By Wayne E. Rivet

Staff Writer

Brock Gibbons clearly remembers a Midnight Madness moment when championship coach and current Lake Region Athletic Director Paul True gave a motivational speech to athletes.

“He told us it’s about a process. It’s not about thinking about playoffs. It’s about every day at practice playing like it’s our last day of football. All of us, just play every day as hard as we can. That’s what gets us better,” Gibbons said as he sat on the sideline bench as teammates headed off the field Friday night. “We’re just getting started. Everyone is going to know we’re the real deal. We showed it on the field tonight. We’re a scary football team.”

Gibbons was the trigger man for the LR offense, rushing for 185 yards and scoring a touchdown, while also tossing two TD passes as the Lakers thumped previously undefeated Spruce Mountain 38-0.

It was a sweet Homecoming win on a night when the game itself teetered on ugliness as the two squads combined for 7 turnovers while the Lakers were flagged 15 times for 140 yards.

The win improved the Lakers to 3-1, a mark the program hasn’t seen in several years. Despite some early breakdowns in the trenches, the Lakers wore the Phoenix down and dominated, holding Spruce to just 42 total yards, 1 of 12 passing for 3 yards and 3 first downs.

“The O-line took control of the game. We figured out some blocking — what they were doing — and from there we took control. Those guys up front are dogs,” Gibbons credited the linemen. “They’re the ones making all the holes for me and the other guys to run through. It’s all them…Those guys work the hardest. They’re having the most fun and they’re doing the hardest job. Those guys bust their butts every day.”

There was excitement in the air as Little Lakers from the local youth league lined up with Laker cheerleaders to cheer the blue and gold as they entered the field.

The defenses ruled early, as nine possessions went nowhere, either short-circuited by penalties or turnovers. The teams traded back-to-back fumbles as Laker Sean Murphy recovered a mishandled snap at the SM-44, but LR returned the favor on another bad exchange.

Gibbons tried to thread a pass over the middle to tight-end Jackson Libby, but it was picked off with 2:35 left in the first quarter. No worries. Spruce running back Austin Armandi was popped by Laker linebacker Nolan Cummings (7 tackles) and fumbled, recovered by end Braydan Wilson.

The Lakers finally snapped the stalemate when Gibbons blocked a punt, and Libby pounced on the loose ball in the end zone for a touchdown with 10:16 left in the half. Gibbons rifled a dart on receiver Jaiden Meehan for the 2-point conversion.

Following a defensive stop as Wilson tipped a fourth-down pass, the Lakers scored an unlikely touchdown in the closing seconds of the half.

Gibbons crashed off the left side for 9 yards on a fourth down call to keep the drive alive at the SM-17. With no timeouts left, Gibbons scrambled to his right, shook off a possible sack and dumped the ball to Landon Ross, who motored 7 yards.

As the final seconds ticked off the clock, the officials called for a measurement. Clock stopped. The football barely passed the chains for a first down. LR coaches yelled for the offense to get set and to snap the ball as soon as the referee blew his whistle to start the clock.

As the whistle blew, the ball was snapped. Gibbons fired a pass to the left, and it was snagged by end Brayden Wilson for a TD with no time left on the scoreboard.

“We prepare for that stuff every day,” Gibbons said. “Yeah, 100% knew I was going to throw to Braydan. The coaches set us up perfectly. We just executed. We did what we’re supposed to do there.”

Precision!

And a little luck. Had Ross been tackled before reaching the first down stick or had he gained 8 yards, the play clock would have kept moving and the half ended. But, because the spot was close to a first down, the officials’ call for a measurement stopped the clock, giving the Lakers a chance for one more play.

Gibbons added the two-point conversion, connecting with Sean Murphy to put the Lakers up 16-0.

The Lakers iced the game by giving the keys to the G-Train. Brock Gibbons rushed 12 times, including bowling over a defender to gain 3 yards on a fourth down play to keep the drive alive, while also firing a 13-yard strike to end Jackson Libby. Gibbons hammered ahead for 3 yards on another fourth down, scoring a touchdown with 4:24 left in the third. His 2-point run made it 24-0.

“Brock is running faster, stronger. He is more alert. He’s playing at a much higher level than last year,” Assistant Coach Ben Mullins said. “The team has bought in to what we want done, and they’re going to do whatever it takes to win.”
Mullins noted that some guys who normally start didn’t because “this wasn’t the style of play that suited them best,” he said.

“We had guys go in, took those spots and really made things happen. We have a lot of unselfish football players,” Coach Mullins added.

Head Coach Mike Meehan echoed Mullins’ comments about Gibbons.

“He’s just a tremendous athlete. His football IQ is through the roof. His mental composure is on point. He picks guys up, doesn’t ride anybody if they make a mistake. He just balls out every play,” Coach Meehan said.

Gibbons said his approach is simple. “I’ve been just trying to get downhill — four yards on each carry — follow my blockers and trust those guys to make the holes. That’s what we go for. If we get more, that’s a bonus,” he said.

The athletic signal caller can also burn a defense through the air. After Sean Murphy recovered a fumble at the SM-16, Gibbons lobbed a pass to the end zone where receiver Jaiden Meehan boxed out a Phoenix defender and won the jump ball for a TD.

“Jaiden, that kid is a stud. He tells me just give him a chance to make a catch. You throw the ball up and that kid is going to do whatever he can to get that ball. Most of the time, he’s catching the ball,” Gibbons said.

Up 32-0, there was no taking the foot off the pedal for the Lakers. Linebacker Nolan Cummings put the hammer down on Spruce running back Owen Kelvey, sending him backwards just after being handed the football for a 2-yard loss.

“It felt great. I know I made a good hit when I can feel it — that’s always the best part,” Cummings said. “I try to always help up players because you can knock them down but you help them up always because you have to stay respectful.”

For the last three years, the Lakers lost their Homecoming game. And when things started poorly, Cummings said there was no panic amongst his LR teammates.

“We’ve really had each other’s back. There’s good camaraderie with our group. We all just stick with it and don’t let bad plays get to us because we know there’s always a next one,” he said. “The only way you can push yourself is by pushing each other, which is what we’ve been doing.”

The Lakers tacked on one final score with a 10-play, 73-yard drive with Sean Murphy scoring from 2 yards out. The drive featured six Gibbons carries, the final one good for 28 yards.

“We never come out with a doubt in our minds. We knew this was going to be a grind. We knew we had to grind harder. We just played our game. We had fun. It’s what we love to do,” Gibbons said.

Coach Mike Meehan was all smiles as his club appears to be developing an identity and an understanding what it takes to win.

“They’re all big, but this one particularly, it’s a very big win coming off a season we had last year. Huge win for the program. I couldn’t be more happy. These boys really, really feel like they have something to prove,” Coach Meehan said.

After watching game film of Spruce Mountain, Coach Meehan felt his Lakers could overwhelm the Phoenix with their physical play and overall depth.

“We felt we were tougher and we felt we could wear them down — which we did,” Coach Meehan said. “Early on, we were little confused upfront on our run plays. It was really just a matter of correcting a few things. It did take a little bit longer than we wanted it to, but we made adjustments, we got it fixed, and holes started to open up.”

Coach Meehan added, “Running the ball is our game plan. We want to play hard, tough-nosed football. I don’t care if coaches know we are going to run the ball. But as you see, we can throw the ball too. We have confidence in our kids, and they’re building confidence in themselves. It’s through the roof right now. You can tell coming into the season these kids want it. I’ve coached most of these kids since they were in middle school, and I’ve watched them come so far. They just have to play together. They’re starting to learn to do it and they’re having fun doing it.”