Falcons shut out by Eldorado
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[ After a first half riddled with penalties, sloppy play and missed opportunities, the Eldorado Eagles' efforts to start the season 2-0 looked in jeopardy.
Eldorado led host Elverado-Trico just 6-0 at the halftime break, but reversed their third-quarter bugaboo from opening week, pouring on 24 points in the third quarter to secure a 30-0 win.
Not much was going right for either team in the early going. Eldorado's first drive stalled, and the long snap for the punt went over Nick Stewart's head. In one of the few good breaks early, Stewart was able to corral the ball and get off a kick under heavy pressure, and Elverado-Trico went three and out.
The Eagles did the same on their try, but on the defensive side, after a big tackle for a loss by Derek Miller and a double-team pass-defensed by Stewart and Dakota Parker, Eldorado forced a punt.
And, a heck of a punt at that, as it rolled down to the Eldorado six-yard line.
All that did in the end was set up more yardage to be gained. Gains of seven and 12 yards by Caid Griffin set up the biggest play, a long pass interference call on Elverado-Trico that brought the ball into their territory.
Joe Blair hit Griffin with a check-down pass to convert a key third down, and two plays later, Derek Miller took a reverse handoff up the right side for a 40-yard score and a 6-0 Eldorado lead.
Then, the penalties began. After getting another quick stop of the Falcons, Miller broke off a long return on a punt, but it was called back for clipping. Then, when Elverado-Trico regained possession, two facemask penalties on the Eldorado defense helped advance the ball all the way to the Eagles' 15.
Once there, though, E-T quarterback Alex McGill was wrapped up for losses of three yards on a keeper, and sacked for a loss of eight yards by Parker. Then, in what turned out to be a key defensive stand, Nick Stewart and Parker broke up a pass attempt, and on fourth down, Ben Genet cut in front of another McGill throw to pick off his second pass of the season.
The Eagles might have missed a scoring opportunity on their first drive of the third quarter, when a long pass slipped through the hands of an open Nick Stewart. However, Blair got a key first down with an eight-yard run, then hit an equally wide open Brian Ward in stride for a 33-yard strike with 8:41 left in the quarter, and added another toss to Miller, who hung on in traffic for the two-point conversion.
With the offense seemingly awake now, things were already looking up for Eldorado - and that offense wouldn't even need to take the field for the next score. After a three and out forced a punt, Stewart took the kick back 55 yards for a score, just 1:17 after the Eagles' previous touchdown. Blair found Miller again with a pass to bump the lead to 22-0.
Elverado-Trico really only threatened one time, when fullback Randy Goetz turned it on for three straight carries covering 42 yards midway through the quarter, but the Eagles busted through to take him down for a five-yard loss on the next play, then, on fourth and seven from the 28-yard line, a bad pitch by McGill resulted in a turnover on downs.
On the Eagles' second play from scrimmage thereafter, Deshawn Turner shook free for a 55-yard touchdown scamper, and Stewart pounded the ball in on the conversion, setting the final score at 30-0.
Griffin put together his second straight superb night, going well over 100 yards again with a game high 149 on 21 carries, while first-year quarterback Blair threw a 30-plus yard touchdown for the second straight week.
Goetz led Elverado-Trico with 35 rushing yards. McGill had a busy night through the air, going 14-31 passing, but Eldorado's coverage was solid and he managed to gain just 96 yards.
Large losses on a couple of runs and fumbles left Elverado-Trico with just 110 net total yards from scrimmage. Last week, the Eagles surrendered just 152 to Christopher-Zeigler-Royalton.
Eldorado (2-0) hits the road again next Friday for a game at Fairfield, while Elverado-Trico (0-2) travels to Johnston City.