CFC50 South Delta Sun Devils vs. CFC50 Belmont Bulldogs
Friday, Sept, 29 @ 4:00pm, Belmont
Ranked for the first time on the CFC50 national high school rankings, the Belmont Bulldogs have a lot to be proud of with their win last weekend over traditional power, Vancouver College, 25-9. That being said, they are about to face the CFC50 South Delta Sun Devils who are on some sort of cerebral football cloud with their CFC100 quarterback Michael Calvert at the helm. The action about to go down on Friday night in the AAA Western conference is bound to be entertaining on so many levels. The island is going to get a treat.
Head coach, Alexis Sanschagrin, for the Bulldogs said that last week’s game against VC was “huge” for their program. “We have a fantastic core group of players and dedicated coaches and these big wins validate all the hard work we’ve invested in our commitment to excellence.”
Michael Calvert (2)
The 3-0 Bulldogs will have had to continue with that hard work this past week to prepare for the Sun devils. With more work to be done, how the Bulldogs continue to progress will determine how successful they can be in the ultra competitive AAA western conference. Coach Sanschagrin said that in order to prepare for this week’s game, they watched a lot of film, but their preparation was the same as it’s always been for any game that they are set to play.
On Friday look for the Bulldogs attempt to contain the Sun Devil’s quarterback, Michael Calvert who last week went 20/32 for over 350 yards passing and 5 touchdown passes. He can also beat you on the ground and often will score a few majors that way as well.
“I’m excited to play a very talented Belmont team on Friday,” said Calvert when we asked his thoughts on the matchup. “They have some talented athletes that will challenge us on both sides of the ball. It’s going to be a great game!”
“Both offenses are loaded at the QB and WR position,” commented Coach Sanschagrin. “We will certainly focus on #2 Michael Calvert and try to contain him as much as we can.” At this point, we are doubtful that anyone will shut down Calvert the way he’s been playing, but you can’t underestimate blind hope and determination.
It’s not only the quarterback, though, that they have to be aware of. Receiver CFC100 Billy Matwichyna is often one of Calvert’s targets along with Max Stallings who scored a pair of majors last weekend.
Eli Nelms-Horton (3)
But it’s not all about the Sun, Belmont has some talented players who are playing at a very high level. Last week, CFC100 Eli Nelms-Horton had a terrific game with over 200 yards and 3 touchdowns. This kid is incredible fast – straightline fast. If you get a chance to watch his film, you will see what we mean.
“I’m honestly pretty excited because I know that they are a good team and I believe that we are too,” said Nelms-Horton about Friday’s game. “I think that it will be a good game to watch and a pretty evenly played game, we have been working super hard this off season and I hope to see that it pays off on Friday!”
Coach Sanschagrin has also been impressed with another player who has started to show some dazzle – quarterback Kalen Jules. “I wouldn’t call it necessarily a surprise because he’s been an elite player since he’s been with us, but the physical and mental maturation of #2 QB Kalen Jules over the last few months has been the biggest difference so far this year.”
Kalen Jules (2)
While there seems to be a lot of sparkle and bling in the key skill position for both teams, the Bulldogs will need to make sure that all of their linemen avoid injury and stay healthy. “Our biggest concern is to stay healthy on the line as we are very thin at that position,” said the Belmont head coach.
They won’t get a chance to re-group with this game as they did against VC. South Delta is all about high octane and you are going from start to finish. Safety Carter Price will have to cover that backfield like nobody’s business with the help of the rest of the defense including linebacker Jason Ouellet who had seven tackles last week against VC.
In order for the Bulldogs to continue to surprise and pull off another amazing feat they will have to start strong and never let off. “As always, we need to minimize our mistakes and try to capitalize on theirs,” said Coach Sanschagrin.
With all that being said, we always love an underdog, but reality rules and we think – while it should be competitive – South Delta takes this one.
Advocating for football prospects one story at a time.
