Prep football recap: BK, Fruitland clinch titles. Middleton back tops 300 yards
Bishop Kelly senior quarterback Ben Avella’s first pass attempt against Ridgevue was an uncharacteristic interception.
What happened next was all instinct.
Knights receiver Boston Huskey slammed into Ridgevue defensive back Dante Brinegar — who had just grabbed the pick — and knocked the ball loose.
BK tight end Nicholas Hebert then swooped in, picked up the ball and ran 30 yards for a touchdown, kickstarting the top-ranked Knights to a 46-13 win over Ridgevue on Friday night at Bishop Kelly High.
It was the 27th straight league win for Bishop Kelly, which clinched its fourth consecutive 5A Southern Idaho Conference regular-season title with the victory.
“Whenever we’ve been on defense to start, we’ve been a little slow,” Bishop Kelly coach Chris Culig said. “The fumble recovery was just crazy, right? It just totally changed the momentum of the game, because we were holding our breath a little bit.”
Ridgevue (6-2, 3-2) put the BK defense on its heels on the opening possession of the game, marching 66 yards in eight plays, polished off by an 11-yard touchdown run from junior running back Jarom Walker with 8:59 to go in the first quarter.
But once Hebert scored on the fumble recovery, and Avella completed a two-point conversion pass to senior receiver Dom Wolthuis for an 8-7 edge, the Knights (8-0, 5-0) never trailed again.
“I mean, that’s football. People are going to score,” said Wolthuis, who finished with two receptions for 32 yards, with both going for touchdowns.
“We just had to bounce back. We know our offense is capable of that, so we started taking shots in the second half, and we were executing on them.”
Ridgevue scored both its touchdowns in the first half, adding a second TD on a 13-yard pass from junior quarterback Hunter Schmittel to junior Braden Wagoner to cut the deficit to 22-13 going into halftime.
The Knights defense clamped down on the Warhawks over the final two frames, forcing two punts, while sophomore defensive back Jared Thiel grabbed an interception, and junior Jaxon Brady robbed Ridgevue of a possession, recovering a BK kickoff in the third quarter.
“We just keep harping on them,” Culig said. “We watch the film and see all the mistakes we’re making and that we’ve got to get a lot better. We’ve got to keep grinding and keep improving.
“The scoreboard takes care of itself, because we feel like we have enough talent to win all of our games as long as we execute and play at a high level. So we just try and focus on that every day.”
Senior running back Ryan Arellano racked up 112 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries for the undefeated Knights, and Avella was 9-for-18 through the air for 170 yards and three TDs. Avella also rushed for 52 yards and a score on seven carries.
Schmittel paced Ridgevue, going 16-for-25 passing for 208 yards with one touchdown and one interception. The BK defense also sacked Schmittel four times.
EAGLE 53, BORAH 6
The Mustangs became the only unbeaten team left in the 6A SIC thanks to a win over the Lions combined with Rocky Mountain’s loss to Timberline.
Eagle (8-0, 5-0 6A SIC River) amassed 610 total yards, including 345 on the ground, courtesy of Noah Burnham’s big night. Burnham ran for 213 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries and also caught five passes for 67 yards and three more scores.
Quarterback Austin Ramsey went 12-for-22 passing for 174 yards and four touchdowns to lead Eagle, which hosts Timberline next week in the 6A SIC championship game.
Stats were not reported for Borah (1-7, 0-5).
MIDDLETON 27, CAPITAL 20
Jake Perez filled the stat sheet Thursday night at Dona Larsen Park, running for 305 yards and three scores. But none were more important than his 26-yard scoring run with 7:02 left that broke a tie and secured the Vikings a home game in the 6A SIC’s all-important Week 9 matchups.
Middleton (5-3, 3-2 6A SIC Foothills) will host Owyhee next week, with the winner earning an automatic playoff berth.
Perez racked up 33 carries to account for 305 of Middleton’s 380 total yards. He scored on runs of 5 yards, 2 yards and the game-breaking 26 yards. Middleton quarterback Briar Baughman finished 3-for-11 for 37 yards, including a 22-yard touchdown pass to Cruz Thomson in the third quarter.
Capital (4-4, 2-3) also did the bulk of its damage on the ground, running for 252 of its 339 yards. Zander Grow led the Eagles with 12 carries for 107 yards with a touchdown. Silas Crane also ran for 85 yards and two scores on 10 carries.
The loss means Capital is the No. 4 seed from the Foothills Division, meaning it will face Boise next week for a potential playoff berth.
MOUNTAIN VIEW 24, OWYHEE 21
The Mavericks wrapped up the No. 2 seed in the 6A SIC River Division with a win over the Storm.
Logan Haustveit rushed for 41 yards and a touchdown on nine carries and also completed 4-of-10 passes for 88 yards and a score to lead Owyhee (5-3, 2-3). Senior Ryan Brekke added 88 yards and a TD on nine carries and also caught three passes for 80 yards and a score.
Stats were not reported for Mountain View (5-3, 4-1), which hosts Meridian next week in the Week 9 crossover games.
MERIDIAN 40, CENTENNIAL 14
The Warriors earned their second victory of the season and kept their playoff hopes alive against the winless Patriots.
Quarterback Easton Nungary led the charge with five touchdown passes, going 13-for-21 through the air for 234 yards. Receivers Holden Coy and Daysen Boltz caught two TD receptions each for Meridian (2-6, 2-3), which travels to Mountain View for a Week 9 matchup next week.
Stats were not reported for Centennial (0-8, 0-5).
VALLIVUE 8, COLUMBIA 7
The Falcons prevailed in a 5A SIC defensive battle against the Wildcats.
Vallivue scored a safety when Kolby Linder tackled Columbia running back Jackson Cheslak in the end zone in the first quarter. Quarterback Shane Osuna then scored the go-ahead touchdown for the Falcons (4-4, 3-2) on a 1-yard keeper with 5:40 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Running back Onix Carson accounted for 139 rushing yards on 29 carries to lead Vallivue.
Quarterback Gavin Healy scored Columbia’s only TD on a 12-yard run in the second quarter. Healy finished 8-for-15 passing for 94 yards but also threw four interceptions. Cheslak totaled 91 yards on 20 carries for the Wildcats (5-3, 3-3).
EMMETT 42, NAMPA 34
Sophomore Eli Brennan carried the Huskies to a crucial victory for their playoff chances, racking up 277 total yards and five touchdowns for a home victory.
The Emmett (4-4, 2-3 5A SIC) quarterback completed 7-of-13 passes for 61 yards and a touchdown. But he did far more damage with his legs, turning 28 carries into 216 yards and four scores.
Nessen Korell also ran for 46 yards and a touchdown as the Huskies racked up 318 yards on the ground.
Stats for Nampa (1-7, 1-4) were not reported.
BONNEVILLE 49, SKYVIEW 20
Despite racking up 428 total yards, the Hawks fell in nonconference action in Idaho Falls.
Quarterback Trevan Plew had a hand in all three of Skyview’s touchdowns, rushing for 70 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries while also completing 27-of-42 passes for 322 yards and a TD with an interception.
Kimball Robinson caught five passes for 110 yards, and Jaxon Phillips added four receptions for 73 yards and a TD for the Hawks (2-6).
FRUITLAND 34, WEISER 12
The Grizzlies (8-0, 4-0) ended a five-game losing streak to the Wolverines and wrapped up their first 4A Snake River Valley regular-season title since 2017.
Quarterback Titus Vidlak completed touchdown passes to Spencer Tracy, Sutton Fitch and Brandt Fisher, finishing the night 11-for-17 passing for 140 yards. He also rushed for 42 yards.
Killian Wilson led the Grizzlies’ ground attack with 94 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries.
Quarterback Klete Cook went 9-for-15 passing for 93 yards and two touchdowns to lead Weiser (4-4, 2-2).
HOMEDALE 42, MCCALL-DONNELLY 21
Kade Hall carried the Trojans to a 4A SRV victory, averaging 6.3 yards per carry with four touchdowns.
Hall finished with an even 100 yards on the ground, and Javid Blewett also reached the century mark for Homedale (7-1, 3-1) with 105 yards and a score on 20 carries.
Quarterback Xavier Uranga collected 209 yards on 10 completions, including a 64-yard touchdown pass to Alec Campos, who had 104 yards on three catches.
Gunnar Newman paced McCall-Donnelly (5-3, 2-2) with 58 yards and three TDs on 15 carries.
NAMPA CHRISTIAN 41, MARSING 8
The Trojans set up a winner-take-all showdown with New Plymouth for the 3A Western Idaho Conference regular-season title next week with a victory over the Huskies.
Ian Johnson totaled three receptions for 84 yards and two touchdowns, and he also rushed for 93 yards and a score on 14 carries for Nampa Christian (5-2, 3-0).
Quarterback Pete Dice was 11-for-15 passing for 259 yards and three TDs without an interception as the Trojans totaled 458 yards while holding Marsing (3-4, 1-2) to 163.
Noe Montes scored the Huskies’ only touchdown and finished with 49 yards on 19 carries.
NOTUS 42, IDAHO CITY 34
The Pirates took over first place in the 2A Western Idaho Conference with a road victory against the Wildcats.
Mark Lungu scored four rushing touchdowns to lead Notus (4-5, 3-0), while Sawyer Nicoletti and Spencer Hansen added one rushing score apiece.
Cooper Smith totaled three rushing TDs for Idaho City (6-2, 3-1).
This story was originally published October 17, 2025 at 6:45 PM.
