Logan Stampede-8, Idaho Mustangs-39
Saturday, May 21, 2016
Raveston Stadium- Idaho Falls, Idaho

Courtesy of Bronson French, Idaho Mustangs.

 

It was a rainy day leading up to kickoff, but the weather cleared up just in time to start the game. The game started with the Mustangs kicking off to the Logan Stampede.

 

The Stampede started out strong with a pass to Jesse Yarger for a 7 yard gain. Then two plays for a loss, including a sack, forced a punt from the Stampede.  This would give the Mustangs the ball on their own 49 yard line.

 

The Mustangs came out running the ball. Their leader on the ground was Deveon Reynolds. The Mustangs pieced together a good drive, eventually finding pay-dirt on a 17 yard pass from Zac Turnage to Shane Bailey. The extra point was good, making it 7-0 in favor of the Mustangs.

 

The ensuing kickoff was fumbled by return-man Sammie Hodges, and the Mustangs recovered the ball on the Stampede 10 yard line. The Stampede defense held strong and kept the Mustangs out of the endzone, forcing a turnover on downs on their own 2 yard line. A slant to Yarger gave them some breathing room and a manageable 2nd and 1. But two incomplete passes and a false-start forced the Stampede to punt again.

 

The punt took a wild Mustangs bounce, and gave the offense another chance from the Stampede 15-yard line. A facemask penalty got the Mustangs inside the ten, but the Stampede defense stood tall, forcing a field goal attempt on 4th down. On a bad snap, Zac Turnage picked it up and ran. He found the edge and dove into the endzone for a Mustang touchdown. The PAT was good, giving the Mustangs a 14-0 lead.

 

After the kickoff, the Stampede started with their best field position up until that point in the game, starting from their own 25 yard line. A roll out pass to Yarger was intercepted by Mustangs DB Matt Fisher, which was brought back to the Stampede 25-yard line.

 

The two teams traded a few three-and-outs. Then, on a 2nd and 10 the Stampede ran a quick pass to Yarger, which went for 20 yards to get the Stampede to the Mustangs 22-yard line. But 3 plays later QB Nick Blackmon overthrew his receiver, and the ball landed in the hands of Mustang defender David Pasquella in the endzone for a touchback.

 

Then a quick 3-and-out forced the Mustangs to punt. The punt was muffed by Stampede return-man Marshall Hedin, and recovered by the Mustang gunner Mike Clark on the Mustangs 49-yard line. That following series the Mustangs scored on another Turnage pass to Shane Bailey for 45 yards. The two-point conversion was not successful, making it a 20-0 lead.

 

The next series was a 3-and-out for the Stampede, and the Mustangs took over on their own 10-yard line. On first down, Turnage connected with Bailey again for 40 yards, giving the Mustangs the ball on the 50. Two plays later Turnage was picked off by Yarger, who ran the ball back roughly 55 yards, giving the Stampede the ball on the Mustangs 35-yard line.

 

Then on 4th and 6, the Stampede were looking to get some momentum going into the second half. Blackmon looked to his most trusted receiver Jesse Yarger, connecting with him for 10 yards to get the 1st down. The next play Blackmon looked deep to WR Marshall Hedin, connecting with him for a 20 yard touchdown pass in the back of the endzone. The two point conversion was good on a quick slant from Blackmon to Jake Green to make the score 20-8 to end the half.

 

The 3rd quarter really hurt the Stampede, losing almost 50 yards due to bad snaps in one series.

On the second drive of the 3rd quarter, the Mustangs were able to drive the ball down the field eventually scoring on another Turnage-Bailey pass for 15 yards. The PAT was blocked by Stampede linebacker Jake Green, which made the score 26-8.

 

The next time the Mustangs had the ball, Turnage again connected with Bailey for a 34 yard gain, putting the Mustangs on the Stampede 10-yard line. The drive ended on a Deveon Reynolds run of 4 yards for the touchdown. The PAT was good, making the score 33-8.

 

On the ensuing drive, Blackmon was picked off by Mustang LB Nick Nelson. Two plays later, Turnage was picked off by Stampede DB Andrew Espinoza.

 

In the 4th quarter, the Mustangs switched to their run game to help run out the clock. Run after run, they consistently got 6 yards per play with RB Austin Turnage, eventually scoring on a 5 yard slant from Turnage to Bailey in the endzone. The PAT was no good, making the score 39-8.

 

On 2nd and 12, the last drive of the game was cut short on a HB pass looking deep, as Stampede back Jake Green was picked off by Mustangs DB Stephen Beasley, who ran the ball back for 30 yards. The Mustangs would then go into victory formation to end the game.

 

Both teams have a bye this week for Memorial Day. Next week, the Stampede host the top-ranked team in the division, the Blackfoot Anarchy. The Mustangs will travel to Burley, Idaho to take on the Diggers.  Each game will be played on June 4th, the final week of the 2016 RMFL regular season.