Patriots beat Knights, win "Battle for the Boots"

PALMER — The North Pole Patriots were not only battling for the boots Friday night, but also some respect.

After a convincing 44-27 win over the Colony Knights in Palmer, the Patriots got both.

“We talked to our kids about mistaken identity. A lot of people are labeling us as a little bit soft,” North Pole head coach Richard Henert said as his players clutched the “Battle for the Boots” trophy, a bronzed pair of cleats worn by the late Buck Nystrom, a former North Pole head coach and Alaska football legend.

Entering Friday’s game, the Patriots had won four of their first five. But their biggest game of the season thus far turned into a 54-20 lopsided loss to Juneau-Douglas, its new rival in the medium-schools Southeast Conference. Henert said the Patriots (who dropped to medium-schools from Railbelt with Juneau during the offseason) wanted to use the game against the large-schools Knights as a way to get back some respect in North Pole’s new conference.

“Soldotna, Juneau, Kenai, they’re all the big dogs we’re playing with right now,” Henert said. “We had to earn (that respect) back.”

North Pole used a smothering defense and the Garrett Sommer-led offense to jump to a 28-0 first-half lead. Sommer accounted for more than 340 yards of total offense and four touchdowns. The sophomore signal caller finished the game 14 for 18 passing for 210 yards. He also rushed for 122 yards and three touchdowns.

His favorite target, as usual, was senior Lance Wright, who hauled in eight catches for 157 yards and a score. His big play was a 73-yard grab and run that gave the Patriots a two-touchdown lead only eight minutes into the game.

Henert also praised the play of the speedy Deaundre Campbell, who rushed for 160 yards on 13 carries. He gave the Pats an early lead with a 21-yard run for a score in the first quarter.

While the offense dazzled, Henert said his defense set the tone.

“Big hits from the defensive line. Ben Davis and some of those d-linemen, making big hits in the backfield early; sending a message, that was huge,” Henert said.

Colony fell behind early and ultimately fell to 1-5. The Knights did get on the scoreboard before the intermission. Senior quarterback Bryce Niver connected with senior receiver Daniel Bilafer on a 5-yard score late in the first half. North Pole led 28-7 at the break, but the Knights showed new life early in the second half. Niver plunged into the end zone from 1 yard out to cut North Pole’s lead in half early in the third, but North Pole answered with Sommer’s second touchdown run of the night on the ensuing drive.

North Pole broke away from the Knights with a pair of Sommer touchdowns during the final 5:53 of the third quarter.

Niver finished with a pair of scoring runs and a touchdown pass in the loss. Despite throwing for a season-low 81 yards, Niver eclipsed the 1,000-yard passing mark for the season. Niver now has 1,056 yards through the air. Daniel Bilafer caught seven passes and now leads the state with 36 receptions.

The Knights were also dealt a loss before they even stepped on the field Friday night. Earlier in the week during practice, senior standout receiver Antonio Bush was injured during practice and is lost for the season. Bush had 30 receptions for 333 yards and a state-best eight receiving touchdowns. Senior Justin Booth, one of Colony’s top linemen, is also out with injury.

The contest marked the fourth-annual “Battle for the Boots,” a game created to honor the memory of Nystrom, a former North Pole and Eielson head coach who won a state-record 150 games. The trophy is a pair of bronzed cleats, which were worn by Nystrom during his college football career. Colony is now 2-2 in the “Battle for the Boots,” which kicked off in 2010.

The Knights (1-5, 1-1) cap the regular season with a pair of conference roads games. Colony is at Palmer on Friday, and travels north to face West Valley in Week 8.

North Pole 44, Colony 27

Friday, Colony High School

First quarter:

North Pole — Campbell 21 run (kick good) 7:52.

North Pole — Wright 73 pass from Sommer (kick good) 3:09.

North Pole — Sommer 2 run (run good) 1:23.

Second quarter:

North Pole — Crane 4 run (kick failed) 5:53.

Colony — D. Bilafer 5 pass from Niver (kick good) 2:37.

Third quarter:

Colony — Niver 1 run (kick good) 7:58.

North Pole — Sommer 3 run (kick good) 5:53.

North Pole — Sommer 3 run (pass failed) 0:59.

Fourth quarter:

Colony — Niver 7 run (kick good) 11:45.

North Pole — Wollman 20 field goal, 8:42.

Colony — S. Bilafer 14 run (kick failed) 0:30.7.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS:

RUSHING — North Pole: Sommer 19-132, Campbell 13-160, Crane 6-35, Best 3-10, Davis 1-4, Wright 1-1; Colony: Niver 19-64, Conway 8-28, Summers 4-17, S. Bilafer 3-11, Mokelke 1-4.

PASSING — North Pole: Sommer 14-18-0—210; Colony: Niver 8-19-2—81, S. Bilafer 4-5-0—25.

RECEIVING — North Pole: Wright 8-157, Steward 4-36, Volsky 1-13, Hursh 1-4; Colony: D. Bilafer 7-63, Summers 2-20, S. Bilafer 2-15, Looney 1-8.