Execution issues plagued the Bayfield High School football team in its season-opening loss.
A week of practice and preparation smoothed many of those out for BHS.
The Wolverines ran for 275 yards and shut Dolores’ offense down, defeating the Bears 43-0 Friday night in their home opener.
Most of those yards came on fullback dives up the middle, with sophomore Zane Phelps benefitting from the increased production. He rushed for 157 yards and three touchdowns in the game, with 93 yards and two touchdowns coming in the first half.
“It felt good; my team was helping me out, giving good blocks,” said Phelps, son of Dion and Koel Phelps. “That was what was working, so we just kept doing it.”
Brady Fields chipped in 65 yards and a touchdown in the second half after Phelps took a seat for the evening.
BHS sophomore quarterback Kelton McCoy improved in his second high school start.
McCoy was 8-for-11 for 124 yards and two touchdowns, both to Matt Knickerbocker.
“He’s definitely getting more confident; I think it’s just not giving him too much,” Bayfield head coach Gary Heide said.
Knickerbocker finished with 59 yards receiving in addition to those two touchdowns. He left the field with an injury in the second half, which Heide said Bayfield’s athletic trainer called a concussion.
Knickerbocker missed last season’s semifinal loss in the playoffs to Platte Valley with a concussion.
Heide still plans to use Knickerbocker in multiple positions if he is cleared medically.
“My No. 1 goal is to protect all athletes,” Heide said.
Bayfield’s defense came out firing on all cylinders in the first half Friday night.
The Wolverines forced a fumble on Dolores’ first offensive play and collected a safety on fourth down and more than 30 to go in the second quarter.
They had plenty of time to rest; Bayfield’s rushing attack controlled the line of scrimmage and allowed the Wolverines to dominate possession.
Dolores had trouble getting traction when it had the ball, both because of Bayfield’s defense and its own issues.
The Bears committed five penalties on offense in the first half, including three false starts and a failure to report.
“We made a lot of mental errors, but those are things we can fix in practice. Our guys learned a lot,” Dolores head coach Chris Trusler said.
“Bayfield did a heck of a job, though. I commend them; they were a class act.”
The Wolverines’ execution wasn’t perfect, however. They committed eight penalties, including three helmet-to-helmet hits, and fumbled the ball twice.
Heide was pleased with the way his team ran the ball but said they needed to work on setting the edge and getting outside the tackles more before their next game against Basalt on Friday.
“It comes down to the offensive line getting out there,” Heide said. “It’s something we’ve got to improve on.”
kgrabowski@durangoherald.com
