First quarter surge propels Westlake past Iota

IOTA – There were things the Iota Bulldogs could have done without Thursday night.
But, all things considered, Iota (0-7, 0-2 in district 4-3A) can handle the 42-13 loss to the Westlake Rams (2-5, 1-1) pretty well.
“I was happy with the guys, they gave effort,” said Neal Legé, Bulldogs coach. “We’re trying to look at the positives and build from there.”
“Yeah, Westlake is 1-5 (2-5 after the game Thursday), but they lost to Patterson … so they’re good. They’re not a big bunch, but they’re scrappy as hell and fast.”
The first half, almost entirely, Iota could have done without, but it is all being taken with a grain of salt at this point.
With so many players out and so many young Bulldogs starting due to injuries and depth issues, it is no wonder that it takes some time for things to get rolling against the rough and tough competition of District 4-3A.
“We’ve got young guys and they’re going to make young guy mistakes,” said Legé. “We’ve got so many kids out right now, it’s unbelievable.
“We’re having to play guys that are just not ready to play.”
The Rams seemed unstoppable offensively in the first quarter, taking all three of its possessions that quarter to the promise land.
In the opening possession of the quarter, Westlake would travel 65 yards in 4 minutes and 54 minutes. It would be Jaden Morgan scoring from a yard out and Jonathan Peschoff kicking the extra point. The 14 play drive featured five different Rams touching the ball and making big plays for Westlake.
The next two drives were quick scores and featured long runs by the Rams. With 3:13 remaining Armon Dunbar running from 42 yards out. That drive was less than 2 minutes long and only five plays for 67 yards. Next, it was a 74 yard rush by quarterback Hunter Racca with just less than a second remaining in the quarter. Both times, Peschoff would add extra points, giving the Rams a 21-0 edge after the first.
The first quarter was about domination for the Rams; the second was disheartening for Iota.
Possessing the ball for over 8 minutes, the Bulldogs traveled 69 yards in 18 plays to get down to the Westlake 6 yard line. The Bulldogs would covert two third downs and even a fourth to keep the lengthy drive alive. But, on fourth-and-goal from the 6 yard line, Iota would only gain 5 yards and turn the ball over on downs.
While it was the first time all game the Bulldogs’ offense showed life, the Bulldogs’ defensive issues popped their heads promptly after and Iota would allow Westlake to march 99 yards for the score. With 30 seconds left in the frame, Racca would score his second rushing touchdown of the night from a yard out. Peschoff would continue his hot streak as well, knocking down his fourth extra point.
“We’re not getting it done on defense,” said Legé. “We couldn’t tackle anybody (in the first quarter). I probably played 20-something guys on defense tonight.
“We got down to the 1 yard line and that would have helped to punch it in, confidence wise, and then they all the way back the other way to make it 28 instead of 21 with a few seconds left.”
The third quarter seemed to bring out the slipperiest of play for both teams as the teams combined for four fumbles. Iota would turn the ball over on fumbles twice, one of which was a fumble recovery touchdown for Westlake’s Jacobe Esclovan (10:16 remaining in third quarter) from 48 yards out, on three fumbles.
The Rams’ second touchdown of the quarter, and final points of the night also came from a turnover, though more indirectly. The Bulldogs’ fumble gave the Rams only 50 yards to find the end zone and Westlake took advantage scoring four plays with Morgan running in from 23 yards out.
Peschoff would end his night 6-of-6 on extra point tries.
The Rams were not immune to turnovers either as they fumbled the ball with 4:32 remaining in the quarter. After forcing another three-and-out against the Bulldogs, Iota would be forced to punt, a daunting task after seeing the previous punt attempt blocked. Westlake, however, would cough up the ball at its own 40 yard line and set forth another longer Bulldogs’ possession that would last into the fourth quarter. Again, however, the Bulldogs would sputter in the red zone and turn the ball over on downs.
But, in that final frame, the Bulldogs would not only force a punt but pick up two scores, scoring double digits for the first time in weeks.
Scoring drive one took less than 3 minutes to go, scoring double digits for the first time in weeks.
Scoring drive one took less than 3 minutes to go 53 yards. Iota would run the ball straight at Westlake with a pass from Austen Montgomery to Kade Covalt for 3 yards. The highlight of the drive, however, came from a 38 yard run from Kaleb Guillory then Montgomery punching it in from 2 yards out the following play with 1:47 left.
On the ensuing kickoff, Westlake would fumble the ball and Iota would get one more chance to add points to the scoreboard. Going 41 yards in over a minute, the Bulldogs would punch it in from 27 yards out. Though, scoring wasn’t high on Iota’s agenda.
“Our offense found a little rhythm (late),” said Legé. “We killed ourselves running the wrong hole (early) or missing blocks.
“(Montgomery) did what we asked him to do and run our offense.”
Though it was more of a late moral victory, the Bulldogs finally walked away with some positives heading into a rough stretch of district play, beginning next week for homecoming against Jennings followed by a Halloween night game at South Beauregard, the top two teams in District 4-3A.
For the night, the Bulldogs’ slimmed down offense saw output, especially in the second half. By the end of the night, Iota had a 100-yard plus rusher for the first time in many weeks in Guillory (26 carries, 162 yards) with fellow freshman running back Alex Frey adding 23 yards on eight carries. New to the offensive side of the ball, Montgomery walked away with all positive outputs going 5-10 for 26 yards in the air and carrying the ball 10 times for 3 yards. Covalt was Montgomery’s main target, accounting for four catches and 18 yards.