Grizz batter Riverside to cap homecoming week

It was the game of the year, and the Rocky Mountain Grizzlies celebrated homecoming in style, dominating the 5-1 and fourth-ranked Riverside Rebels 37-16 before a packed house at the RMHS Field.“We really came out and took it to Riverside,” coach David Hayes said. “I feel our team is improving each week and it shows when we have the opportunity to play on Friday nights.”Riverside hosts undefeated Shoshoni Friday night, and if the Rebels fall, the loss would drop Riverside into a three-way tie for second place in the 1A West with Rocky Mountain and Cokeville, with Riverside beating Cokeville, Cokeville beating Rocky and Rocky beating Riverside during the season. Rocky already has a conference win this week with a forfeit victory over Burlington, and Cokeville should beat Wind River at home Friday, so all three teams could be 5-2 in conference behind undefeated Shoshoni.To beak the three-way tie, a coin flip would be conducted in Sheridan Saturday during the state cross country meet. A coin flip comes into play when the three tied teams have beaten and/or lost to each other in the way described above and also have the same record against other conference opponents, in this case 0-1 against Shoshoni and 4-0 against Burlington, Wind River, Wyoming Indian and Saratoga.With the coin flip, the Grizz could finish second and host a first-round playoff game or finish third or fourth and travel for the first round.Powerful offenseThe Grizzlies were productive on offense Friday night, fueled by a relentless rushing attack led by running backs Cordell McFarlane and Gehrig Sweat. The Grizz rushed for 441 yards on 46 carries for a 9.6-yard average. McFarlane tore through the Riverside defense for 299 yards rushing on 22 attempts, a 13.6-yard average, and Sweat added another 136 yard on 15 attempts, 9.1 yards per carry.“We’ve rushed for 1,033 yards in the last two games, and that’s strictly because of our team effort all around,” Hayes said. “The offensive line, tight ends, running backs and wide receivers are all blocking, allowing our running game to excel at a high level. We’ve been practicing very hard to improve each week in this area, and it’s paying off.“It’s great, but we must keep pressing forward as tougher teams are in our sights. Cordell rushed for 385 yards against Wind River and 299 against Riverside, which is an outstanding feat, but he couldn’t have done this without outstanding blocking from the other 10 players. It’s great to see, and we plan on keeping it going.”[caption id="attachment_10445" align="alignright" width="285"] Rocky Mountain senior halfback Cordell McFarlane makes a move against the Riverside Rebels during Rocky’s 37-16 win Friday night in Cowley as receiver Cole Simmons looks on. McFarlane has rushed for 684 yards in the last two games for the Grizz.
David Peck photo[/caption]Hayes said he has been informed by Patrick Schmiedt of Wyoming-Football.com that the 385-yard game would set an all-time Wyoming single-game record, topping the 345-yard record set by Jordan Roberts of Sheridan against Evanston in 2011.Strong first halfThe Grizz were on their game Friday, coming out strong and building an 18-0 lead by halftime. McFarlane set the tone on the first play, bursting 35 yards to the Riverside 30. Five plays later, senior quarterback Cole Wambeke hit a diving Cole Simmons in the end zone for a 10-yard touchdown pass. The try for two failed, but Rocky led 6-0.Rocky forced Riverside three and out, then drove into Rebel territory again before stalling. After forcing another Rebel punt, the Grizz struck quickly as McFarlane burst up the middle and broke free for a 69-yard touchdown run. Rocky led 12-0 early in the second quarter.Riverside drove to the Rocky 30, but Tristan Jewell broke up Cole Hill’s fourth-and-seven pass, and the Rebels turned the ball over on downs.Rocky drove 70 yards to score in seven plays including a 35-yard run by McFarlane, who capped the drive with a 22-yard touchdown run, who took a pitch from Wambeke, cut up through a hole and broke free for the score. Rocky led 18-0, then stopped a final Riverside drive to maintain the shutout at halftime.Riverside was down but not out and took the second-half kickoff and drove 65 yards to score as Hill rushed for 16 yards and passed for 44, hitting big Ethan Sherburn for an 18-yard touchdown pass on fourth and 11. Hill’s two-point conversion kept Riverside in the hunt trailing 18-8.Any momentum Riverside gained from the touchdown drive was dashed on the ensuing kickoff when Sweat fielded the kick at the one and dashed 99 yards for a touchdown, picking up a key block by Travis Banks en route to the end zone. Rocky led 24-8.Rocky took a commanding lead early in the fourth quarter, driving 56 in four plays. Sweat set the tone, breaking around left end and hurtling a defender for a 46 yard gain to the Rebel 10. Three plays later, Wambeke scored from three yards out, Simmons booted the PAT and Rocky led 31-8.Riverside drove to the Rocky 20, but Wambeke intercepted a Hill pass at the 10 and returned the pick seven yards to end the threat. Rocky drove 83 yards for a touchdown to seal the win as Sweat gained 51 yards on three carries before McFarlane scored on a 24-yard draw. The PAT was wide, but Rocky led 37-8 with five minutes to play.Riverside added a late touchdown on an eight-yard pass from Hill to Sherburne, then hit Dylan Roberts for two, making the final score 27-16.Hayes was proud of his team’s defensive effort Friday.“We knew Riverside was coming in with a lot of confidence,” he said. “The Rebels like to spread you out and pass all over the field while throwing in a run here and there with the athletic Cole Hill. We planned for this and met the Rebels accordingly. Our players really played well and followed the game plan to a T.“It’s great to have our coaching staff teach through the week and then have the players carry out the plan. It was fun. I would like to mention Cole Hill and Ethan Sherburne are very solid players. Sherburne came ready and was all over the place.”Shay Bond led the Grizz with 10 tackles, three solo and seven assisted. Wyatt Horrocks and Jewell added six tackles apiece, Banks, Simmons, Sweat and Brian Crawford five each.Hayes also praised the Grizzly squad on special teams, noting Sweat’s long kickoff return and big hits on Riverside returns by Jewell and Simmons.“What a great game for the Grizz,” Hayes said. “Now we need Shoshoni to defeat Riverside to create a three-way tie for second, which will point toward a coin toss in Sheridan on Saturday the 24th for the second, third and fourth playoff seeds.”Gillette ThursdayThe Grizz already have a conference win in the books for this week, which leaves them 5-2 in the 1A West and 5-3 overall. Friday’s game at Burlington was cancelled when the Huskies elected to forfeit all of their games and play some six-man exhibition games.In order to get a game in, RMHS was able to schedule a game tonight (Thursday) against the Gillette sophomores in Sheridan. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m.

By David Peck