INDEPENDENCE — Excising the demons from a loss to Nemaha Central, the Chanute Blue Comets caged the Independence Bulldogs, 41-8, in a Week 5 SEK League showdown on Friday night.
Chanute’s defense kept the Bulldogs off the scoreboard for the first three quarters as the Blue Comets wreaked havoc.
“Our defensive line was squeezing,” Chanute head coach Clete Frazell said. “We talk about how important that is every week. It makes the gaps tighter. Then they’re bouncing out and our linebackers and safeties and corners were making plays for loss. We’re pretty good at doing that on the defensive line right now.”
Chanute led 34-0 by halftime and 41-0 through three quarters before the Bulldogs cracked its egg.
Eliott Stephenson had a night to remember, hauling six catches for 148 yards and three touchdowns for Chanute.
“He’s a big, strong athlete and is a mismatch for anybody,” Frazell said. “Having a high school defensive back coming up to tackle him is a challenge. He’s been awesome catching the ball in traffic and making plays.”
Kris Harding was 9-of-15 passing for 198 yards while rushing for 18 yards and a score — a welcome outing after he struggled in the loss to Nemaha Central.
“It’s important to keep people honest,” Frazell said. “Tonight, we made big plays in the passing game. The first play was a five-yard hitch where Eliott broke a couple of tackles. You don’t get many chances for big running plays when you’re getting them in the passing game. It was good to get Kris going tonight after last week’s performance.”
Kris showcased an ability to operate outside of the pocket in Friday’s beatdown of the Bulldogs.
“They like to blitz a lot,” Frazell said. “They’ll get through sometimes. Overall, Kris is dangerous when he gets pressure because he can make an athletic play on the run. When coverage breaks down, it just makes it so hard for them. But we’ll work on picking some of those blitzes up.”
Quinton Harding carried the ball 14 times for 80 yards and a touchdown for the Blue Comets on a night where the air attack eased the workload for the star back.
“It takes some of the load off of Quinton,” Frazell said. “He carries the ball a lot in some games. He never comes off the field, so it was nice to see that tonight.”
The win improved Chanute’s record to 4-1 overall and 2-0 in SEK League play.
Up next
Chanute faces Fort Scott, which is coming off an upset loss to Labette County, at home in Week 6.
“We’ll prepare like we always do,” Frazell said. “It’ll probably be the biggest challenge for an SEK League title. We’re excited for the challenge.”
