Prep football recap: Ridgevue ties record. BK routs Nampa. Eagle QB throws 5 TDs
Ridgevue junior linebacker Branson Dance got his hand on the pass, and junior defensive lineman Cohen Arsers zeroed in on the football.
“He tipped the ball up. I saw it,” Arsers said. “I just went and got it.”
Arsers’ interception in the closing minutes helped Ridgevue edge Columbia 23-21 in a 5A Southern Idaho Conference game Friday at Ridgevue High.
It is just the Warhawks’ second win over the Wildcats in eight all-time meetings, and their 3-1 overall record ties the program record for most wins in a season. Ridgevue’s previous best season came in 2017, when it went 3-6.
“I’m sure when you go look at the film, you’ll still see some mistakes. But I’ve been so proud of this group for that fight and that spirit,” Ridgevue coach Gary Thorson said. “One of our three pillars is the word, ‘fight.’ And it’s not just a football fight. It’s the off-the-field fight and everything.”
Ridgevue has never qualified for the state playoffs since the school opened in Nampa in 2016, but Thorson — who took over the program in the offseason — sees a group eager to change that trajectory.
“Our first day of offseason workouts was the last day of spring break,” Thorson said. “We had over 90 kids show up at seven o’clock in the morning. That right there, I knew these kids would have a chance.
“I’m not saying we’re gonna win a ton of games, but I knew that these guys were serious about having a good football season and giving their best.”
After a scoreless first quarter that saw both defenses grab an interception, Ridgevue got the spark it needed from senior Cameron Johnson.
The jack-of-all-trades opened the scoring with a 21-yard touchdown reception from junior quarterback Hunter Schmittel with 7:54 left in the second quarter.
Johnson then jumped on the defensive side of the ball at free safety, returning an interception of Columbia quarterback Gavin Healey 45 yards for a score on the Wildcats’ first play of their ensuing drive.
“We come from a losing program. It’s just so hard to get that defeat. We’re just so used to that feeling,” Johnson said. “So once we get a taste of victory, we just want to hang onto it so much. Every little victory we get, we keep pushing from there.”
Ridgevue led as much as 20-7 in the third quarter before Columbia senior running back Jackson Cheslak scored his second touchdown of the game on a 3-yard run to pull within 20-14 at the start of the fourth quarter.
The Warhawks (3-1, 1-1 5A SIC) tacked on a 20-yard field goal from junior kicker Benson Morris for a 23-14 advantage with 7:16 to play.
But the game wasn’t over.
Columbia made it a two-point game — 23-21 — on backup quarterback Easton Zickgraf’s 19-yard TD pass to junior receiver Easton Lott with 5:44 remaining.
After a three-and-out by the Warhawks’ offense, Arsers came up with his key interception. But with 3:05 still left to play, Ridgevue would need to convert at least one first down to run out the clock.
Facing fourth-and-5 from the Columbia 33-yard line, the Wildcats and Warhawks called back-to-back timeouts. Ridgevue emerged from the second timeout and came through with the crucial first down on a 7-yard pass from Schmittel to senior Tyree Flowers.
All that was left to do was get in victory formation.
“It means everything. All these boys, every single person — freshmen, JV, varsity — we all work every day in the weight room,” Arsers said. “We come out, we run. Coaches are great. Everyone deserves it. It feels great.”
Schmittel finished 9-for-17 through the air for 69 yards and a touchdown and also had 52 yards on nine carries. Flowers added 68 rushing yards on 13 touches, and junior running back Braden Wagoner rounded out the scoring for the Warhawks with a 70-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.
Running backs Jackson Cheslak and Santiago Carbajal combined for 110 rushing yards to lead Columbia (3-1, 1-1). Zickgraf, who replaced Healey in the second quarter after he threw the pick-six, went 11-for-22 for 141 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
EAGLE 49, BOISE 17
The Mustangs opened 6A SIC River Division play with a commanding home win over the Brave.
Quarterback Austin Ramsey accounted for 265 passing yards and five touchdowns, and running back Noah Burnham added balance to the offense with 124 yards and two TDs on 12 carries.
Cooper Murphy was Ramsey’s top target, hauling in three touchdown passes. Luke Mikita and Burnham also caught TD passes for Eagle (4-0, 1-0).
Stats were not reported for Boise (1-3, 0-1).
TIMBERLINE 33, MERIDIAN 7
The 6A classification’s top defense held the Warriors (0-4) to a single touchdown to cruise to its fourth straight win.
Quarterback Easton Nungary tossed a 30-yard touchdown pass to LaGary Mitchell for Meridian’s only score. Hungary was 11-for-33 passing for 125 yards but also threw two interceptions.
Stats were not reported for No. 4-ranked Timberline (4-0, 1-0 6A SIC Foothills).
MIDDLETON 44, CENTENNIAL 0
The Vikings earned a shutout to open their 6A SIC Foothills Division schedule.
Drew Holman had just two carries for Middleton (3-1, 1-0), but both went for touchdowns. Cruz Thomson added a 65-yard touchdown run, and quarterback Briar Baughman was 13-for-20 for 140 yards with a 27-yard TD pass to Ryan Lewis.
Middleton totaled 289 yards while holding Centennial to just 62 yards.
Stats were not reported for Centennial (0-4, 0-1).
OWYHEE 26, BORAH 16
The Storm forced three turnovers Thursday night at Dona Larsen Park to start the season 4-0 for the first time in the five-year-old program’s history.
Carsen Anderson snared a pair of interceptions, and Robert Amaral added another in the 6A SIC River Division opener for both teams. Jonah Swallow led the Storm defense with 13 tackles and three tackles-for-loss, and Cade Sauer added 11 more stops.
Boise State commit Ryan Brekke paced Owyhee offensively, accounting for 159 of his team’s 194 total yards. He ran for 131 yards, and he caught four passes for 28 yards and a touchdown. Storm quarterback Collin Foy went 6-for-12 for 51 yards and two scores.
Borah (1-3, 0-1) quarterback Dayton Wolverton finished 33-for-55 for 251 yards and two TDs. Calvin Hart stood as his top receiver, hauling in 16 passes for 115 yards.
BISHOP KELLY 55, NAMPA 27
The top-ranked Knights remained undefeated with a victory in their 5A Southern Idaho Conference opener.
Quarterback Ben Avella went 20-for-27 passing for 218 yards and four touchdowns, while Eli Lynes guided the ground game with 122 yards and two TDs on 16 carries.
Lynes, Dom Wolthuis, Jaxon Brady, Nick Hebert and Darren Hays each caught a touchdown pass for the Knights (4-0, 1-0).
Quarterback Dom Almaraz led Nampa (0-5, 0-2) with a 14-for-28 performance through the air for two touchdowns, but he also threw two interceptions. Ryland Rush caught both TD passes and finished with 159 receiving yards.
SKYVIEW 53, EMMETT 46
Trevan Plew had one last trick up his sleeve in an eight-touchdown performance Friday, finding Jaxon Phillips for a 14-yard touchdown pass with 5 seconds left to break a tie and cap a wild road victory for the Hawks (2-2, 1-1 5A SIC).
Emmett had just rallied from a 12-point deficit moments earlier, tying the game on Nessen Korell’s 25-yard touchdown catch with 1:01 left. But a long Skyview kickoff return set up Plew and Phillips for the decisive score in a game that saw 38 combined points in the fourth quarter.
Plew had a prolific night, going 13-for-19 passing for 235 yards and four touchdowns. He also ran for 106 yards and four more scores.
Skyview (2-2, 1-1) totaled 530 yards while Emmett had 519.
Ryder Leonard led the way for the Huskies (3-2, 1-1), amassing 220 yards and four touchdowns on 31 carries. Quarterback Eli Brennan was 7-for-14 passing for 144 yards and three TDs without an interception.
VALLIVUE 49, CALDWELL 6
After an 0-2 start to the season, the Falcons won their second straight game by holding the Cougars to just 18 total yards.
Quarterback Shane Osuna was 4-for-5 passing for 114 yards, including touchdown passes to Evert Eells, Zach Diedrich and Clay Cope. Onix Carson, Orrin Fry and Sawyer Pool had a rushing TD each for Vallivue (2-2).
Caldwell (0-4) scored its only touchdown of the game on a 45-yard interception return by Jonathan Banos.
FRUITLAND 50, NAMPA CHRISTIAN 23
The second-ranked Grizzlies earned their fourth straight win with a nonconference rout of the Trojans.
Titus Vidlak continued his prolific season with 355 passing yards and five touchdowns through the air, while also adding 70 rushing yards and another score. Joel Philpot totaled four receptions for 182 yards and two touchdowns, and Brandt Fisher racked up 103 receiving yards and a TD on just two receptions.
Fruitland (4-0) collected 546 total yards to Nampa Christian’s 284.
Nampa Christian (2-2) scored all three touchdowns on the ground, getting scores from Dylan O’Brian, Ian Johnson and Pete Dice.
HOMEDALE 62, JEROME 21
The Trojans had 42 points by halftime to earn a mercy-rule nonconference victory over the Tigers.
Quarterback Xavier Uranga was 10-for-16 passing for 239 yards with touchdown passes to three different receivers. Javid Blewett and Kade Hall each scored two rushing TDs for the Trojans (4-0).
Quarterback Benjamin Landrian led Jerome, completing 27-of-48 through the air for 306 yards and two touchdowns.
WEISER 62, PENDLETON (ORE.) 14
The Wolverines racked up 461 total yards while holding Pendleton to just 193 to earn the nonconference victory.
Ty Cobb, Brendan Youngberg and James Cannon each had two rushing touchdowns for Weiser (2-2), with Cobb totaling 120 rushing yards.
Cole Ingle added 105 rushing yards and a score, and quarterback Klete Cook was 4-for-6 passing for 60 yards with touchdown passes to Wyatt Black and Nate Herrera-Garcia.
NOTUS 55, CASCADE 22
The Pirates picked up their first win of the season in a nonconference road game against the Ramblers.
Anthony Guevera and Mark Lungu each had two rushing touchdowns for Notus (1-3), helping the Pirates gain 237 yards on the ground. Quarterback Derrick Huter was 6-for-15 passing for 129 yards and two touchdowns, and Sawyer Nicoletti totaled three receptions for 51 yards and a pair of scores.
Jeshon Walker paced Cascade (1-2) with a 95-yard kick return, and Finley Wilkins added one rushing and one passing TD.
ROCKLAND 58, RIMROCK 6
Rimrock fell to 2-3 overall with a nonconference loss to the Bulldogs at home.
Carlos Herrera had the only touchdown for the Raiders, totaling 42 rushing yards, 42 receiving yards and going 2-for-4 passing for 25 yards with 14 tackles on defense.
Justin Yetzer was 8-for-13 passing for 115 yards and an interception for the Raiders.
This story was originally published September 19, 2025 at 6:45 PM.
