Blackhawks shut out Deer Park for first gridiron win

Right now, defense is the key to success for the Cheney High School football team. The Blackhawks stymied the Stags’ running game and harried quarterback Nic Clough enough that the senior threw six interceptions in Cheney’s 14-0 non-league win last Friday at Deer Park.

“From a defensive standpoint we were flying around and hitting guys well, tackling well and being disciplined,” head coach Bobby Byrd said Sunday night.

Cheney’s experienced secondary frustrated Clough all night, getting a pair of interceptions from Cruz Galm and Ryan Ward along with single picks from Ty Graham and Shane Hammel. The Blackhawks front line of Keenan Williams, Osiris Goodloe, Devon Waterman and Tyler Gladden limited the Stags running game while also putting pressure on Clough. Byrd said Galm had big tackles to thwart a couple promising Stags bubble screens.

“As long as we can stay healthy, our defensive group will be the rock,” he added.

Offensively the Blackhawks did just enough without committing too many mistakes to even their season record at 1-1. Junior quarterback Josh Martin was 13 for 24 and 171 yards passing, throwing a pair of touchdown passes to tight end Brett Wyborney, one to complete a first-quarter drive and another off a second-quarter interception.

“He’s getting better, building confidence,” Byrd said of Martin. “We just need to help him by building the running game.”

Next up for Cheney is the Lakeland Hawks, a game Byrd thinks should be a good yardstick for measuring how the Blackhawks have progressed and how they stand in comparison to other teams. Those teams are fellow Great Northern League foes and predicted league-title contenders, East Valley and West Valley.

The Hawks of Idaho’s 4A classification, and defending Inland Empire League champs, blitzed both schools, downing West Valley 31-7 and thumping the Knights 41-10 on the road last Friday. They opened 2014 with a 24-10 win over 5A Lewiston.

Byrd says Lakeland has a trio of good, senior athletes to contend with on offense, led by quarterback Tyrell Derrick. Derrick has accounted for eight of the Hawks 12 TDs this season, six coming on the ground.

Byrd said the Hawks offensively are “not as complex” as they have been in the past. Only two of their TDs have come through the air, and against East Valley they racked up 289 yards on the ground.

Defensively, Byrd said they did some “non-traditional things” against the Knights, such as no linemen dropping into a down stance. Both their defensive and offensive lines are impressive, he added.

To pull out a win in their third consecutive road game, the Blackhawks will have to execute offensively while limiting the number of plays the Hawks run when they have the ball.

“It will be a good defense to see how our offense is improving,” he said.

John McCallum can be reached at jmac@cheneyfreepress.com.