Football Recap: Umatilla Starts Season with Win on the Road

Umatilla had to travel to play their first game of the season, but the final result was worth the trip. They claimed a resounding 53-6 win over the Stanton Blue Devils. The Bulldogs have seen this before: they got the W the last time they saw the Blue Devils on Friday, too.

A big part of Umatilla's victory came down to the chemistry between Bryce Norflee and his top target Ray Jenkins. Norflee rushed for 40 yards and a pair of touchdowns while Jenkins threw for 140 yards and two TDs on only 12 passes. Jenkins also deserves a shoutout for his performance on D, defending one pass and snagged two interceptions.

Wins are hard to come by when you can't run the rock, something Umatilla proved: they limited Stanton to a paltry 1.6 yards per carry. The team can thank Isaiah Brown for the heroic effort on defense: he. Umatilla didn't have any issues in that department, having averaged 7.5.

Umatilla didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Jenkins and Marquis Harrison.

Despite the loss, Stanton still got an impressive performance from Maikael Pitre, who picked up 79 receiving yards and one score. Pitre showed off some serious burst, lighting up the secondary with a catch for 59 yards.

Umatilla has already played their next matchup, a 48-6 win against Tenoroc on the 22nd. As for Stanton, they also didn't take long to hit the field again: they've already played their next contest, a 48-20 victory against Bishop Snyder on the 22nd.