Emma Fernandez
ASU Student Journalist

Queen Creek defeats Sahuaro in battle of backup quarterbacks

September 3, 2017 by Emma Fernandez , Arizona State University


The Queen Creek Bulldogs' explosive offensive got the best of the Sahuaro Cougars for a 43-6 home victory in Friday night’s Class 5A non-region football matchup.

Queen Creek’s starting quarterback, Devin Larsen, was out with a concussion, but Larsen's backup, junior Cal Hedrick, threw four touchdown passes.

“When you play good, you want to keep playing,” Hedrick said. “We all work together great as a group.”

Team chemistry was not the only thing working for the Bulldogs on Friday night. Queen Creek (3-0) also had two rushing touchdowns, one by senior Dante Coleman and another by junior Dylan Borja.

“The running game is really important, but it all starts with our offensive line,” Borja said.

He credited the offensive line to creating the opportunities and said the running backs just try to take advantage of them.

The Cougars (0-2) fumbled twice right before the end of the first half. Queen Creek made the most of the situation, scoring after both turnovers.

“Any time you can win the turnover battle and turn [turnovers] into points, then great things happen,” Queen Creek Coach Travis Schureman said. “We’re super happy with our defense tonight. They played great.”

Sahuaro, which struggled to get started in the first half of the game, tried to bounce back despite injuries.

“We lost three centers in the first possession, and we lost a quarterback,” Sahuaro Coach Scott McKee said. “When you lose the middle of your offense…it takes some time to get it reorganized.”

Despite their second-half surge, the Cougars could not catch up to the Bulldogs' offense.

“I think it was a good win for our kids to play hard against a good Tucson Sahuaro team,” Schureman said. “(We’ve) been doing some good things, and we’re just excited for the outcome."