It’s never too early for a must win football game in the South Puget Sound League 4A, North Division.
Especially when powerhouse rivals Auburn and Kentwood line up against each other, as they did this Sept. 11 at French Field in the second game of the season for both teams.
Although Auburn came out with the 35-28 victory, both teams showed flashes of brilliance – along with the typical miscues that occur this early in a football season.
“I was asked if I’m happy with our performance and I’d have to say no, we’re not happy with our performance,” Kentwood head coach Rex Norris said. “We had a lot to overcome and the kids played hard, but that’s the expectation of Kentwood football.”
Fourth-ranked Auburn, with a 2-0 league recored, opened the game by reeling off two big touchdowns in the first quarter, with senior quarterback Marshall Klontz hooking up with senior Austin Embody for a 35-yard score. Embody added the Trojan’s next score, scampering into the end zone from 50 yards out.
Down early, Kentwood was far from out.
Senior Tristan Askew answered for Kentwood in the second quarter, scoring on a 57-yard run.
Junior Mikell Everette added a five yard touchdown to close out the second quarter with the game tied at 14-14.
At the half Kentwood had 185 yards of total offense, with 55 rushing and 130 passing yards. Auburn had 257 yards, 45 rushing and 212 passing.
Auburn continued its struggles in the second quarter with Kentwood scoring twice in the third quarter. Askew, Kentwood’s senior quarterback, added a 34-yard touchdown run to take a 21-14 lead. Kentwood’s Matthew Hubbard stretched the lead to 14, scooping up a Chris Young fumble and rumbling in from 25-yards out to put the Conks up 28-14.
Down by 14, Auburn finally got the machine rolling in the waning moments of the third quarter, with Klontz hooking up with junior Alphonse Wade for a 52 yard touchdown pass.
The fourth quarter belonged to Auburn’s deadly backfield of Young, Wade and Embody. Young scored twice in the final frame, helping the Trojans ice the victory.
Auburn finished the game with 425 total rushing yards, with Wade responsible for 213 yards on 13 carries and Embody adding 117. Young finished with 95 yards.
For Kentwood, Askew finished with two touchdowns and 123 yards on the ground.
“I thought we did a really nice job of not losing our composure and coming back after being down 14 points,” Norris said. “But we gave up some really long plays and that’s something you just can’t do to Auburn. You’ve got to make them earn it, and we gave them about three touchdowns they didn’t earn. They worked hard and their players made the plays, but we certainly made it a little easier on them.”
“We played well in the first quarter and then had some not very disciplined things going on and we still did okay,” Auburn coach Gordon Elliott said. “We just didn’t play very well in the second quarter. We played well in the first quarter. But that’s not a characteristic of us making those mistakes.”
Auburn will host Kent-Meridian, 0-2 league, at 7 p.m. Friday at Auburn Memorial Stadium. Kentwood travels to Tahoma, 2-0 league, for a 7 p.m. game Friday.
Shawn Skager can be reached at sskager@auburn-reporter.com.
