Portland High football may be 2-4, but watch out for the Bulldogs in future years.

“Another year, they are going to be a team to be reckoned with. They have a lot of young talent over there,” said Thornton Academy Coach Kevin Kezal, after his Trojans eked by Portland 14-12 Thursday night.

The Bulldogs were led Thursday by sophomore quarterback Jayvon Pitts-Young and junior running back Nick Volger. There are only eight seniors on the Portland roster.

One thing that Portland does not have going for it is numbers. Because of injuries and discipline issues, the Bulldogs roster is down to 29. Portland Coach Mike Bailey shrugged at the number. He said, “I’ve played with 22 before.”

THERE WAS a reason Kezal was not pleased with his team’s performance Thursday night, calling it “flat.” Of the Trojans’ 216 total yards, over half of that came on two plays.

Quarterback Eric Christensen completed passes of 69 yards (for a touchdown) and 48 yards (setting up a touchdown) to tight end Dakota Tarbox.

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Without those two plays, Thornton might not be one of four teams in Western Class A with at least five wins. Cheverus, South Portland and Deering are the others.

GORHAM HIGH put together five drives Friday night that accounted for 58 plays and almost 27 minutes. The Rams, using their run-oriented, double-wing formation, scored on three of those marches.

But the biggest Rams possession in their 29-22 loss to Bonny Eagle came with 2:37 left in the first half. Gorham had just recovered a Scots fumble at the Gorham 6-yard line. Run out the clock, and the Rams would have a 22-8 halftime lead.

But on a third-and-2 running play, the Rams were stopped for no gain.

“That’s when the double-wing should shine,” Gorham Coach Dave Kilborn said of the short-yardage situation.

Bonny Eagle called time out and, after a short punt, got the ball back with 55 seconds to go at the Rams 40. After a 39-yard pass, Tyson Goodale scored from the 1.

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Instead of being down two touchdowns at halftime, Bonny Eagle was one score behind and would receive the second-half kickoff. Momentum and, eventually the game, belonged to the Scots.

THE ATMOSPHERE for the Campbell Conference Western Class B showdown between Wells and Mountain Valley at Wells matched the game’s hype. The Wells bleachers were packed and loud. Fans ringed the perimeter of the field. Mountain Valley brought a good crowd despite the travel distance.

And this: At halftime the Wells band performed.

High school bands performing at halftime used to be the rule instead of the exception. But that was back 30 years ago, when bands were part of the pageantry of football.

By Class B enrollment figures, Wells is a small school yet it has a band that performs at halftime and puts on a nice show. Class A schools with three times the enrollment don’t have bands, which is a shame.

Wells beat Mountain Valley, the defending Class B state champions, 28-12.

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It was the Warriors’ first win over the Falcons in a while and gave them the inside track for the top seed in the regional playoffs which begin in three weeks.

That means Wells will have the home field for as long as it wins in the regionals.

Which means more halftime band performances — a one, a two, a three!

— Staff Writer Kevin Thomas and Tom Chard contributed to this report.

 


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