Blue Valley throttles BV Southwest 45-7

On paper, it appeared to be a battle between the Kansas Class 5A defending state champion and one of the few undefeated teams left in the Eastern Kansas League.

But by the end of the first half, you could tell that the edge belonged to the defending champion.

The Blue Valley Tigers proved to be a dominant force on Homecoming night and notched a 45-7 victory over Blue Valley Southwest on Friday night at Blue Valley District Stadium.

After last week’s loss to Bishop Miege, execution was a must, said Blue Valley coach Eric Driskell.

“For us to still think we have a good football team, we had to come out here and be physical and do the things we do,” Driskell said. “And I think we executed really well. The kids prepared better this week. Hopefully it’s a good wake-up call for us. I’m just proud of our effort.”

There was some sloppy play at the beginning of the game, including a muffed punt by Blue Valley Southwest, 3-1, and a fumble inside their red zone. Blue Valley took advantage of one of the mistakes and sophomore William Evans ran in for a 3-yard touchdown

Evans is replacing Blue Valley’s AJ Totta, who was injured in the last week’s game against Bishop Miege.

“He’s a great young man and, first of all, a great character kid, which I love,” Driskell said. “He’s a talented kid who’s growing up and really stepped up into that role, until AJ Totta can get healthy in the next week or two.”

Evans finished the game with 20 carries for 111 yards and two touchdowns.

Although there were significant injuries in last week’s Bishop Miege game, Blue Valley, 3-1, tried to move past them. The Tigers also lost senior tight end Jackson Maase last week.

“We had that quarter last week with some injuries and adversity, and Miege just hit us right in the mouth,” Driskell said.

On Blue Valley’s next drive on Friday night, Evans had another 3-yard touchdown run.

During that drive, junior quarterback Colton McCumber showed off some speed. During one play, he broke through the line and scrambled for 25 yards.

“He’s been really efficient and has stepped up to the leadership role,” Driskell said.

McCumber finished with 60 yards rushing and two TDs.

But the Blue Valley defense would not be denied in helping the Tigers’ cause.

After a bad snap, Blue Valley defensive lineman Jeff Gurley scooped up the ball and ran 20 yards for a touchdown, giving the Tigers a 28-0 lead.

“Everybody talks about offense, but our defense is pretty good most nights,” Driskell said. “They had a great performance tonight, so it was nice of them to get that defensive touchdown.”

The final highlight for Blue Valley came through the air, when McCumber connected with receiver Alex Nichols on a 60-yard strike. Nichols caught the ball on a wheel route and sprinted the last 40 yards for the Tigers’ fifth touchdown of the half.

In the second half, it was all Blue Valley ground-and-pound.

With Homecoming behind them, the Tigers’ outlook appears to be solid.

“It’s a great building block,” Driskell said. “We found out we’ve got some fire and fight in us and we just have to try to get better each week and get better for Blue Valley North next week.”

This story was originally published September 26, 2014 at 11:37 PM with the headline "Blue Valley throttles BV Southwest 45-7."