“It was apparent from the beginning that Hancock is worthy of their No. 6 rating in the state,” Rome said. “Offensively, they could move the ball well, they made big plays early. We fell behind and offensively we struggled to catch up.”
Willie Youngblood rushed for 135 yards and three touchdowns in 30 carries for Glendale (3-5, 0-4 in conference) and quarterback Steve Miller completed 22 of 37 attempts for 239 yards and another score, while being intercepted once.
But Youngblood’s first rumble into the end zone that capped a 10-play 80-yard drive to put Glendale on the board didn’t come until the 13:40 mark of the second quarter.
By that time, Hancock had already scored four times and racked up 289 yards of total offense.
Ryan Anglin (119 yards rushing in 18 carries) scored Hancock’s first touchdown, and the first of his three on the night, on a seven-yard run to complete a 59-yard drive on the opening possession of the game that took just 1:45. The Bulldogs then scored on the first play of their next possession, a 64-yard breakaway by Anglin that put Hancock up, 14-0 with 10:24 left in the opening period.
Following Youngblood’s first touchdown in the second quarter, the Vaqueros appeared to have some momentum going when they stopped Hancock for the first time, forcing a punt.
But the Bulldogs recovered a fumble on the punt return at the Vaqueros 21-yard line and cashed it in for a 35-7 lead on a Mario Jones run on the very first play at the 11:54 mark.
“That was a really big turning point,” Rome said. “It was a momentum shift for us. We were starting to get momentum and then all of a sudden it completely deflated.”
The two teams traded touchdowns to close out the first half, with Youngblood scoring from seven yards out at the 7:05 mark on a play set up by Nate Meztizo’s recovery of a fumble that he forced and the Bulldogs getting the last word with a 17-yard pass form Gunner Jesperson to Jones with 25 seconds left.
Hancock (8-1, 4-1) built its lead as high as 55-13 in the third quarter before Glendale was able to end the game with two unanswered scores of its own.
Reinaldo Reyes, who caught five passes for 79 yards, hauled in a 33-yard pass from Miller with 12:53 left in the game and Youngblood capped the scoring with a six-yard run with 7:13 left.
“We’re going to try and springboard off that and use it to get better,” Rome said of the team’s redeeming fourth quarter. “Offensively, the feeling is very high right now. Defensively, the team realizes that they’re playing good programs and personnel.”
