It's not easy going through a winless football season. Each week,
waiting for Friday to roll around to redeem oneself can seem like
eternity.
So imagine six straight weeks of losing. For a teen, that seems like a lifetime.
Ty Fox, Crater
Courtesy photo
But the
Crater (Central Point, Ore.) High School football team kept plugging away while putting up big
numbers only to come up short. The Comets lost some tough ones, 35-32 to
start the season against Tualatin and 61-45 to North Medford.
On
Friday, the host Comets were finally rewarded with a resounding 63-34
win over Thurston thanks to another monster game from senior quarterback
Ty Fox, who threw for 392 yards and seven touchdowns.
For
their perseverance and big victory, Crater has been selected the
MaxPreps Oregon Team of the Week, presented by the Oregon National
Guard.
Crater coach John Beck said his team just stuck to the plan.
"We knew we have a good team," he said. "But we were making one or two mistakes against very good teams to keep us out of the win column. (We) clean(ed) up the mistakes and focused on getting better every day."
Fox, who is the state leader in total yards, completed 26 of 45 passes, including three touchdowns to
Kory Bennett, who hauled in 10 passes for 159 yards.
Dylan Morgan, a junior, added eight catches for 133 yards and two scores, while seniors
Dallin George and
Matt Dent added TD catches as well.
The
game featured a whopping 1,088 yards, including 561 by Thurston. The
Crater defense intercepted five passes to preserve the victory.
The
Comets raced to a 28-7 lead after one quarter, saw that lead dwindle to
35-28 at halftime, before putting the game away with three unanswered
touchdowns in the third quarter. What did Beck say to the team at halftime?
"We had to be more opportunistic on defense," he said. "We felt our offense was clicking. We ended up creating seven turnovers against a good team. Giving our offense opportunities to score is what really opened it up for us. It was great execution by by the offense and a great game plan by the offensive coaching staff."
Fox, a 6-foot-2, 215-pounder,
leads the state both in passing yards (2,236) and total yards (2,438).
He's completed 154 of 280 passes with 11 touchdowns. He's also rushed
for 202 yards and four scores.
"He is a team guy first," Beck said of Fox. "He has a great arm and is a really good competitor. He has fun with the position and loves to compete."
Under Beck, the Comets have won 49 and lost 53 since 2004 with a pair of 9-2 seasons in 2006 and 2009.
MaxPreps editorial assistant Kirstin Beal contributed to this report.
