Carroll thrives in second half

BY MATT BROWNING/Eagle correspondent

Published Nov. 7 at 3:52 a.m. | Last updated Nov. 28 at 3:56 p.m.

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Time after time, Newton quarterback Evan Thomas picked apart Bishop Carroll's defense in the first half of the teams' first-round matchup Friday night in Wichita.

The Eagles put little pressure on Thomas, who threw for 161 yards and two touchdowns for a 21-21 tie at halftime.

At the break, Carroll coach Alan Schuckman and defensive coordinator Jim Nance talked about bringing more blitzes, wondering if Thomas could make plays fast enough to get away from five or six different players charging the backfield.

The answer was a resounding no.

Outscoring the Railers 42-7 in the second half, Carroll racked up four sacks, forced two turnovers and held Thomas and the Railers to 89 yards en route to a 63-28 victory.

"They made some plays in the first half and our defense didn't," Schuckman said. "The coaches did a good job in the second half of scheming some things up."

With their win, the Eagles will host Emporia on Friday.

Schuckman didn't have time to react to Emporia's upset of McPherson, which was ranked third in Class 5A. All he cared about was getting another home game.

"We want to wear this new, beautiful turf out," Schuckman said. "Emporia is obviously a very good football team and it's going to be a big advantage that they have to come here."

While its defense played flat for a half, Carroll's offense was prolific all night.

The Eagles rushed for 324 yards — 319 from Blake Bell and Blake Rollins — and Bell threw for 340 yards.

Brandon Weber caught five passes for 119 yards and two scores, while Tyler Nance had six catches for 99 yards and two touchdowns.

Carroll opened the second half with three consecutive touchdown drives in nine minutes, taking only 15 plays.

"We wanted to establish the running game in the second half," Bell said. "We had too many negative plays in the first half, so we had to have all positive plays."

The anchor for the Eagles' defense in the second half was linebacker Timmy Chadd.

Blitzing from the outside nearly every play, Chadd recorded a sack, recovered a fumble and had an interception — all in the second half.

"Thankfully our offense kept us in it because the defense came out flat," Chadd said. "This time of the year, you can't take any team lightly, so we knew we had to step up to keep our season going."

Newton (7-3) 14 7 0 7 — 28 Bishop Carroll (10-0) 14 7 21 21 — 63

BC—Rollins 8 run (Straka kick)

N—Thomas 5 run (Ronen kick)

BC—Bell 31 run (Straka kick)

N—Johns 33 pass from Thomas (Ronen kick)

BC—Nance 39 pass from Bell (Straka kick)

N—Briar 16 pass from Thomas (Ronen kick)

BC—Bell 6 run (Straka kick)

BC—Weber 35 pass from Bell (Straka kick)

BC—Weber 16 pass from Bell (Straka kick)

BC—Nance 8 pass from Bell (Straka kick)

BC—Rollins 53 run (Straka kick)

BC—Rollins 9 run (Straka kick)

N—Johns 27 pass from Thomas (Ronen kick)

Individual Statistics

Rushing—Newton, Johns 15-94, Opland 4-20, Thomas 17-14, Floerke 2-7, Kelly 3-3. Carroll, Rollins 18-164, 10-155, Nance 1-5, Barrientos 1-3, Schwindt 1-(-3).

Passing—Newton, Thomas 19-31-222-1. Carroll, Bell 20-28-340-1.

Receiving—Newton, Johns 10-143, Briar 4-39, Kelly 2-14, Opland 1-13, Ronen 1-13. Carroll, Weber 5-119, Nance 6-99, Gilmore 2-22, Mies 3-22, Brittain 2-21, Crippen 2-20, Lorg 1-19, Rollins 1-9, Girrens 1-9.