By RYAN ARENA

L’Observateur

 

Friday night’s Riverside intra-squad spring scrimmage had about as dramatic an ending as can occur in such a game: first-team offense with the ball, down six with less than two minutes left on the clock.

Has it been mentioned yet that the losers were to get pies to the face?

Indeed, the first annual “Pie Bowl” at Riverside was up for grabs down the stretch. This year, the defense got to “do the honors,” holding off the offense for a 38-31 victory and earning a slice of post game fun at the expense of their offensive counterparts.

The scrimmage ended after a pair of incomplete passes on third and then fourth and 15 from the offenses‘ 25-yard line. The key play of the final drive came when James Sledge sacked quarterback Deuce Wallace on second-and-one at the 39, a play that came off of an errant quarterback/center exchange. 

“We’re light years ahead of where we were on Day One (of spring),” said Riverside coach Bill Stubbs, who is completing his first spring with Riverside as the team’s new head coach. “These kids have been learning and taking instruction well. I can’t ask for any more … I’m proud of how they responded tonight.”

The defense began the scrimmage with 14 points. It earned three points for turnovers, two for three-and-outs and one for a stop. Both offense and defense earned points for touchdowns, field goals and PATs. The scrimmage was contested for four timed eight-minute quarters by the first team offense and defense. The second teams played a quarter, but points by either side counted toward the final score. 

The defense began with a pair of stops. The first came after the Rebel offense drove to the defense’s 39, where the defense forced a “punt” on fourth and four. The second came as a result of an interception by Brandon Hymel, partially set up by a Sledge sack two plays earlier. 

That made it 18-0, but the offense got on the board on its third possession. On its second play, Wallace hit Jonquial Sanders for a 22-yard gain. Then Wallace rolled out and found Jeremiah Berteau up the sideline for a 20-yard gain. After a pair of 5-yard gains by Sanders in the redzone, Wallace tossed a touchdown on a corner route to Peyton Falgoust.  Tyler Gauthier’s point after kick made it 18-7.

Wallace completed eight of his first nine passes in the scrimmage, spreading the ball around to a bevy of receivers.

“He doesn’t look bad for an eighth grader, does he?” asked Stubbs. “I’m excited about him. He’s a real heady kid. He’s just earning how to read coverages right now.”

The defense scored 10 unanswered points though, highlighted by a pick-six interception return by Darion Cook that made it 27-7.

“He’s been sitting on that one all spring,” said Stubbs. “He made a great break on it.”

The offense shot back on its next play, Sanders breaking free for a 70-yard rushing score. 

But the defense ended the first half with four consecutive impressive stands; three three-and-outs, and a fumble return by Hymel that would have gone for a score if not for a block in the back behind the play. The defense led 34-14 at the half. 

The defense held firm for a long time, but the offense made a ferocious comeback beginning at the end of the third. First, Sanders capped a drive with a 4-yard touchdown to make it 35-21 with 2:48 left in the quarter.

Then perhaps the scrimmage’s most memorable play happened, as Wallace and Cody Learson combined for a 70-yard touchdown when Learson rolled over a defender on a tackle attempt, back to his feet to set up a score that made it 35-28.

The defense extended its lead to 37-28 before Gauthier’s 20-yard field goal made it 37-31. 

But the defense held when it had to – and then it was pie time. 

Stubbs said that the Pie Bowl was a tradition he brought with him from his days at Salmen. 

“It’s just something we brought back from years ago,” said Stubbs. “When you’ve been beating up on one-another for two weeks, it can be hard to get excited. This just adds a little excitement.”