host the Rusk Eagles (4-1, 1-0) Friday, Oct. 7 in a 7:30 p.m. kickoff at Van’s Memorial Stadium. Rusk edged the Center Roughriders (4-2, 1-1), 40-35, in Rusk Sept. 30.

Coach Heath Ragle’s Eagles (2-4, 0-2) will face a tremendous challenge Friday, Oct. 7 when they travel to Carthage to take on the state’s number one ranked team in Class 4A, Division 2, the undefeated Carthage Bulldogs (6-0, 2-0), in a 7:30 p.m. kickoff. Carthage dominated the Brownsboro Bears, 69-13, Sept. 30 in Brownsboro.

Against the Eagles, Van finished with 27 first downs and 386 yards of total offense including 276 yards rushing and 110 yards passing.

Canton’s offense registered nine first downs and 150 yards of total offense (61 yards rushing and 89 yards passing).

Individually, Vandal sophomore quarterback Jaxon Moffatt completed 11 out of 16 passes for 110 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.

Van junior running back Demarcus Stinnett led the running attack for the Vandals with 103 yards rushing on 17 carries and one TD. Sophomore receiver Caden Rowe caught three passes for 56 yards and one TD.

Eagle sophomore QB Nathan Parker completed 13 out of 31 passes for 89 yards, no TD’s, and two interceptions.

Junior RB Kam Shaw led the Canton running game with 63 yards rushing on 13 carries while junior receiver Nathan Whitlock caught four passes for 37 yards.

“It was a great win for us,” pointed out Jared Moffatt. “I thought this was as complete a game that we have played all season long against Canton. We played well for four quarters. We started fast. We did everything we set out to do in the game. We are 2-0 in district and that is important for us. We have some big games coming up. Getting off to a fast start is something that we always talk about, and we did that against Canton. We had good field position for the most part.”

The Vandals seized control of the game early against Canton as they received the opening kickoff and moved 64 yards in 10 plays to open the scoring. RB Garrett Florey powered into the end zone on a 1-yard TD run to end the march. Sophomore kicker Tristan Miller made the first of his seven extra points to give Van a 7-0 advantage with 7:34 to play in the first quarter. Key plays in the Vandals’ scoring drive included an 11-yard pass completion from Jaxon Moffatt to receiver Brayden Bradshaw and a 15-yard run by Florey.

Canton’s first offensive possession resulted in a turnover as Parker’s first down pass over the middle was intercepted by Vandal defensive back Florey and returned 48 yards for a TD. Miller added the extra point giving Van a sudden 14-0 lead with 6:30 to play in the first quarter.

The Eagles then moved from their own 26 to the Canton 44 in six plays including a 12-yard pass completion from Parker to junior wide receiver Justus Petree (three receptions, 24 yards) but the drive later stalled forcing a Canton punt that backed up the Vandals to their own 10.

Van then went on a long time-consuming march as they moved 82 yards in 18 plays including running gains of 10 yards by Jaxon Moffatt, 10 yards by senior Beau Barton, and 11 yards by junior Colton Miller.

Canton’s defense stiffened and forced the Vandals, on fourth down and goal at the Eagle 8-yard line, to attempt a 25-yard field goal. Tristan Miller drilled the attempt on his first FG effort of the season to extend the Vandal advantage to 17-0 with 7:30 to play in the second quarter.

“What part of that drive was more confounding for Vandal football, the fact that we had an 18-play drive that did not end in a touchdown or the fact that we ended up kicking a field goal?” recalled Jared Moffatt. “It was a good drive, but we stalled out when we got into scoring range. Tristan made a great kick. He is not just a good kicker. He is a good football player. In the short time he has been with us, he has had an impact on our football team.”

Three plays later, the Eagles suffered another turnover as Parker’s pass on third down and 14 at the Canton 34 was intercepted by Van senior DB Reed Parish at the Eagle 40 giving Van excellent field position.

Eight plays later, Colton Miller ran three yards for a TD. Tristan Miller added the extra point giving the Vandals a 24-0 lead with 3:28 to play before halftime. A 13-yard run by Jaxon Moffatt started the scoring drive for Van.

The Eagles faced fourth down and nine at their own 47 when Parker, also serving as the punter for Canton, attempted to run on a fake punt but was stopped by the Vandals after no gain giving Van possession again on Canton’s end of the field.

Two plays later, Jaxon Moffatt connected with Rowe on a 47-yard TD pass play. Tristan Miller added the extra point giving Van a 31-0 advantage with 1:29 remaining in the second quarter.

Canton threatened to get on the scoreboard before intermission as they moved from their own 23 to the Vandal 8-yard line in eight plays including a 45-yard run by Shaw and a roughing the passer penalty against Van.

On the final play of the first half at the Vandal 8-yard line, Parker completed a pass to tight end Carson French (four receptions, 23 yards), but his momentum took him out of bounds one yard short of the goal line.

Following a Canton punt early in the third quarter, the Vandals appeared to be on their way to extending their lead but on first down at the Eagle 22, Canton’s defense came through with a turnover as Jaxon Moffatt’s pass to Bradshaw was intercepted by Eagle DB Canaan Eiland and returned to the Canton 32.

Ten plays later, including a 12-yard pass completion from Parker to Whitlock, the Eagles moved as deep as the Vandal 40 but on fourth down and six, Parker’s pass to Shaw was incomplete giving possession back to Van.

Eight running plays later, Stinnett ran five yards for a TD to end the 60-yard march. Tristan Miller added the extra point giving the Vandals a 38-0 lead with 2:10 to play in the third quarter. Running gains of 10 and 21 yards by Bradshaw were key plays in the Vandal scoring drive.

The Eagles moved from their own 17 to their own 38 in six plays including a 13-yard pass completion from Parker to French and a defensive holding penalty against the Vandals but the drive later stalled forcing a Canton punt.

Van closed out the scoring with a 65-yard march in eight plays as Bradshaw ran five yards for a TD to close out the drive. Tristan Miller added the extra point to give the Vandals a 45-0 lead with 7:44 remaining in the fourth quarter. A 13-yard pass completion from Jaxon Moffatt to WR Gabriel Bachert and running gains of 14, 10, and 10 yards by Stinnett in addition to an 11-yard run by Jaxon Moffatt were key plays in the final Vandal scoring drive of the game.

An exchange of punts by the two teams ended the contest as neither team was able to cross midfield in their final offensive possessions.

Jared Moffatt praised the effort of his defense against Canton as the Eagles were held to 150 yards of total offense.

“We wanted to control their running back, Kam Shaw,” said Jared Moffatt. “He is a really good high school running back. He has played well for them. He had a great game against us last year. We definitely needed to contain him. It was important for us to tackle well.”

Overall, the Vandal head coach pointed out a number of individual efforts from the Canton game including offensive lineman Ace Bostick, defensive lineman Tuff Arozamena, defensive lineman Colton Miller, center Kepler Multhaup, right offensive tackle Cooper Hullum (filling in for an injured Bruce Shaw), receiver/running back Brayden Bradshaw, receiver Caden Rowe, running back Demarcus Stinnett, linebacker Beau Barton, defensive tackle Braydon Hullum, defensive tackle Reggie Johnson, and linebacker Christian Campuzano.

On special teams, Jared Moffatt recognized the efforts of long snapper Garrett Phillips, holder Gabriel Bachert, and Jackson Admire for his coverage on punts and kickoffs.

Defensive statistics from the Canton game were recently released by the Vandal coaching staff and the numbers were as follows:

Beau Barton: 11 tackles, two tackles for losses, and three QB pressures; Christian Campuzano: nine tackles, two tackles for losses, and three QB pressures; Landon Smith: nine tackles, two tackles for losses and one batted pass/pass breakup; Tuff Arozemana: seven tackles and four tackles for losses; Brayden Hullum: six tackles, two tackles for losses and one QB pressure; Reggie Johnson: six tackles; Reed Parish: five tackles, one interception, and one batted pass/pass breakup; Cannon Rainey: five tackles; Colten Miller: three tackles and one QB pressure; Garrett Florey: two tackles, one interception returned for a TD, and one batted pass/pass breakup; Easton Hinch: two tackles and one batted pass/pass breakup; Garrett Phillips: two tackles and one tackle for a loss; Luke Horton: one tackle; and Gabriel Backert: one tackle.