Prairie Falcons

Falcons attempting to rebound from Week 1 loss to Heritage

Week 1: Heritage 28, Prairie 14

Week 2: at Hockinson, 7 p.m. Friday

The Falcons were in it, even had a lead in the second half, but got outplayed down the stretch. Still, a solid Week 1 performance.

Prairie played the game game without its head coach. Kevin Baker had a family emergency. The Falcons made their coach proud with their effort.

Plays that stood out:

Yes, Heritage got the best of Prairie in the end, but the Prairie defense had some strong moments, especially in the first half.

Aaron Brumley had a tackle for no gain on the first play of the game for the Prairie defense. That set the tone for the rest of his night, in fact. In that same drive, he got a sack.

Heritage used a fake punt to keep the drive alive and eventually got down to the Prairie 3-yard line. On fourth-and-goal, Izaiah Ward tackled the receiver at the 1-yard line, getting the ball back to the Prairie offense.

Later, there was a great “team” sack. A host of Falcons got around the quarterback. Aiden Solberg made the initial push. The quarterback avoided him, but then ran right into the arms of Ken Miller for a sack.

On another sack, it was Carson Slagle on a blitz. He got the sack, while Trajveion Douglas was right there, too.

Coach Speak:

What did Kevin Baker learn about his team in Week 1? “The coaches are professional and prepared and can handle the job when I’m gone. The kids rallied around my absence and did a great job executing the game plan. Statistically, we played a pretty darn even ball game. We had our chances. Proud as hell of my guys.”

Coaching staff’s pick for MVP on offense: Izaiah Ward with four catches for 111 yards and a touchdown, providing a new big-play ability to the offense.

Coaching staff’s pick for MVP on defense: Aaron Brumley. Had that sack, plus a leader on the team in tackles. A solid outing.

Thoughts on Week 2: “(Hockinson has) some talented kids. We’re going to meet up with a very good, mobile quarterback,’’ Baker said. “That’s always a danger, any time a kid can throw and run. It’s going to be a tough game. Hope we can withstand the storm and move the ball on offense, convert some red-zone chances we missed on last week. We have to play a solid game.”