Earlier this week, Puyallup High coach Gary Jeffers decided to change from a system where both his quarterbacks were sharing reps.
Saturday night’s game against Graham-Kapowsin threw a bit of a monkey wrench into the system.
After starting quarterback Trevor Lyon left early in the third quarter with an injury, backup Rhys Gervais stepped in and help lift the Vikings to a 49-34 win over the Eagles in an SPSL South matchup at Sparks Stadium.
Gervais threw for 125 yards and two touchdowns.
“The first two games we kind of traded quarterbacks … kind of going with a two quarterback system,” Jeffers said. “This week we made a decision we were going to go with one guy and then he got hurt.”
Lyon rushed for 143 yards on 14 carries before leaving with an injury early in the third quarter. The Vikings also lost starting running back Jeremy Misailegalu late in the second quarter with an apparent ankle injury. He finished with 61 yards on six carries.
But Elliott Telling stepped up to fill in. Telling’s 61-yard touchdown run with 5 minutes, 15 seconds to go in the third quarter gave Puyallup a 35-19 lead.
But the Eagles cut the Puyallup lead to eight after Jake Rosario’s 2-yard touchdown run and ensuing two-point conversion with 36 seconds left in the quarter.
The Vikings (2-1 overall, 2-1 SPSL) answered, as Gervais froze the defense with a pump fake and hit a wide-open Nic Wisor sprinting down the sideline for a 63-yard touchdown pass.
“It was a little nerve-wracking at first because me and Trevor had been switching reps the first two weeks,” Gervais said. “Trevor did a great job throughout the game, I just felt like I had to come in and take over. You don’t see many (high schools) going with two quarterbacks, but in our situation it’s going pretty good for us right now.”
Gervais added another touchdown pass – a 19-yard strike to Jamie Stidhams – later in the fourth quarter to push the lead to 49-27. Jeffers wasn’t sure who will start next week.
“I’m not going to fan the flame right now,” he said with a laugh. “Let’s just enjoy this. It’s a good problem to have.”
When Lyon did play, things went well for the Vikings. Puyallup took a 14-7 lead on a 1-yard touchdown run by Misailegalu with 3:24 left in the first half. The Eagles went three and out on the ensuing possession, and Puyallup got the ball back with 2:13 remaining on their own 35-yard line.
Less than one minute later, Lyon scampered 20 yards up the middle on a quarterback keeper, pushing the lead to 21-7 with 1:40 to go in the half.
But Graham-Kapowsin (0-3, 0-2 SPSL) wasn’t done. The Eagles answered with a quick score, as Drew Austin found a wide-open Connor McLeod with a 10-yard touchdown pass with 44 seconds left in the half, and the Eagles trailed 21-13 after the missed extra point.
Dylan Campbell picked off Lyon on the G-K 43 on the ensuing possession. Austin hit Kahlil Dawson at midfield with a short pass. Dawson bounced off a couple tacklers and cut across the field for a 57-yard touchdown with 15 seconds left.
The two-point conversion failed again, and Puyallup led 21-19 at the half.
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