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Grizzlies bomb Bombers

Expected tough contest turns into 46-0 smackdown of Braham

David Colburn
Posted 10/28/20

AURORA- What looked to be a brawl turned into a beatdown as the North Woods Grizzles football team put their feet on the gas in the second quarter and never looked back, crushing Braham 46-0 on …

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Grizzlies bomb Bombers

Expected tough contest turns into 46-0 smackdown of Braham

Posted

AURORA- What looked to be a brawl turned into a beatdown as the North Woods Grizzles football team put their feet on the gas in the second quarter and never looked back, crushing Braham 46-0 on Friday in Aurora.
The contest was supposed to be a home game for the Grizzlies, but the game was moved to Mesabi East’s artificial turf field because the North Woods field was snowed in.
Despite perfect field conditions, neither offense could get on track in the first quarter. Two North Woods drives started deep in Bombers territory, the second after a Cole Thiel fumble recovery, but failed to score.
Erik Aune gave the Grizzlies another shot when he intercepted a long Braham pass at the Bombers 49, but as the quarter ended North Woods was stalled at their own 48 facing fourth-and-11.
When the Grizzlies came back on the field, quarterback Ty Fabish lined up under center, took the snap, and fired a pass down the left side to Aune. He made the grab with two defenders in his face and outraced everyone to the end zone for the Grizzlies’ first score. Fabish passed to Jared Chiabotti for the two-point conversion, putting North Woods up 8-0.
“Braham had a lot of guys up at the line of scrimmage and they were committed to making sure we couldn’t run through them,” Head Coach Joel Anderson said. “I knew with any sort of play action that they would bite up a little bit and we could get somebody behind him. The big thing was making sure we had the right protection on to give Ty enough time to drop back and throw the football.”
The Grizzlies’ backs were up against the wall moments later after a long run and roughing penalty set the Bombers up on the North Woods 18-yard line. But a group of North Woods defenders jarred the ball loose on the next play and Aune recovered, snuffing out the best opportunity the Bombers would see all game.
Fans of grind-it-out football couldn’t have asked for better on the ensuing Grizzlies drive. Mixing runs and passes, North Woods put together a relentless 20-play drive that consumed over seven minutes, culminating with a T.J. Chiabotti two-yard touchdown plunge. Zach Cheney hauled in a Fabish pass for the conversion, putting the Grizzlies on top 16-0 at the half.
“That was an offensive set that is designed to be quick hitting,” Anderson said. “That was really just my way of settling them back down into roles that they’re very comfortable with. It was stuff that we had seen on film that we knew was going to be open, and our guys made big plays in that drive.”
Neither team could get rolling in the third quarter, and the Grizzlies set up at their own 20 for their first possession of the fourth.
Fabish dropped back and hit Olin Nelson in full stride at the 39, and the Grizzlies wideout looked like he might score until being tripped up from behind at the Bombers 3. T.J. Chiabotti carried it in from there and ran in the conversion as well for a 24-0 advantage.
Cheney stopped another Bombers drive with a fumble recovery at the North Woods 35, and T.J. Chiabotti galloped 20 yards to the Bombers 45. On second-and-9 at the 44, Fabish connected down the right side with Nelson, who shed two would-be tacklers to score.
With just over five minutes remaining and North Woods leading 30-0, both teams put their reserves on the field, and it was time for the Grizzlies’ Jake Swanson to shine. The sophomore back twisted out of a tackle and scored on a 22-yard run and also scored the PAT, extending the lead to 38-0.
After a North Woods facemask penalty on the ensuing kickoff, the Bombers set up their offense at the Grizzlies 46. But the ball came loose on Barnum’s second play and Swanson was there to scoop it up, racing 56 yards for the Grizzlies’ final touchdown. Carter Holman carried it in for the PAT for the 46-0 final.
“Jake is a great running back in his own right,” Anderson said. “It’s been the goal all year to try and work those guys in, and Jake showed just how deep we are as a team and how dynamic we can be. He performed extremely well.”
Anderson had more good things to say about quarterback Fabish.
“He was 11 of 19, and after we broke down the film that very easily could have been 15,” he said. “He put the ball where it needed to be, he found the open guy, and he did a fantastic job of dropping back, stepping up and making the throws. They were committed to making sure we couldn’t run through them, so we just had to keep going over the top and it really opened a lot of stuff up.”
Fabish showed more confidence in throwing medium and long-distance balls, Anderson said, and it showed in his stats, throwing for 231 yards, two touchdowns and two PATs.
Aune was the team’s leading receiver with five catches for 71 yards and a touchdown. Cheney scored a touchdown and gained 62 yards on three catches, and Nelson snagged two passes for 90 yards.
T.J. Chiabotti racked up 99 yards two touchdowns, and two PATs on 23 carries.
The Grizzlies will be on the road for their next game, squaring off Friday at 7 p.m. against Chisholm.