‘The whole state should be scared of Eagle.’ Mustangs show why by dethroning Meridian
The high school football season is only one week old. But Eagle has already delivered a message.
The Mustangs rallied in the second half to knock off defending conference champ Meridian 36-33, avenging a pair of blowout losses to the Warriors last season and establishing Eagle as the team to beat in the 5A Southern Idaho Conference this fall.
“We knew when we came out that they were definitely scared of Eagle,” Mustangs senior defensive end Seth Brock said. “And I think the whole state should be scared of Eagle, too.”
The matchup between the top two teams in the 5A Southern Idaho Conference preseason coaches’ poll lived up to the hype. Meridian, the favorite, and Eagle traded blows all night. But Eagle (1-0) made a pair of clutch defensive stops in the second half to turn the battle.
Meridian (0-1) attempted to ice the game with a 14-play, 60-yard drive in the fourth quarter that drained 6 minutes, 33 seconds off the clock. But Eagle’s defense stood tall at the goal line, forcing a fumble on a botched trick play on fourth down to prevent the Warriors from taking a two-touchdown lead with 5:27 left.
Then after an Eli Mikita 2-yard touchdown run put Eagle back ahead, senior defensive back Tristan Walker came up with the play of the night. Cramps kept him off the field throughout the second half until the final drive. But he sniffed out a Marco Del Rio sweep on fourth-and-1, firing into the backfield and making a picture-perfect tackle to end the Warriors’ comeback chances with 1:13 left.
“Since I was sitting on the bench, I was just watching everyone,” Walker said. “I was noticing that no one was blocking the outside route. Their wing was not coming out as fast as he should have. So I just saw an opportunity to fill that backside. Two plays were made on that backside on that last drive.”
The fourth-down stop capped a second half that saw Eagle hold Meridian to a single score. The Warriors scored 27 points in the first half.
“We slowed them down because we realized that they weren’t beating us by playing football,” Brock said. “They got lucky on what, one messed up snap to our sophomore quarterback — who is a frickin’ dog and he just messed up a little bit — and on a flea flicker.
“The next time they tried a flea flicker, I bashed the guy and there was a fumble.
“Trick plays are all about getting it one time. With Eagle, it’s not going to fly more than once.”
The Mustangs led only twice Friday, and both instances came in the second half. But first-year Eagle coach James Cluphf credited his team’s heart for pulling out the statement-making win.
“I went to talk to the kids afterwards, and I put both of our call sheets, the offensive coordinator’s and the defensive coordinator’s call sheets, and I threw them in the air.
“None of that mattered. It’s the heart of this team, and they dug deep and really figured out a way to make it happen.”
Friday also featured the debut of Eagle quarterback Davis Harsin, the son of former Boise State coach Bryan. He spent his sophomore and junior seasons in Alabama before returning to his hometown in January.
The Idaho State commit finished 7-for-15 for 160 yards and two TDs, and he ran for 68 yards, including a 43-yard touchdown for the Mustangs’ first score.
But his most impressive feat of the night came after a botched punt snap to Austin Ramsey gifted Meridian a touchdown and a 13-point lead with 47 seconds left in the first half. Harsin responded with a three-play scoring drive capped by a 22-yard touchdown pass to Cal Huish amid four defenders just before halftime.
MERIDIAN LEADERS
Del Rio ran for 131 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries, and Rylie Byington added 108 total yards on 21 offensive touches.
The Warriors outgained Eagle 389-337 and ate up 28:38 of the game block. But coming up empty on two fourth-down plays in the second half prevented Meridian from adding to its lead.
UP NEXT
Eagle: Takes a bye week before traveling to Kuna (1-0) on Aug. 31
Meridian: Travels to rival Mountain View (0-0) next week.
This story was originally published August 18, 2023 at 11:29 PM.
