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Way back in the spring, when Queen Creek head coach Travis Schureman scheduled a game versus seven-time state champion and Division I powerhouse Hamilton, some wondered (including this reporter) where he lost his mind.
There was no doubt the Bulldogs’ third-year head coach wanted to measure his team against the best in the state.
“We’ve always played tough teams, and we will continue to play tough teams and get after it,” Schureman said.
But privately, Schureman and the Bulldogs spent the past several months believing they could do more than just “get after it” against Hamilton. Deep down they looked forward to the opportunity to shock the Arizona high school football community by defeating one of state’s best and most successful programs.
For more than three quarters last Friday night, the sixth-ranked Bulldogs hung in with the second-ranked Huskies, even holding a brief 7 – 3 lead midway through the first quarter.
The Bulldogs, who trailed 10 – 7 at the half, kept it that way through much of the third quarter thanks to their defense, which stopped Hamilton on a fourth-down play near the goal line with just over five minutes remaining.
The score remained the same until the last two minutes of the quarter when an interception setup Hamilton deep in Queen Creek territory. The Huskies took advantage, scoring on a 21-yd pass play to increase their lead to 17 – 7.
Hamilton added two more fourth quarter touchdowns, one of them coming after a fumbled punt return by the Bulldogs and another after the Huskies’ defense blocked a punt.
Queen Creek sophomore running back Dante Coleman scored a late touchdown on a 2-yard run to close out the scoring in the game.
Even though the Bulldogs didn’t come away with a win, the game was much closer than the 31 – 14 final score would indicate.
“Queen Creek is going to bring their lunch and they brought it,” Hamilton head coach Steve Belles said after the game. “They’re a good football team. We have to tip our hat to them and their going to be there at the end.”
“They’re one of those teams that if you don’t bring it, they’re going to, for sure, bring it,” Belles added. “They’re one of those teams that play physical and you better be ready to play physical with them.”
Schureman’s postgame comments validate the claim that he didn’t schedule Hamilton just to use the game as a measuring stick.
“That’s a great football team over there,” he said about Hamilton. “They’re going to compete in Division I (for a state title) and for three-and-a-half quarters we were right there with them.”
“I was happy with the way we competed,” he continued. “I’m not happy with the outcome. That’s not who we are; we expect to win football games.”
With Hamilton holding an early 3 – 0 lead, the Bulldogs defense gave the offense excellent field position after linebacker Chase Thomas recovered and errant snap on a fake punt attempt by the Huskies.
Senior running back Gavin Danielson capped off the 44-yard drive, scoring on a 7-yard touchdown run. Zach Glaess’ PAT was good to give the Bulldogs a 7 – 3 lead with 3:03 remaining in the first quarter.
Queen Creek, perennially one of the state’s most prolific rushing offenses, couldn’t muster much offense after that scoring drive, totaling only 85 rushing yards in the game with Danielson accounting for 84 of those yards.
As a matter of fact, the Bulldogs finished with less than 200 total yards of offense, which included only 106 passing yards. It was the offense’s second-straight underwhelming performance.
“We have to fix some things, obviously,” Schureman said after the game. “On offense we have to get better.”
Queen Creek’s defense has carried the team so far, but don’t expect that trend to continue. The Bulldogs have a bye this week, a perfect time to get things right before taking on Campo Verde in their home opener on September 11.
“Our defense is playing great,” Schureman said. “They’re keeping us in games right now, but our offense is going to get there.”
The Bulldogs hung in against Division I powerhouse Hamilton in the first meeting between the schools.
Queen Creek’s Trexton Bloom runs after the catch against Hamilton last Friday night.
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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