Patriots herd Glenrock

On the first chilly night of the football season, the Patriots welcomed the Glenrock Herders, delivering a dominant performance that ended in a 44-24 victory. 

The Herders came out strong on their opening drive, marching down the field and striking first with a quarterback draw up the left side. A successful extra point gave the Herders an early 7-0 lead.

The Patriots, however, wasted no time in responding. The Patriot offense pushed their way down the field allowing senior quarterback Eli Gill to make the final surge, eight yards, into the endzone and onto the scoreboard with six points.

The momentum stayed in the Patriots’ favor as they recovered a fumbled kickoff at the Herder’s 38-yard line. Gill capitalized on the opportunity, connecting with Rhett Watt for a 38-yard touchdown pass, closing out the first quarter with a 12-7 lead. 

The Patriots remained in control throughout the second quarter. Gill added to the scoreboard with another rushing touchdown and a two-point conversion with Jaedyn Keller, extending their lead, 20-7.

While Glenrock struggled to regain any momentum, a mishandled Patriot snap gave them a safety, adding two points to their total. Unfazed by the setback, the Patriot offense continued to roll down the field with Gill once again finding his way to the end zone, closing out the first half with the 26-9 lead. 

The second half started a little slower for both teams as they exchanged turnovers and struggled to gain any yardage. Late in the third quarter Gill found Kade Mills for a 25-yard touchdown pass, putting the Patriots up 32-9.

The Herders answered back rather quickly, adding seven more to the board, and closing their gap, 16-32. As the final quarter got underway, the Patriots continued to pull away with Gill and Watt connecting once more on the opening drive, adding six more to the Patriots’ side of the scoreboard.

Both teams would score one more time before the final whistle and the Patriots took the 44-24 victory over the Glenrock Herders. 

As the regular season begins to wind down, the US Patriots will host the Big Horn Rams on Friday, in Sundance, at 6 p.m. 

Stats

Offense:

Rushing: Gill 19/194/4TD, Schiller 9/9, Mills 4/10, Halverson 1/-1

Passing: Gill 8/12/116 3 TD

Receiving: Watt 4/71 2 TD, Mills 2/30 1 TD, Skeens 2/15

Defense:

Leaders: Eli Gill 15 assisted tackles, 4 unassisted tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1/2 sack; Trey Schneider 3 assisted tackles, 3 unassisted tackles, 1/2 sack, 1 interception; Keanh Duarte 4 assisted tackles, 1 unassisted tackle, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1/2 sack, 1 pass block, 1 forced fumble; Jackson East 8 assisted tackles, 1 unassisted tackle, 3 tackles for loss; Kade Mills 4 assisted tackles, 3 unassisted tackles, 1 pass block

Special Teams:

Kickoffs: Parker Skeens 9 kickoffs, 285 yds.

Punting: Parker Skeens 2 punts, 70 yds.

Kickoff Return: Kade Mills 2 returns, 66 yds.; Tel Marchant 1 return, 0 yds.; Nic Shiller 1 return, 31 yds 

Punt Returns: Kade Mills 1 return, 10 yds.