Twelve minutes was all the Dove Creek Bulldogs football team needed. Twelve minutes to score 42 points, demoralize their opponent and all but lock up a fourth consecutive victory.
Playing at home against Plateau Valley on Friday, Sept. 20, the Bulldogs came out on fire, scoring 42 points in the game’s opening quarter to secure a 69-0 victory.
“If you pounce on a team, it gets the other team down,” said Bulldogs’ head coach Shane Baughman of his team’s fast start. “We have to have that. Fast starts are something that we really wanted to focus on this year.”
Running the ball effectively for the Bulldogs was Chance Randolph, who recorded 106 yards on 4 carries and scored 3 touchdowns.
Over the course of the game, 7 other Bulldogs players would run the ball as well, accumulating an additional 148 yards and 3 touchdowns.
“The blocking was really good,” said Baughman, speaking about his team’s ability to run the ball. “The first play that we ran from scrimmage scored on nearly every series.”
Leading the Bulldogs passing attack was quarterback Jordan Ernst, who completed 3 out of his 5 passes for 72 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Both of Ernst’s touchdown passes ended up in the hands of the Bulldogs’ leading receiver Nick Jones, who accumulated 60 yards receiving on the day.
Setting the pace for the Bulldogs on defense were Case Baughman with 8 tackles, Collin Hobbs with 7 tackles and Austin Barnett with 7 tackles.
“The defense did really well,” said Baughman. “The front guys got in the backfield and wreaked havoc back there.”
With their record now at 4-1 on the season, the Bulldogs will enjoy a bye week before travelling to Mancos to face the Bluejays on Oct. 4.