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Grizzlies maul Chisholm, 38-6

Chiabotti rushes for 228 yards and three touchdowns

David Colburn
Posted 11/4/20

CHISHOLM- This season, standout North Woods junior running back T.J. Chiabotti has entered every game as a marked man, and never more so than when he and his teammates took the field last Friday at …

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Grizzlies maul Chisholm, 38-6

Chiabotti rushes for 228 yards and three touchdowns

Posted

CHISHOLM- This season, standout North Woods junior running back T.J. Chiabotti has entered every game as a marked man, and never more so than when he and his teammates took the field last Friday at Chisholm.
With big-play teammates Jared Chiabotti and Olin Nelson unavailable for the game, anyone who knows the Grizzlies knew that Chiabotti would be called on to have a big night. Chisholm’s key to victory was obvious – stop Chiabotti.
It was a plan the home team was wholly incapable of executing as Chiabotti ran at will through, around, and over the Bluestreaks’ defense, racking up 228 yards and three touchdowns in a convincing 38-6 North Woods win.
“He makes my job as a head coach a lot easier,” North Woods Coach Joel Anderson said. “T.J. is a phenomenal athlete and a great back. You don’t always have a kid like him around, but when you do you want to take advantage of it.”
With Chiabotti doing the lion’s share of the work, the Grizzlies took command on their opening drive, taking less than three minutes to execute a five-play, 62-yard drive that culminated in a 10-yard touchdown run by Chiabotti to put the Grizzlies up 6-0.
“We were missing some guys and had to move some guys around, and when you can do stuff that you’re comfortable with that you can do very well, it relaxes everybody,” Anderson said. “That opening drive, we kind of had it set up, we knew what we wanted to do, and it worked out very, very well for us.”
It also set the tone for another strong performance from the offensive line.
“Our line did a phenomenal job, as they’ve done pretty much all year, of opening up the holes for our backs,” Anderson said.
The Grizzlies were in business again after an Eric Aune punt return and a Chisholm penalty gave them the ball on the Chisholm 35 with 4:11 remaining in the first quarter. Chiabotti got the call on second-and-goal at the Bluestreaks’ seven-yard line and scored, but the play was nullified by a North Woods penalty that backed the offense up to the 18. Chiabotti got 16 yards of that back on the next play, and then scored on a two-yard plunge. He also ran in the conversion attempt for a 14-0 lead at the end of the quarter.
After exchanging turnovers, Chisholm was on the move with a first-and-10 at the Grizzlies’ 24. After an illegal procedure penalty backed the Bluestreaks up to the 29, North Woods linebacker Jake Panichi dropped back in coverage and intercepted a pass that he returned to the North Woods 46.
“We knew Chisholm wanted to throw the football,” Anderson said. “Jake was in that position for a reason. He read the play well, he read the ball well and made a big play for us.”
After Chiabotti picked up three yards on first down, quarterback Ty Fabish dropped back and found Aune open at the Chisholm 30. Aune made the catch and gained 14 more yards before being tackled at the 16.
Chiabotti took it all the way to the house on the next play and tacked on another two-point conversion for a 22-0 North Woods halftime advantage.
While Chiabotti continued to run effectively in the second half, the Grizzlies spread the scoring fest around. Aune capped a 65-yard third quarter drive with a 25-yard touchdown catch from Fabish, with Austin Sokoloski getting the call on the successful conversion pass for a 30-0 lead. The Grizzlies called Panichi’s number on the next drive, with the fullback’s two-yard touchdown run and Chiabotti two-point conversion stretching the lead to 38-0.
With the clock running continuously in the fourth quarter, Chisholm made good on a fumble recovery at the Grizzlies’ 32, with Bryce Warner scoring a one-yard touchdown on the eighth play of the Bluestreaks’ drive. Chisholm’s extra point kick failed, and the Grizzlies went on to post the 38-6 victory.
In addition to Chiabotti, Panichi chipped in on the ground game with eight carries for 45 yards and a touchdown.
Aune was on the receiving end of three of Fabish’s four completions, picking up 60 yards and a touchdown.
On the defensive side, Cole Thiel made eight tackles and Panichi collected six. Anderson noted that the numbers reflected the defense’s success limiting the number of plays the Bluestreaks ran.
The Grizzlies have an unplanned off-week this week, as Friday’s opponent, East Central, has canceled all extracurricular activities after COVID-19 cases among staff and a shortage of substitutes forced the district to go into a full distance learning model.
North Woods will be at home on Thursday, Nov. 12 against Hinckley-Finlayson for their regular season finale. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m.