Grace football team kicks off season by thrashing Oakley 50-8

The Grace Grizzlies opened their 2024 football season on their home turf Friday facing the Oakley Hornets.

The end result was a lopsided Grace 50-8 victory as the Hornets were shut down on both sides of the ball.

The tone of the game was set by the Grizzlies from the first whistle with Derek Hill running in a touchdown early in the first quarter.

The Grizzlies were dominating in all aspects.

Hornets did respond with their only touchdown of the evening and a two-point conversion early in the second quarter but the Grizzlies responded with extra pressure and were able to fluster the Hornets both offensively and defensively.

The Grizzlies, already leading 26-8, rushed the quarterback and recovered a Hornet’s fumble just before half time.

Grace junior defensive lineman and running back Chase Smith was a force to be reckoned with throughout the evening, while senior Braden Kimball and junior Bryant Moss had multiple dominant plays on offense, giving the Grizzlies a continual lead on the scoreboard.

A big hit to the Grizzlies came when Kimball walked off the field holding up his injured hand during the third quarter. A trip to the local emergency room confirmed both a dislocation and broken ring finger on his right hand.

Kimball remembers just walking off the field thinking “this sucks.” His mom said he remained pretty positive until the disappointing results came with him needing surgery.

On Saturday Kimball said, ”I’m anxious to get back on the field with my team. We played really well together last night and am looking forward to some more W’s.”

Grizzlies head coach James Newby said, “Injuries are a part of the game. Next man up.”

The Grizzlies continued to dominate on the field and on the scoreboard in the fourth quarter.

Grace junior Gravin Draper led the team as quarterback until Newby subbed in a couple of freshmen off the bench late in the fourth quarter.

Kade Kimball came in as quarterback and ran in the last touchdown of the game with fellow freshman Colton WIliams following up with the two-point conversion.

“I really thought the team hustled well. We need to continue to work on every facet of the game but it’s still early,” Newby said. “The offensive line played extremely well.”

The Grizzlies will next go on the road to face Raft River on Friday before returning home to battle Murtaugh on Sept. 6. Both games will start at 7 p.m.