Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart at Portland St. Patrick – – 8 Man Football – – The Bleacher Denizen – – September 9, 2023 – – by Chuck Krafft

Tonight your Bleacher Denizen is off to Portland High where the Shamrocks from Portland St. Patrick will host the Irish from Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart in an eight man football game. Both teams have perfect 2-0 record to come into the game.

Since two Catholic schools are playing, I thought you might enjoy a couple Christian tunes from my You Tube Channel as we wait for the game to start!

In the Garden: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NQ3j4QJPxE

John 3:16 Song – – This one is special to me because my (late) father helped to write more than half of the lyrics that were not directly taken from the Bible. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYixQ0OWsd4

It is now time to look at the events of this game through the lens of an aging Bleacher Denizen whose career as a defensive lineman was set back severely when the football powers that be decreed that he was NOT permitted to use pepper spray during games.

Sacred Heart’s Aiden Halliday booted the opening kickoff to the St. Patrick 15 yard line where Landon Simpson fielded it and returned it ten yards. St. Patrick started its opening drive on its own 25 yard line.

Brady Leonard gained eleven yards on a run to the right. Luke Hacker made the tackle for the Irish.

Luke Hacker knocked down St. Patrick’s first down pass. Brady Leonard’s second down run around the right end gained six yards before Luke Hacker forced him out of bounds. Brady Leonard went around the left end for an eighteen yard gain before Aidan Halliday took him down. St. Patrick had a first down on the Sacred Heart 40 yard line.

Brady Leonard tossed a pass to Tyler Groothuis for a fourteen yard gain. Kadenn Rose made the tackle for the Irish.

Brady Leonard took the ball up the middle for a four yard first down gain. Jackson Verleger and Brady Hoeve teamed up for the Sacred Heart tackle. Jim McDonald and Jackson Verleger covered on St. Patrick’s second down incomplete screen pass. A third down penalty pushed the Shamrocks back five yards. Brayden Simon went around the left end on the third down replay for an eighteen yard gain to give St. Patrick a first down at the Sacred Heart 9 yard line.

Brady Leonard’s run to the right was stopped for a one yard gain by Joe McDonald. On the next play, the Irish recovered a Shamrock fumble on the Irish 3 yard line. (My apologies to the Irish player who recovered the fumble. Football plays can go really fast and I don’t always see everything.)

Aidan Halliday went to the right and broke several tackles on his way to a thirteen yard gain.

Kadenn Rose ran to the left for a seven yard gain before he ran into Devin Cook and Riley Mosser. The Shamrock line stopped the Irish second down run for a one yard loss. Jason Boge’s third down pass to Connor Stempkey was good for an eighteen yard gain to give the Irish a first down on their own 38 yard line. Landon Simpson and Aiden Mosser teamed up for the Shamrock tackle.

Aidan Halliday took a pitch to the right for a five yard first down penalty. Sacred Heart was whistled for a delay of game penalty that cost them vie yards. Aiden Mosser got into the Irish backfield and tackled the runner for a three yard second down loss. Shawn Frawley knocked the Irish third down pass out of the air. Aidan Halliday punted for the Irish on fourth down; his punt went to the Shamrock 35 yard line and was returned one yard.

St. Patrick had a first down on their own 36 yard line.

Brady Leonard hesitated a bit and burst to the left for a seventeen yard first down gain in Irish territory.

A five yard first down penalty pushed the Shamrocks back into their own territory on the 48 yard line. Teegan Duffy covered on the Shamrock incomplete pass on the first down replay. Brayden Simon went to the left for a four yard second down gain. Connor Stempkey and Jackson Verleger teamed up for the Irish tackle. Brady Leonard gained two yards on a third down run to the left. Aidan Halliday and Jackson Verleger made the tackle for Sacred Heart. Brady Leonard’s fourth down punt went to the Sacred Heart fifteen yard line. Kadenn Rose caught it and gained about ten yards before he was tackled by Riley Mosser.

Sacred Heart had a first down on their own 25 yard line.

Aidan Halliday recovered a fumble on a first down pitch; Sacred Heart managed to gain a yard on the play. Hudson King made the tackle for the Shamrocks. On the final play of Quarter Number One, Aidan Halliday went to the right for a twelve yard gain. Hudson King made the tackle for the Shamrocks. The Irish would begin the second quarter with a first down on their own 38 yard line.

Jackson Verleger went over the left tackle for a two yard gain on the first play of the second quarter. Auggie Teachworth and Riley Mosser teamed up for the St. Patrick tackle. On the next play, Jason Boge heaved a long pass to Kadenn Rose, who caught it for a sixty yard touchdown.

Connor Stempkey hiked the ball, Jason Boge held the ball and Aidan Halliday kicked it through the goalposts for a successful extra point. With 11:11 remaining in the first half, Sacred Heart had a 7-0 lead.

Aidan Halliday kicked the ball to the Shamrock 13 yard line where Landon Simpson caught it and gained twenty-five yards before Aidan Halliday tackled him. St. Patrick had a first down on their own 38 yard line.

Hudson King went up the right side for a twenty yard gain. Teegan Duffy made the tackle for Sacred Heart.

Brayden Simon broke several tackles before Kadenn Rose forced him out of bounds for a nine yard gain. Joe McDonald and Kadenn Rose covered on the Shamrock incomplete second down screen pass. Joe McDonald stopped the Shamrock third down run for no gain. Jim McDonald and Connor Stempkey teamed up to stop the Shamrock fourth down run to the left for no gain.

Sacred Heart took over the ball on downs on their own 34 yard line.

Jason Boge passed to Connor Stempkey on the left side for a twenty-six yard gain. Tyler Groothuis made the Shamrock tackle.

Jason Boge passed to Joe McDonald on the right for a thirteen yard gain. The Irish earned a first down on the Shamrock 27 yard line.

Shawn Frawley and Aiden Mosser stopped the Irish first down run for a three yard loss. Aiden Mosser stopped the second down run for no gain. Jason Boge gained six yards on a third down run up the middle before Devin Cook and Charlie Thelen took him down. Jason Boge passed to Aidan Halliday for a nineteen yard gain on fourth down. This clutch play earned the Irish a first down on the Shamrock 5 yard line.

Aidan Halliday ran over the right tackle for a first down gain before the Shamrock line stopped him. On the next play Aidan Halliday pounded his way into the end zone for a one yard touchdown.

Connor Stempkey hiked the ball, Jason Boge held the ball and Aidan Halliday kicked the successful extra point to give Sacred Heart a 14-0 lead with 6:31 remaining in the first half.

Aidan Halliday kicked the ball off to the St. Patrick 20 yard line. Landon Simpson caught the kickoff, went across the field and gained 27 yards up the right side before Kadenn Rose tackled him. St. Patrick had a first down on their own 47 yard line.

Aidan Halliday stopped the Shamrock first down play for a five yard loss. Hudson King went to the right for a seven yard second down gain; Wyatt Browne made the tackle for the Irish. Brayden Simon went to the left and carried some tacklers on his way to an eighteen yard third down gain before Jackson Verleger and Teegan Duffy finally stopped him.

St. Patrick had a first down on the Sacred Heart 33 yard line.

Brady Leonard went around the left end for a four yard gain before Jackson Verleger knocked him out of bounds. On the next play, Hudson King went to the right, made a nice fake and got into the end zone for a 29 yard touchdown run.

Charlie Thelen centered the ball, Brady Leonard held the ball and Tyler Groothuis kicked the successful extra point to trim the Irish lead to 14-7 with 4:20 to play in the first half.

Tyler Groothuis kicked the ball off to the Irish 4 yard line where Kadenn Rose picked the ball up and gained seventeen yards before Aiden Mosser tackled him. The Irish started their series on their own 20 yard line.

On the next play, Landon Simpson intercepted the ball for St. Patrick on the fifty yard line where St. Patrick started its next series.

Brayden Simon went to the left for a four yard gain. Teegan Duffy made the tackle for Sacred Heart. A false start penalty pushed the Shamrocks back five yards. Brady Leonard faked a handoff and went up the middle for a five yard gain. Connor Stempkey got the Irish tackle. A holding penalty negated a third down gain for the Irish.

On the replay of third down, Brady Hoeve stopped the Shamrock run for a two yard loss. Brady Leonard’s punt went out of bounds on the Irish 15 yard line with 1:17 remaining in the first half.

Jackson Verleger gained ten yards on a run up the left tackle. Landon Simpson made the tackle for St. Patrick.

Charlie Thelen got into the Irish backfield and tackled the Irish runner for a one yard loss. On the final play of the first half, Jackson Verleger gained about five yards before Brayden Simon and Aiden Mosser tackled him.

Sacred Heart took a 14-7 lead into the locker room at halftime. If normal football procedures are observed, Sacred Heart will lead 14-7 at the start of the third quarter.

Since there is no band for halftime, I hope you will enjoy this traditional Christian tune, “Just a Closer Walk with Thee!” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0IFWZLHHuc

Let’s finish up our halftime show with “What a Friend we Have in Jesus.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dJt6E-siOg

And mostly because I can be shameless at times, for those of you who are interested, here is a link to my You Tube Christian play list which has a few original tunes included out of 24 in the list. (The four that were linked individual earlier in this article are included in the 24. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWyRpM7PMJY&list=PLSir_FEyxp2fqS5VyXYOQcyCyiQy0ErCb

Now that I have brazenly inflicted over two hours of music on you, I suppose I need to get back to what you are really wanting to read and get onto the third quarter!!!

Sure enough, Sacred Heart’s halftime lead of 14-7 IS on the scoreboard at the start of the third quarter. (I KNEW it. I’ll stop short of claiming clairvoyance, but – – – -)

Tyler Groothuis kicked off for St. Patrick to start out the third quarter. Kadenn Rose caught the ball on the Irish 9 yard line and gained thirty-two yards before Daniel Huggler took him down. Sacred Heart started its opening series of the second half on its own 41 yard line.

The Shamrock line stopped the Irish first down run for no gain. On second down, Aiden Halliday took the ball to the right side and gained three yards before Charlie Thelen and Riley Mosser stopped him. Jason Boge passed to Joe McDonald for an eleven yard gain to earn a first down. Landon Simpson made the tackle for St. Patrick.

Landon Simpson and Charlie Thelen got into the Irish backfield and tackled the runner for a three yard first down loss. Devin Cook and Aiden Mosser stopped the Irish second down run for a one yard gain. Aidan Halliday’s third down run earned three yards before Riley Mosser took him down. Connor Stempkey made a diving catch of Jason Boge’s fourth down pass for a thirty-four yard gain to give the Irish a first down on the Shamrock 10 yard line.

Aidan Halliday pounded his way through the middle for a five yard first down gain before Tyler Groothuis and Riley Mosser teamed up for the Shamrock tackle. Wyatt Browne went up the middle for a four yard second down gain. Aidan Halliday bolted through the middle for a one yard touchdown run.

Connor Stempkey hiked the ball, Jason Boge held the ball and Aidan Halliday kicked the successful extra point to give Sacred Heart a 21-7 lead with 6:33 remaining in quarter number three.

Aidan Halliday kicked the ball to the St. Patrick 21 yard line where Landon Simpson grabbed it and returned it quip the left side for a thirteen yard gain before Jackson Verleger tackled him. St. Patrick had a first down on their own 34 yard line.

Aidan Halliday stopped the Shamrock first down run for a one yard loss. Brayden Simon’s second down run to the left earned seven yards before Aiden Halliday stopped him. Brady Leonard’s third down pass to Riley Mosser was good for a thirty-three yard gain. Jackson Verleger and Teegan Duffy made the Irish tackle. St. Patrick had a first down on the Sacred Heart 27 yard line.

Brayden Simon gained seven yards on a first down run up left tackle before Aidan Halliday tackled him. Hudson King went to the right for a ten yard second down gain to earn another first down for the Shamrocks.

Brady Leonard went to the left for an eleven yard gain to move St. Patrick up to the Sacred Heart 4 yard line.

Jackson Verleger stopped the first down Shamrock run for no gain. Brayden Simon’s second down run gained three yards before Caleb Strauch made the Irish tackle. The Irish line stopped the Shamrock third down run for no gain. On fourth down, Brady Leonard powered his way for a one yard touchdown run.

Charlie Thelen hiked the ball, Brady Leonard held the ball and Tyler Groothuis kicked the successful extra point to chop the Sacred Heart lead to 21-14 with 1:37 remaining in the third quarter.

Tyler Groothuis kicked the ball off to the Sacred Heart 11 yard line where Kadenn Rose snared it and returned it nineteen yards before he was tackled. Sacred Heart started its next series on its own 30 yard line.

Kadenn Rose went to the right and cut back to the middle for a fourteen yard gain and a first down before Brayden Simon tackled him.

Aidan Halliday gained four yards on a first down run to the right. Aiden Mosser made the tackle for the Shamrocks. On the final play of the third quarter, Riley Mosser and Charlie Thelen forced the Irish runner out of bounds for a three yard loss.

Sacred Heart entered the fourth quarter with a 21-14 lead. They had a third down situation with nine yards to go on the St. Patrick 43 yard line.

Jason Boge went to the left and broke a couple tackles on his way to a seven yard third down gain. Aiden Mosser made the Shamrock tackle. Aiden Mosser led a crew of St. Patrick tacklers to stop Sacred Heart’s fourth down run for a one yard gain that was short of what was needed for a first down.

St. Patrick took over the ball on downs on their own 35 yard line.

Brady Leonard ran a quarterback keeper on first down and gained five yards up the middle before Connor Stempkey made the stop. Brayden Simon earned two yards on a second down run to the left; Aidan Halliday made the tackle for Sacred Heart. Connor Stempkey covered on St. Patrick’s long third down incomplete pass. Brady Leonard punted on fourth down; his punt went out of bounds at the Sacred Heart 12 yard line where the Irish started their next series.

Sacred Heart was pushed five yards back by a delay of game penalty. Jason Boge went to the right for an eight yard gain on the first down replay. Charlie Thelen made the tackle for St. Patrick. On second down, Riley Mosser pushed the Irish runner out of bounds for no gain. Tyler Groothuis covered the receiver on third down and knocked the pass down. Aidan Halliday’s fourth down punted was downed by Kadenn Rose on the Irish 40 yard line.

Brayden Simon went around the left end for an eleven yard gain to earn a first down for the Shamrocks.

Hudson King gained four yards on a first down run to the right; Connor Stempkey made the tackle for Sacred Heart. Brady Leonard gained two yards on second down; Connor Stempkey made this stop as well. Jason Boge put a lot of pressure on the Shamrock quarterback and forced an incomplete third down pass. Brayden Simon bulled his way up the middle for a crucial seven yards on fourth down to give his Shamrocks a first down on the Sacred Heart 16 yard line.

Hudson King used an excellent block by Devin Cook to run for a sixteen yard touchdown. St. Patrick’s extra point kick was not successful. With 6:27 remaining in the game, St. Patrick cut the Sacred Heart lead to 21-20.

Tyler Groothuis kicked the ball to the Sacred Heart nine yard line where Kadenn Rose fielded it and ran for a twenty-six yard gain before Landon Simpson knocked him out of bounds. Sacred Heart had a first down on its own 35 yard line.

Aidan Halliday gained two yards on a first down run up the middle. Devin Cook made the tackle for St. Patrick. Aidan Halliday’s second down run gained five yards before before the Mosser Connection (Riley and Aiden) took him down. Kadenn Rose took a third down pitch to the left side for a fourteen yard gain before Brayden Simon knocked him out of bounds.

Sacred Heart earned a first down that allowed it to run some more plays to run precious time off the clock.

Aidan Halliday went around the right end for a four yard gain before Brayden Simon tackled him. Brayden Simon stopped the Irish second down run for no gain. Jason Boge burst through the middle for a thirteen yard gain and another Sacred Heart first down. Tyler Groothuis made the tackle for St. Patrick.

Aidan Halliday gained two yards on a first down run up the middle. Brayden Simon made the tackle for St. Patrick. Devin Cook stopped the Irish second down run for a one yard loss. Aidan Halliday gained seven yards on his third down run to the right. Landon Simpson zipped into the backfield to stop the Irish fourth down run for a six yard loss.

St. Patrick had a first down on their own 25 yard line.

A first down penalty set the Shamrocks back five yards. Jackson Verleger and Connor Stempkey covered on St. Patrick’s incomplete pass on the first down replay. Hudson King went to the right and cut back to the middle for a ten yard second down gain. On third down, Brayden Simon went up the middle for a three yard gain.

With barely over a minute to play in the game, St. Patrick needed two yards to earn the first down to keep their drive going. Connor Stempkey covered on the Shamrock incomplete fourth down pass.

With 1:18 remaining in the game, Sacred Heart got the ball back on their own 33 yard line.

They took a knee on the next two plays as the clock expired.

Sacred Heart won this tough battle by a 21-20 score to stay undefeated. St. Patrick drops to a 2-1 record.