The Durango High School football team picked up its third win in a row with a 35-18 victory against Pueblo County Friday night at Hornet Stadium on a cold night in Pueblo.
The Demons had a bit of a slow start to the game and struggled to get their legs under them after the long bus ride from Durango, but DHS head coach David Vogt said he was happy with how his team bounced back.
“I really like how we fought through,” he said. “We gave up some big plays early on, but we got things fixed and that’s what you’ve got to do late in the season.”
The Demons (7-3, 3-1 South Central League) fell behind early when Pueblo County’s Brandon Bueno broke the goal line on a 1-yard run up the middle.
The point after attempt failed and the Hornets (2-7, 1-3 SCL) led 6-0 with 4 minutes, 33 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
But Durango didn’t trail for long.
On the ensuing possession, quarterback Max Hyson found Gavin Mestas on a screen pass and Mestas outran the Hornets’ defense for a 65-yard touchdown that gave the Demons a 7-6 lead.
Durango added to its lead on its next offensive possession. After a screen pass to Dawson Marcum got the Demons into the red zone, Hyson ran the ball in from a couple yards out on a QB draw to push the advantage to 14-6 early in the second quarter.
“When we execute and everybody does their job, we have the potential to break really big plays,” Vogt said of Marcum and Mestas’ long touchdowns. “We need to do that on a more consistent basis and we’ve been doing that the last few weeks. We just have to make sure everybody executes.”
Vogt also praised the offensive line’s performance in helping break the big plays. He said the O-line has come a long way since the start of the season and the group’s communication at the line of scrimmage has been a big factor in its improvement.
“Our offensive line has improved and as the season has gone on they’ve really been able to click and communicate,” Vogt said.
“That communication level, they’re talking about who they’re blocking and they don’t miss many blocks. I know Dawson and all the running backs love running behind them.”
The game went to halftime with the score at 14-6.
Pueblo County cut into Durango’s lead on the opening possession of the third quarter.
After a good drive to get deep into DHS territory, Pueblo County quarterback Jace Fillmore beat the Demons to the pylon for a 5-yard touchdown run.
The Hornets 2-point conversion failed and kept the Demons on top 14-12.
Durango extended made it a two score game on its next possession when Kade Engle made a key block to spring Marcum for a 67-yard touchdown run that put the Demons up 21-12.
Hyson notched his third total TD of the game with a 13-yard run that put the Demons up 28-12 with 9:37 remaining in the game.
“He did great,” Vogt said of Hyson, who was back at QB after spending the last two games at running back.
“We ask him to do so much and play so many different positions. He’s just a football player. He doesn’t complain and just goes in there and gets the job done. We can’t ask any more of him and he’s had a great year.
“It’s good to have a complete football player like him.”
The Hornets tried to get back in the game when Adrian Soto scored on a 34-yard touchdown run, but once again their 2-point conversion failed and prevented the Hornets from making it a one-score game.
Everett Howland put the game on ice and became the fourth Demon player to find the end zone when he burst through the middle of the line and went 18 yards for a touchdown that put Durango up 35-18.
DHS kicker Harrison Karailla nailed all five of his extra point tries in the win.
Durango will close out the regular season next week when the Demons host Harrison (8-1, 3-1 SCL) at 6 p.m. Friday night at DHS.
“It’s a playoff game, so we just have to make sure we take care of business,” Vogt said of the Harrison matchup, “and the coaches need to make sure we do our job to get the guys ready.”
kschneider@durangoherald.com
