A Little Wet, but Great Football Action at OPSU Spring Game - Good job Vinny & Zacchaeus

- By Scott Puryear of OPSU Sports on 04-20-2009

Goodwell, Okla. — On Saturday afternoon at the annual Oklahoma Panhandle State spring football game the weather was damp but spirits were not, and an enthusiastic crowd enjoyed all the action. It was an intra-squad contest with a pair of equally divided teams and there were big hits and big plays on both sides of the ball. In the end, the blue team defeated the white team 30-10.
Anticipation was also a part of the damp air and fans were barely in their seats when the blue team’s Chris Pearson grabbed the opening kick-off and raced 79 yards for a flashy touchdown. Saul Jimenez booted the point after, and with just fifteen seconds gone, the blues were up 7-0.
The white team came back fast and on the ensuing series Patrick Klein booted a 26-yard field goal to narrow the gap to 7-3.
Still in the first quarter, the whites were back with a Kevin Lauchland 12-yard scoring pass to a leaping Tony Martin. Klein converted and the whites held a 10-7 advantage (and the first quarter soon ended).
The second quarter featured some big time defensive plays and a 35-yard return of a pass interception by Jimenez of the blues led to a four-yard scoring run by Leon King. Pearson’s extra point kick put the blue team back in front 14-10 and the teams went to the half-time break with fans beginning to get wet.
The light rain continued through the second half, but so did the exciting action. With not quite five minutes gone in the third quarter, blue team running back Zach McCaskill followed some good blocks from his lineman, and then hit the gas pedal for a stunning 64-yard touchdown run. Jimenez put the PAT kick through the uprights and the blues led 21-10.
The blues picked up a safety early in the fourth quarter to up their advantage to 23-10; then a seven yard smash across the goal line by Leon King, followed by Michael Melter’s extra point kick closed the scoring at 30-10 in favor of the blue team.
Returning starter Vincent Gay ran the blues from the quarterback position while Lauchland (a sophomore-to-be who redshirted last fall) ran the white team. Both players provided their share of smart plays.
Leaving the coaching to his assistants, Aggie head coach Mike Wyatt observed from the press box and had plenty of postgame things to say about what he saw.
Among the several players singled out by Wyatt were linebackers Jeremy Ashby and Jimenez, defensive lineman Andrew Walker, and defensive backs Quintin Green and Slade McCarty. Wyatt also gave a special nod to freshman Trevor Lutz of Guymon who is learning a new position as a defensive back and stepped up strongly.
The OPSU running backs were up to the task and Wyatt had positive comments on McCaskill (who rushed for just over 100 yards), King, Darryl Brister, and Jose Mendoza. Fullback Michael Vera also showed everyone that the art of the “Stiff-Arm” has not been forgotten.
Overall, Wyatt liked what he saw and is optimistic about the 2009 season, set to begin August 29th with a road game against Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado.