By: Ryan Moreland (@ryanmoreland)
The league has added some great things in the last few seasons that have been smashing successes, like the Three-Star Draft. Well, it appears we can add the Newcomer Championship Game to that list. For the first time in league history, the winner of the North vs South Newcomer Game will play the winner of the East vs West Newcomer Game. One region will stand above all others as the best of its given class.
North vs South
Last night, we got to see the first games of this small tournament play out. North impressively dominated South. QB LC Fremont led a lethal passing attack that put up over 50 points. Wide outs Taytum Melinyshyn, Alexander Schultz, and Spencer Bady picked apart the South secondary. HB Quincey Asher had three rushing touchdowns.
The North defense was no slouch either. The stifling defense limited scoring the entire game, including shutting South out in the second half. They were also able to force a few turnovers, which led to quick scores on the other side. The final score was 56-13, and North advances to the Newcomer Championship Game.
East vs West
This game was much more competitive than the first, but it didn’t look that way at first. The East offense, led by QB Michael Amber and WR Ace West, took deep shots left and right to give them a 25-point lead just after the half.
However, the West squad didn’t give up. In the second half, the balanced attack began clicking as Declan Murphy found WRs Lee Roy Peterson, Keanu King, and Theo Petty for big plays. The two-headed monster in the backfield of Bo Wyatt and Keith Smith did their part in softening a brutal East pass rush.
The West slowly started to dig into the East’s lead. The major flip in momentum happened in the third quarter. West was down by 18, and East was putting on a drive. The ball was on the 20-yard line. Amber snapped the ball, scanned the field, and fired out to his left, looking for WR Otis Broudreaux. However, the ball hung in the air a bit, and CB Thomas Oliver was able to get a hand on it. He knocked the ball into his own leg, then scooped it up before the ball ever touched the turf. Oliver went 85 yards untouched to the house!
West used this momentum to battle back. They took their first lead of the ball game on King’s second receiving touchdown, which was the final score of the game. The final score was 49-48, and the West secured its spot in the Newcomer Championship Game.
Tonight, North and West will play to see which region will win the first-ever Newcomer Championship Game. These are two high-powered offenses with different styles and two similar defenses that have playmakers at every position. This should be a great game, so be sure to tune into the stream tonight at 6:30 PM CST!
