4 Idaho high school football games you should not have missed in Week 7 (10/6/2023)

Declo erases double-digit first-half deficit to prove it is the state’s best in showdown with West Side

Josh Stewart looked up at the scoreboard midway through the second quarter and wasn’t concerned.

Even though the Declo football coach had every reason to be.

His top-ranked Hornets faced a 20-point deficit in a place where only two teams over the last decade had been able to win at.

* WEEK 7 IDAHO SCOREBOARD

But Stewart knew it had been done before - last by his own team six years earlier.

The Hornets handed No. 2 West Side its first home loss in 2,184 days with a 27-26 win Friday night.

“This is a great group of boys that believe in each other and plays hard for each other,” Stewart said. “We’ve just talked about all year trying to stay in the moment and not get too high, not get too low. They just stuck with it and kept fighting.”

Especially on a fourth-and-goal at their own 5-yard on the game’s final play.

A penalty set the Pirates (4-2) up with a first-and-10 at the 15 just moments before. But Declo held firm, including knocking down a play-action pass to keep its perfect record (7-0) intact.

Junior Bode Brackenbury had the game-winning touchdown on a 4-yard run with just two minutes remaining. He sat out the first four games of the season while recovering from wrist surgery.

“He’s still got a cast,” Stewart said. “So we haven’t ran him a bunch. But he’s getting better so we’ve started to try to use him a little bit.”

Gavin Rasmussen racked up 10 receptions for 126 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Will Garrard was 15-of-25 for 220 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. He also added 39 yards on the ground.

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NO. 1 EAGLE REMAINS UNDEFEATED WITH SECOND-HALF SHUTOUT OF NO. 3 MOUNTAIN VIEW

Third-ranked Mountain View threatened to play spoiler of Eagle’s perfect season and 5A Southern Idaho Conference title aspirations - for a half.

But the No. 1 Mustangs showed why they’ve been the No. 1 team in the state all season with a second-half shutout for a 28-14 win over their league rival.

The victory also secured Eagle (7-0, 5-0 5A SIC) a spot in the 5A SIC title game for the second year in a row. It will play Meridian in a rematch from last year in two weeks.

“Always impressed with how our kids have responded to big games this year with resilience,” Eagle coach James Cluphf said.

Mountain View’s Henry Nelson found Tyler Weaver for a 42-yard strike to tie the game at 14 apiece with three minutes and 49 seconds remaining in the second quarter. It capped a back-and-forth first half where each team scored and responded.

But Eagle had all the answers in the second half, especially on defense. It held the Mavericks (4-3, 2-3) to just seven first downs and 102 yards of total offense.

The offense then took care of the rest.

Davis Harsin found a wide-open Seth Brock for a 42-yard touchdown pass midway through the third quarter. Noah Burnham then added some insurance. He scored his third touchdown on the night on a 2-yard run to start the fourth quarter. The sophomore tailback finished with 173 yards on 20 carries.

“Noah has stuck to a great process of preparing each week,” Cluphf said. “He has produced on a weekly basis while remaining humble. He has a great understanding of the big picture and really loves his offensive line and the physicality they play with.”

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HOMEDALE EXTENDS CONFERENCE WINNING STREAK TO 30 GAMES

The longest conference winning streak in the state was in serious jeopardy.

But Homedale wasn’t about to let it end, especially at home.

So senior quarterback Dillon Fine lobbed a 38-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Rafael Cuenca with 1:34 remaining. The University of Utah baseball commit then picked off Kolin Cook on the ensuing possession to secure a 21-14 win over No. 3 Weiser.

The second-ranked Trojans (7-0, 3-0 3A SRV) have now rattled off 30 consecutive wins against 3A Snake River Valley Conference opponents. They haven’t lost to a league opponent since Sept. 29, 2017.

“Super proud of our kids and program as a whole,” Homedale coach Matt Holtry said. “We bent, but we didn’t break. I loved how our kids kept their composure and kept choppin' wood.”

Homedale appeared like it wasn’t going to need those late-game dramatics. It jumped out to a 14-0 lead with 5:15 to go in the opening quarter. That score remained through the entire first half.

The Wolverines (6-1, 2-1) didn’t go away, though.

They tied the game on a 1-yard plunge by Kaleb Grove, who ran for 118 yards on the night, with 10:34 to go in the game.

However, Weiser still suffered its eighth straight loss to Homedale, thanks to the heroics of Fine. It wasn’t his finest game of the season. He went 7-of-14 for 162 yards, two touchdowns and an interception - his first of the year. But Fine, who also picked up 52 yards on the ground, still found a way to get the job done in the end.

“He is laser focused and he doesn’t waver,” Holtry said. “Maybe from his baseball experience on the mound - all the pressure is on him and he doesn’t get phased. Just keeps staying positive and keeps playing his butt off.”

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HIGHLAND WINS ANOTHER THRILLER OVER RIVAL RIGBY

Rhidge Barela did it again.

On a second-and-19 with 36 seconds remaining, the Highland senior wide receiver, who was the hero of last year’s 21-point fourth-quarter comeback, took a lateral pass from quarterback Drew Hymas. He stepped up and heaved the ball right before getting smacked on his back.

The floater somehow found its way to a wide-open Jackson Riddle, who broke from his route ever so slightly to turn around to haul in the 35-yard game-winning touchdown pass. The bit of trickery gave second-ranked Highland a 22-19 road win over two-time reigning state champion Rigby to open up 5A High Country Conference play.

“I’m too old for this stuff, I’ll tell you that,” said Highland coach Nicolas Sorrell with a laugh. “That’s why we do it and everybody’s getting their money’s worth.”

Especially in the first half.

The two storied programs traded blows.

The Trojans (3-4, 0-1) scored on the first drive of the game. Defending state player of the year Luke Flowers threw a nine-yard strike to Koen Peck.

Highland then answered with a 30-yard touchdown pass from Hymas to Christian Alvarico.

The second quarter saw Rigby regain the lead on a Flowers’ touchdown run. But it was short-lived as Riddle ran 51 yards to the house to make it a 14-13 ballgame.

However, the Trojans got the last laugh before the half on another touchdown throw from Flowers. This time the Montana commit found Parker Graham and they went into the locker room up 19-14.

And there it stayed until Barela’s late-game heroics. 

The Highland defense made sure of it by holding Rigby to a rare second-half shutout.

“It was pure guts,” Sorrell said. “We were the ultimate bend, but don’t break tonight. We gave up some big plays. But when we got down on our side of the field, we would just hunker down and make a play when we needed it.”

Riddle combined for 196 yards, including 110 yards on the ground. Hymas threw for 132 yards.

Flowers passed for 231 yards for Rigby, which still doesn’t own a win over a 5A team from Idaho this season - and has as many losses right now as it did in the last three years combined.

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