Last year, Steven Betts got thrown into the fire at quarterback and led East Webster to the second round of the MHSAA Class 2A playoffs.
That’s proving to be a good decision by East Webster coach Ron Price.
Betts rushed for 220 yards and scored three touchdowns as he led the Wolverines to a 45-12 win over rival Eupora in the annual Maroon Bowl last Thursday night.
With the win, East Webster improves to 8-1 on the season and will host Bruce on Friday night. Eupora falls to 3-7 on the season.
Price was excited to see his team line up and run it at the Eagles.
“I talked about it before the season that I wanted our team to be more physical and I think Thursday night we finally got to that point,” Price said. “We have taken steps in the right direction our offense line was doing a great job of finishing blocks. I thought the defense played really good the entire game and it was several guys flying to the ball all night. They had 100 yards rushing and 80 of that game on one play. We knew Eupora would give us their best shot. That was a good win for our football team and a big deal for our community. I’m glad our kids dominated form the start to the finish.”
The difference in the game was the play of Betts, who rushed for 220 yards and three TDs on 16 carries and also had a 30-yard touchdown pass.
“I thought their quarterback did a really good job,” Eupora coach Stephen Edwards said. “They found some things that worked and blocked us and the quarterback did a really good job. We knew what was coming and couldn’t stop it and that was frustrating. They did did a good job blocking up front and ran hard and found the holes.”
Eupora got the ball to start the game but disaster struck for the Eagles when the snap went over Cade Atkins head and the Wolverines got a safety on the game’s second play to take a 2-0 lead with 11:47 left in the first quarter.
The Wolverines got the ball on the ensuing kick and needed just three plays to find the end zone. After a 38-yard run by Stephen Betts, Tyrik Pittman scored on a 9-yard run with 10:00 left in the first. Parker Burleson’s PAT was good and East Webster led 9-0.
After a series of punts, East Webster found the end zone again as Wolverines got a short field with the ball at the Eupora 30. The Wolverines then went five plays as Betts scored on a 1-yard run with 3:28 left in the first. Burleson’s PAT was good and East Webster led 16-0.
The Eagles responded with a big play on the next drive as Abraham Hodges got free on an 80-yard run. The try for two failed and East Webster led 16-6 with 3:11 left in the first.
From there, the Wolverines started to pull away from the Eagles. East then went 40 yards on seven plays as Betts scored on a 21-yard run with 11:21 left in the second. The try for two failed and East led 22-6
The Wolverines got the ball right back as Kainan Reed recovered a fumble. Betts then hit Conner Shurden on a 30-yard touchdown pass with 8:22 left in the second. Burleson’s PAT was good and East Webster led 29-6.
The Eagles responded with an eight-play, 80-yard drive the was capped off when Tra McComb hit Tyjuan Hughes on a 30-yard halfback pass with 5:15 left in half. The try for two failed and East Webster led 29-12.
The Wolverines drove deep in Eupora territory on their next possession but fumbled on the 1. Ethan Roberts then tackled the Eupora back in the end zone to give the Wolverines a second safety for a 31-12 lead with 2:14 left in the half.
The Wolverines took the ball on the ensuing kick as Betts found the end zone again on a 45-yard run with 1:11 left in the half. Burleson’s PAT gave the Wolverines a 38-12 lead at the half.
“Steven is a good high school football player,” Price said. “He gets cranked up on Friday night. With Eupora, he was looking for people to run over. There were times that he could have scored but was looking for people to run over. It’s amazing how far he has come in the last two years. We moved him to quarterback last year and he has worked hard to improve. I give a lot of credit to the offensive line. They were physical and it’s neat when it all comes together in your biggest game of the year.”
East Webster added another score in the second half as Kobe Smith recovered a fumble at the Eupora 1. Shurden then scored on a 1-yard run with 7:51 left in the third. Burleson booted the PAT and East Webster led 45-12.
East Webster had 330 yards of total offense with 300 yards rushing. Betts had another huge game with 220 yards rushing on 16 carries and three TDs. Gray McCarter had 34 yards on two carries while Pittman had 31 yards on 12 carries.
Eupora had 205 yards rushing with 139 rushing and 66 passing. Hodges had 108 yards on six carries while Ty Murphy had 25 yards on six carries. Travon McMillian had 20 yards on seven carries.
