The Liberty football team’s season ended in the driving rain and swirling wind Nov. 21, at the hands of a familiar foe. Bellevue again proved to be one of the top programs in the state, with a 35-7 win over the Patriots in the quarterfinal round of the 3A state tournament.
Liberty (9-3) faced Bellevue (12-0) earlier this season and the Wolverines came out on top 24-7 in a game that was tightly fought and decided by two key turnovers. This time around, Bellevue didn’t allow for such a close contest.
Some aspects of this game were drastically different from the first time the two teams met this season and some were eerily similar. Liberty’s sophomore quarterback Trey Wheeler struggled through and 0-7 first half last time; this time Wheeler came out of the gates hot. He completed two big passes on Liberty’s first drive and moved the Patriots into field-goal range. But after blocking a field-goal attempt in the first game, Bellevue’s Jamal Atofau struck again, in a very similar way.
The senior burst through the line, blocked the field goal attempt, and denied the Patriots the chance for an early lead and any early momentum.
“Bellevue’s better than we are,” said Liberty coach Steve Valach. “When you’re playing with a better team, if you get a couple of momentum plays, you can play with and even beat then. But we didn’t get those momentum plays. Maybe if we had made that field goal, or stopped them right before the half, but it didn’t happen.”
Liberty stoutly defended the Wolverine’s rush through most of the first half, allowing yards, but just one score. Then Peter Nguyen scored on a 32-yard rush with just 20 seconds remaining before halftime.
Bellevue came out from the half and scored three straight times to put the game away.
Valach said the return of offense/defensive lineman Julious Moore and running back Nguyen made the Wolverines a much different team the second time around. The Wolverines also utilized an offset I-formation on offense that the Patriots didn’t see in the first game.
With Nguyen running and Moore blocking, the Wolverines rolled up 406 rushing yards on 50 carries. Nguyen by himself had 237 yards and three touchdowns on 25 carries. Atofau and Will Fields also scored rushing touchdowns.
Meanwhile the Patriots couldn’t get their ground game going. Joseph Yea, Greg Ericksen and Chandler Jenkins all finished in the top five in the KingCo in rushing, but the trio rushed for just 12 yards on 14 carries against Bellevue.
“When you’re balanced you’re better,” Valach said. “And we couldn’t be balanced because of how they were taking away our run game.”
Since the Patriots weren’t able to muster a threatening running attack, Bellevue was able to key on passing situations for much of the game. Pressure from the defensive line and tight coverage in the secondary led to four interceptions from Wheeler. Wheeler completed 15 of 32 passes for 182 yards, the four interceptions and a late, 11-yard score to Jenkins.
“It would’ve been nice to win obviously,” Valach said. “But we lost to a better football team and there’s no shame in that.”
Bellevue has won the 3A state title five times since 2001 and is the favorite to win a sixth this season. The Wolverines played Capital (9-3) at the Tacoma Dome Friday for a spot in the championship game against either Lakes (12-0) or Union (12-0) on Dec. 5 at the Tacoma Dome.
Liberty finishes the season at 9-3 overall and 5-1 in the KingCo. The Patriots placed second in the league and advanced to the quarterfinals of the 3A state tournament for the second time (also in 2005) since winning the state title in 1988.
“We’re very happy with how we did,” Valach said. “I mean two of our losses were to a team that’s probably going to be the state champion. There’s a lot to feel good about in years like this.”
The Patriots scored an average of 33.3 points per game, while holding opponents to 15.17 points per game this season. The 35 allowed against Bellevue was a season-high for the Patriots’ defense.
Season leaders and highlights:
• Wheeler passed for 1,683 yards and 13 touchdowns. He added three rushing scores.
• Richard Crespo led the team in receiving, with 51 catches for 762 yards and four touchdowns.
• Ericksen rushed 129 times for 970 yards and 16 scores. He added 10 catches for 174 yards and two scores.
• Jenkins rushed 123 times for 736 yards and nine touchdowns. He caught 23 passes for 369 yards and three touchdowns.
• Yea rushed 94 times for 742 yards and six touchdowns.
• John Kirksey recorded four rushing scores and two receiving scores.
• Taylor Hamann intercepted six passes, including a 74-yard return for a touchdown.
