By Logan McCullough
Senior running back Andre Blackmoore scored four touchdowns to help McCallum to a 35-10 victory over the Lehman Lobos.
McCallum scored on three of its first four drives, pushing the score to 21-0 midway through the second quarter.
Down three touchdowns, Lehman head coach Todd Raymond made the decision to make a change and install wide receiver Tyler Henderson at quarterback. It was an in-game move that helped Lehman gain momentum and score on its next two possessions.
However, immediately before the half, Henderson, the man behind Lehman’s surge, went down with a lower leg injury and was unable to return.
“I feel like we lost energy and focus,” Raymond said. “When that stuff happens, coaches, kids, everyone’s got to step up. We were already without our starting QB, then the Henderson kid goes down and doesn’t play the second half, so we’ve got to do a better job of stepping up.”
The second half revolved around McCallum’s Blackmoore. Thanks in part to a medley of turnovers and miscues by Lehman, the senior took advantage of the favorable field position.
“He ran hard,” McCallum head coach Charles Taylor said. “He took what they gave him. You keep pickin’, keep pickin’, take what they give you and don’t try to make the big play and keep working, and I think he does that.”
Although the game seemed out of reach, the Lehman Lobo defense continued to fight. Senior cornerback Austin Lackey led the Lobos with seven tackles. Defensive tackle Carl Ferguson led the pass rush with 1.5 sacks.
“Our defense played their butt off tonight, we just kept putting them in terrible positions,” coach Raymond said. “It’s awful, we’ve got to eliminate those critical errors. It’s all we talk about. It’s all we work on.”
Although Blackmoore was the obvious star, the defense of McCallum won the game, in the eyes of their coach.
Strong safety Will Loewen led McCallum’s defense with six tackles and a forced fumble. None of these tackles were as important as the one deep in the second quarter.
With Lehman seizing momentum and looking to score its second consecutive touchdown, the junior safety made the play of the night chasing down Lehman running back Derrick Gomez on the 10 yard line.
This play forced Lehman to settle for a field goal, and swung momentum back to McCallum’s favor.
Lehman did not score in the second half.
