Prep football recap: Bishop Kelly rolls in coach’s debut. Rocky, Boise both post shutouts
For the first time in nearly three decades, things were quite different on the sideline for Bishop Kelly’s football team Friday night.
On the field, not much changed.
The perennially powerful Knights marked a new era under first-year head coach Chris Culig by rolling to a 49-14 victory over Capital at Bishop Kelly’s Nick Ysursa Field in their season-opening game.
Bishop Kelly (1-0) had a barnstormer of a first half with Culig on the sideline leading the team rather than retired coach Tim Brennan, scoring 42 points in the opening 24 minutes to hammer its 5A opponent.
Sophomore quarterback Ben Avella was one of the stars for the Knights, throwing for 209 yards and four touchdowns as the 4A private school backed up last season’s 41-6 win with another blowout.
“He exceeded my expectations,” Culig said of Avella. “I kept telling everybody to put Cooper (Cammann), a senior, in, just to ease (Avella) in a little bit. But his poise was remarkable.”
Cammann started the game as the signal caller for BK, running the ball twice for 61 yards and a touchdown before Avella took over. Unfazed, Cammann switched to wide receiver and caught two touchdown passes from Avella, both 23-yard receptions.
“He’s unbelievably dynamic,” Culig said about Cammann. “It’s hard on the defense. Even for me in practice, I’m like, ‘How would I stop that?’”
Senior running back Peter Minnaert also put on a show for the home crowd, finishing the game with 235 all-purpose yards. He had a 45-yard touchdown run in the first quarter and returned a kickoff 99 yards for a TD just moments later, part of an exciting string of plays that saw Capital senior Victor Byaundaombe score on a 72-yard kick return in between.
Byaundaombe was one of the few standouts for Capital, scoring both of the Eagles’ touchdowns on kick returns.
The Eagles (0-2) had trouble sustaining drives against the Knights’ defense. Junior quarterback AJ Danaha completed 10-of-15 passes for 97 yards and had two interceptions, both into the hands of BK’s Noah Nienhouse. Sophomore Brayden Dudley attempted a pass late in the game that was picked off by linebacker Markus Powers.
It all left Culig smiling after his first game in a new home. After leaving Rocky Mountain to take over for legendary coach Tim Brennan, who led the Knights for 27 seasons, Culig was impressed.
“I’m really proud of how clean our first game was that we played, actually,” Culig said. “And this sense of community here is just remarkable. It’s pretty exciting.”
Rocky Mountain 16, Coeur d’Alene 0
The Grizzlies (2-0) headed north and pitched the shutout, scoring the first win at Coeur d’Alene (1-1) in program history.
The Grizzlies were led by quarterback Gunnar Thompson, who threw for 218 yards on a 25-for-38 performance. Jaryn Ikebe was Thompson’s favorite target, connecting with the receiver on 12-of-15 targets for 73 yards and a touchdown.
The Vikings split quarterback duty between Jamison Kizzar and Issac Rook, with the pair combining for 157 passing yards. Coeur d’Alene struggled to make any progress on the ground, ending the game with -14 rushing yards. And both teams turned the ball over five times.
Boise 42, Ridgevue 0
The Brave held Ridgevue to 176 total yards Thursday, triggering the running-clock mercy rule and starting the season 2-0 for the second straight year.
Cooper Smith caught a pair of touchdowns and returned a punt 55 yards for a score. Alex Hess ran for two touchdowns, and Gus Arriola broke free for a 96-yard touchdown to end the third quarter.
Cade Jones led Ridgevue (0-1) with 116 yards on 27 carries, and Izaiah Kasper had an interception.
Borah 42, Timberline 20
Borah (2-0) racked up 445 yards of total offense, led for the second time this season by running back Jevon Nelson. The senior led the Lions with 166 rushing yards a week after finishing with 192 all-purpose yards against Capital.
The highlight of Timberline’s (0-2) night came from Hudson Lewis, who scored on a 95-yard kickoff return for the Wolves. Lucas Midgett and Aidon Nixon also scored for the Wolves.
Kuna 34, Skyview 14
The Kavemen (2-0) remained perfect to start the season thanks to a pair of 100-yard rushers.
Austin Lattimer turned 20 carries into 108 yards and two TDs, while Luke Selto needed only seven carries for 117 yards and a score.
The Hawks (1-1) managed 315 yards of total offense — 133 rushing and 182 passing — but turned the ball over twice on a pair of interceptions by Kuna’s Diego Valencia and Jason Monroe.
Middleton 31, Nampa 7
The Vikings (1-1) jumped out to a 17-0 lead in the first quarter, and quarterback Cash Weeks went 9-for-17 for 142 yards and two TDs to run away with a 5A SIC crossdivision matchup.
Colton Severa caught both touchdowns from Weeks, finishing with four catches for 75 yards and two TDs. Patxi Franks and Cole Holman both added rushing touchdowns.
Nampa (0-1) scored its only points on a 66-yard pass from Dan Alvarez to Zander London in the second quarter. Alvarez finished 11-for-21 for 171 yards with two interceptions.
Columbia 41, Fruitland 14
The Wildcats (2-0) scored 27 unanswered points to pull away in a nonconference win. Stats for Columbia were not reported.
Josh Proctor led Fruitland, running for 35 yards and both of the Grizzlies’ touchdowns. Coye Coffman had five catches for 58 yards, and he came up with an interception on defense.
Canyon Ridge 49, Caldwell 0
Quarterback Conner Willis was 13-for-16 for 181 yards and two TDs as the Riverhawks (1-0) rolled. Stats for Caldwell (0-2), which has lost 36 straight, were not reported.
Weiser 42, Buhl 21
The Wolverines (1-0) ran for 263 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 7.3 yards per carry to run away with a road win.
Jayden Walker led the ground assault, turning eight carries into 108 yards and three TDs. He also caught six passes for 58 yards.
Weiser’s Kaleb Grove ran for 92 yards, and quarterback Kolin Cook finished 12-for-15 for 137 yards and two TDs.
Melba 38, St. Maries 22
Rylan Frank had a hand in everything for the Mustangs (1-0), finishing with 246 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns in a road victory. Frank ran for 72 yards and two TDs, added 132 receiving yards, and he also threw for 42 yards and a score.
Melba quarterback Cutter Beus threw for 185 yards and caught a touchdown. Noah West had 56 yards receiving and a score, and Brenden Svetich ran for 50 yards and a TD.
New Plymouth 40, Payette 14
Triston Church went 7-for-12 for 155 yards and three touchdowns, and he ran for 56 yards and another score to carry the Pilgrims (1-0) to the road win.
Avin Kauffman led Payette (1-1), finishing 14-for-24 for 147 yards. He was also the Pirates’ leading rusher with 55 yards.
Declo 39, Nampa Christian 16
The Hornets (1-0) ground the Trojans (0-1) down on the ground, racking up 304 rushing yards on 36 attempts. They threw the ball just seven times, connecting on four for 41 yards.
Nampa Christian quarterback Aiden Thompson connected on 23 of his 36 throws for 206 yards and two touchdowns. Three Nampa Christian players made at least five receptions, led by Luke Lady, who ended the game with 86 yards on five grabs.
Glenns Ferry 46, Rimrock 8
Ronaldo Gomez ran for 101 yards, finished 2-for-4 for 50 yards and a touchdown, and he racked up 7.5 tackles. But the Raiders (0-1) fell behind and never recovered in their season opener.
Hagerman 46, Horseshoe Bend 34
The Mustangs (0-1) fell despite a monster night from running back Kaelun Jones, who ran for 302 yards and five touchdowns.
