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Ponoka Bantams hammer Olds in season opening victory at home

Broncs’ Young runs roughshod over Bulldogs in 50-8 rout
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Running through a small opening is bantam Broncs’ quarterback Owen Vandermeer during a solid win in the first game of the season. Photo by Jeffrey Heyden-Kaye

In a contest that was over by the end of the first quarter, Ponoka’s bantam Broncs football showed it can score.

On the back of Jordan Young (89), the Broncs beat up on the Olds Bulldogs in a 50-8 rout in Ponoka on Sept. 8.

Young ran for five touchdowns with the other two coming from Nate Sluggett and Owen Vandermeer, along with four conversions kicked by Young.

The lone major for Olds came on the final play of the first half on a 57 yard hail Mary pass-and-run that caught the Broncs’ defense sleeping.

“There is no such thing as a perfect football game,” explained Broncs head coach Todd Lewis.

While Young was basically unstoppable, credit for the victory can certainly be attributed to the rest of the offence along with the defense.

“Our offensive line was unbelievable and our receivers also got their blocks, so when you have 11 guys blocking, that 12th guy is going to find somewhere to run. I couldn’t be more proud,” Lewis stated.

“And that one score, I think our defense got a bit greedy and caught looking for the ball instead of covering their man. It was an easy fix in the second half and I don’t think they completed a pass the rest of the game.”

He added the defense was gritty and aggressive the entire contest, “with 10 guys flowing to the football every time. That’s smash-mouth football and exactly what we want.”

The roster is full of veterans this season, which not only accounts for how good the execution was, but is invaluable to Lewis and the staff.

“A coach can only do so much and the senior players teach the rest as much as I do,” he said, noting it’s the players that establish a lot of the culture and habits of the team.

Lewis fully expects to see more kids want to come out as a result of this game, and encourages them to as there is room for more, plus it will help the program grow.

“We emphasize three things that lead to success: improvement, passion and lift with your brothers. The players did those and it led to a win, our first ever home opening victory. That’s a pretty big thing for this program.”

Adversity ahead

Lewis anticipates a more ‘Rocky’ road the next two weeks as the club hits the highway for games in Rocky Mountain House this Saturday (Sept. 15) then faces Drumheller Sept. 22.

“We will tighten up some loose ends and Rocky is always good so we have got to be prepared. I expect a bit more adversity than Olds, so I think we will build this team’s character in how they respond to that,” he said.

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There was just no stopping Jordan Young who crashed through much of the Olds Bulldogs defense at the bantam Broncs’ season opener. Photo by Jeffrey Heyden-Kaye
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Bantam Broncs’ Parker Rice isn’t messing around with this tackle Sept. 8 during the season opener against the Olds Bulldogs. The Broncs did so well ending with a final score of 50-8. Photo by Jeffrey Heyden-Kaye
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Bantam Broncs’ Parker Rice isn’t messing around with this tackle Sept. 8 during the season opener against the Olds Bulldogs. The Broncs did so well ending with a final score of 50-8. Photo by Jeffrey Heyden-Kaye