LIVERMORE FALLS — It’s one of those catch phrases that football coaches drum through the ear holes of the helmet until it loses all meaning: Control what you can control.
Unfortunately for Spruce Mountain, two of those uncontrollable factors Friday night, at least in the first half, were the clock and possession of the ball. On the flip side, however, Mountain Valley couldn’t do a thing to control Matt Vigue and Peter Theriault when they were allowed to run a play or two.
The end result was a barrage of rapid strikes and a Western Class C contest that got out-of-control in a hurry. Spruce Mountain stormed to a 45-8 win in its home opener at Griffin Field.
Vigue scored four touchdowns — a 61-yard run, a 58-yard catch-and-scoot courtesy of Theriault, an 80-yard kick return and a 1-yard plunge. He also rushed for three two-point conversions. Theriault tacked on a 28-yard TD run and a screen pass that Deonte Ring turned into a 60-yard score. The quarterback booted three extra points, as well.
Three-year-old Spruce Mountain (2-1) beat Mountain Valley for the first time in four tries, while the youthful Falcons are 0-3 for the first time in school history.
It was closer than any of those details suggest for a while, in part because the Falcons played keep-away in the first half. Time of possession favored the Falcons by the unfathomable margin of 21:24 to 2:36. The scales were wildly uneven in first downs (10 to 2) and offensive plays (39 to 9).
Spruce Mountain still led 16-8 at the break, though, on the strength of Vigue’s two long-range touchdowns.
“That’s why you’ve got to play balanced. You’ve got to play good defense,” Phoenix coach Walter Polky said. “Mountain Valley came out and they wanted to set a tone, and they did. They kept the ball for the first quarter and a half. That’s a credit to them. I have all the respect in the world for (MV coach) Jim Aylward. They came out and they set a tone and they set it fast.”
Mountain Valley drove to the Spruce Mountain 34 with its first possession before Tristan Castonguay stuffed Kyle Farrar on fourth-and-3 to halt the six-minute march.
The Falcons’ second series, a 13-play, 67-yard parade, bridged the quarters and concluded with a 11-yard TD surge by senior fullback Tom Thibeau. Farrar, a freshman, threw a halfback option pass to Caleb Gauvin on the two-point try to tie it.
Thibeau and Farrar combined for 25 carries and 107 yards in the first half. Spruce Mountain held Mountain Valley to 41 net yards after intermission.
“Coach made adjustments during halftime,” Theriault said. “We made tackles, gave up not as many yards, and that sparked our offense.”
Vigue helped by supplying breathing room on the kickoff. Mike Brown and Austin Couture delivered big hits on the ensuing three-and-out, and Vigue’s 38-yard scamper on a reverse on Spruce’s next offensive play led to his short scoring run with 7:50 left in the quarter.
Including his returns, Vigue finished with 279 all-purpose yards.
“We’ve just got to work on defense,” Vigue said.
That group gained momentum as the night rolled along. Theriault intercepted a pass late in the first half to preserve the early lead. Anthony York, Luke Greenwood, Dalton Autrey and Dylan Smith joined Castonguay as frequent tacklers.
Mountain Valley’s roster includes 40 players who are either freshmen or sophomores.
“You’re truly looking at a team that had zero kids starting last year, and when the wagon wheels fall off, they fall off and we don’t have enough experience or leadership. And that’s not a slam on the kids,” Aylward said. “We’re going through some major growing pains, and I hope other people can live with it, because I can.”
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