Nevada Appeal: Carson football tops Dayton in season opener

Nevada Appeal: Carson football tops Dayton in season opener

Carson football tops Dayton in season opener
Both teams look to be problems in their respective leagues this fall
Photo by Carter Eckl.
By Carter Eckl

A Class 4A-3A challenge to open the season for Carson and Dayton High School football showed both sides the potential directions they could go in.

The Senators took down the Dust Devils, 28-14, Friday night, highlighted by several flashes with its young offense.

Carson’s running game found the end zone three separate times and the defense held the Dust Devils to six points for a majority of the contest.

“Our guys found a way to win the game. Dayton played a heck of a game. They have some athletes on their team,” said Carson head coach Steven Nelms. “We have a young offense with a lot of new guys in the skill spots.”

Andre Deleon found the end zone twice for the Senators while Eli Gonzalez also recorded a rushing touchdown.
Dayton, on the other hand, showed why its been a program on the rise for the last several seasons.

Looking past the Dust Devils will cost you this season.

“I think it clicked in summer ball. The seniors that we do have out here are working hard. They want to go out with a winning record. … We’ve been getting beat up in the 3A forever and , … they want to go out big,” said Dayton’s first-year head coach Mike McCullough.

SECOND HALF SEPARATION

Carson took the first two-score lead of the game on the opening possession of the second half.

Running back Andre Deleon broke free for a 26-yard gain on second-and-7 to get the ball into Dayton territory.

He had three more touches on the drive before quarterback Dylan Loff dropped back and floated a 15-yard spiral to the far corner of the end zone for Cruz Gonzales.

The Gonzales touchdown catch put Carson in front, 21-6, with 8:59 to go in the third quarter.

The rest of the quarter didn’t feature much offensively.

Dayton went three-and-out, following the Senators’ score, but ripped out a fumble on Carson’s next possession.

The Dust Devils grabbed a pair of fumble recoveries Friday evening.

“I’m super proud. We wanted a challenge Week 1. That’s why we decided to come play Carson,” said McCullough. “I think we got a pretty good showing of what we can do and what we can handle.”

Toward the end of the fourth quarter, the Senators added to their lead with an Eli Gonzalez 10-yard rushing touchdown to make it 28-6.

“You could tell it was our first game as a team, but there were a lot of bright spots,” said Nelms.

With almost the entirety of the Senator offense being new, the four scoring drives will be good fodder to go over in film.

They’ll have a few mistakes to correct after a pair of turnovers, including a backward pass that cost them a chance at points before the half.

“We’re trying to find that jive and click. It’s just going to take some time,” said Nelms. “These are things we kind of expect, but let’s see how the kids respond as we advance.”

Loff had several big completions to Niko Mitchell and Sirus Hayes.

Carson managed more than a dozen plays that went for 10-plus yards, taking up big chunks of field before finishing drives in the red zone.

They had the right plays dialed to start the game and out of the half, scoring on both possessions at the start of each half.



DAYTON’S TOUCHES

Duke Evans ran for more than 2,000 yards on the ground last season and there were several fans on the Carson sideline who were wowed in their first impression.

The Senators limited Evans at times, but when the Dayton tailback got free he showcased his physical tools with his power and speed.

“I want to make him more versatile in our offense. … That kid has the potential to play anywhere at the next level,” said McCullough. “He’s not just a through-the-tackles runner. He can catch it out of the backfield and he is an explosive player.”

On multiple occasions the Dust Devils motioned Evans out into the flat.

Getting Evans touches in space could be another weapon for the Dayton offense this fall.

Evans was the first to put up points for the Dust Devils, diving into the end zone on fourth down with 8:23 to go in the second quarter.

His score cut Dayton’s deficit to 7-6 after the Dust Devils couldn’t convert a two-point try.

Dayton’ second score came late in the game when the Dust Devils took a shot over the top, down the middle of the field with 1:02 left in the contest to make it, 28-14.

Boston Moon sprinted 64 yards on a pitch-and-catch with quarterback Abel Russell for six.

Moon showcased his agility in the first half, juking a Senator defender before running 39 yards into the red zone. The play setup Evan’s rushing touchdown.