It did not take long for third-year Perry football head coach Bryce Pierce to nail down his greatest source of joy after Friday’s 27-21 Homecoming win over Des Moines Hoover.
“The seniors,” Pierce said. “This means so much to me to see the seniors finally get that win. They were sophomores when I started here and have stuck with it and worked hard, even when it seemed it might be for nothing. They now know the effort was worth it and I am so happy for them.”
Perry prevailed in overtime, turning back Hoover on one final snap from inside the two-yard line after the hosts had scored during their opening try on offense in the double-possession period. The win snapped a 39-game skid that extended to the final game of the 2017 season.
The Bluejays scored when sophomore reserve quarterback Geren Kenney snuck across the goal line for his third rushing score of the game.
Leading, 27-21, Perry had Hoover facing third-and-goal from the 11, but a pass play moved the ball within the two-yard line. Huskies tailback Moses Gorh had burned Perry for 182 yards and a score on 21 carries, but the left side of the Bluejay defense had solid penetration at the snap, forcing Gorth wide, stopping him short and stripping the ball away.
Hoover was a 14-9 winner last season when they twice stopped Perry from inside the five-yard line as regulation expired, and avenging the loss was motivation for many of his players, Pierce said.
“They guys certainly didn’t forget that and have always felt like they let one get away,” Pierce said. “I know they wanted another chance at them, and then to have it be almost like the same situation was weird.”
“There were several times when we needed to make a play and we did,” he added. “They scored on a couple of big plays, but other than that I thought we pretty much controlled the game.”
Pierce said the focal point in the week of practice leading up to the game was one yard.
“Last year we came up one yard short,” Pierce said. “So we focused on that yard. Could we be one yard better this year? We were, and they (Hoover) were the ones stopped one yard away.”
Kenney had a coming-out party, rushing for 73 yards and three TDs on 12 carries, hitting 6-of-10 passes for 62 yards, one interception, and a score while making 3.5 tackles on defense. He also stopped a Huskies drive with an interception just past midfield that he returned to the Hoover 26, helping set up his own game-tying TD.
Holden Smith caught the scoring aerial and had a two-point conversion catch as well. He had three snags for 20 yards, Drake Levan two tosses for 18 yards and Eric Lagos one pass for one yard.
Keegan Snyder ran hard throughout, compiling a bruising 109 yards on 24 carries between the tackles. Juan Hernandez (14-36), Gavin Hegstrom (4-9) and Smith (1-2) also ran the ball.
Cruz Calderon, Kenney, Hernandez and Kain Killmer recovered fumbles, Killmer landing on a punt, blocked by Smith, that gave Perry possession on the five-yard line in the first half.
Hernandez had six tackles, as did Snyder, with Killmer making five stops and Jesus Gonzalez 3.5. Snyder had two sacks and two tackles for a loss (TFL), with Killmer and Gonzalez each having one sack while Hernandez, Killmer and Gonzalez also had TFLs.
“We had so many guys play well — totally a team victory,” Pierce said. “I have been saying for a long time that the scoreboard has not been reflecting the learning and progress the coaches see in practice, so it is great to see the guys get the reward of a big win at home in front of our great crowd.”
Perry faces a tall task Friday when highly-regarded Indianola visits Dewey Field. the first of three consecutive game against top-10 teams.
“Our focus will be on avoiding mistakes and playing well,” Pierce said. “We want to make them work for the win, not just show up and have a scrimmage. We showed some pride winning Homecoming and it is something the guys will always remember. Hopefully we can have more great moments as we go.”
