Prep football recap: Boise State commit shines on The Blue. Boise now 3-0. Eagle rolls

Less than a month after Burley High senior Gatlin Bair committed to play football at Boise State, the Idaho native fulfilled a dream of playing on The Blue.

Bair led Burley (2-0) to a 65-30 victory over Vallivue (0-2) on Friday night in the final game of a tripleheader at Albertsons Stadium. Earlier in the day, Kendrick High (2-0) defeated Oakley High (1-1) in 8-man football, and Emmett (2-0) defeated Fruitland (0-2) by a 27-14 score.

Bair finished the night with 280 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns, two of which came in the first quarter. Bair’s hot start came after Vallivue took the lead on the game’s first play, courtesy of a 72-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Isaac Moore to junior wide receiver Austin Belnap.

“All you can do is the next play, a next play mentality. You can never be worried about what happens,” Bair told the Idaho Statesman. “Our mindset, especially as an offense, is that we’re not going to be stopped. If our defense needs help, we’re going to bail them out, and we’re going to go get a score, and we’re going to keep scoring.”

While Boise State fans perhaps got a glimpse of Bair’s future at Albertsons Stadium, the true star of the night was Burley junior quarterback Mack Jensen.

Jensen barely put a foot wrong all night in just his second varsity start, connecting on 21-of-23 pass attempts for 462 yards. The junior also ran for 115 yards, and finished the night with seven passing touchdowns and two rushing TDs.

Bair was Jensen’s favorite target, with the duo combining on six occasions.

“He played lights out, phenomenal,” Bair said. “I would be surprised if he didn’t get some offers after that. That was an incredible performance.”

While most of the game was played in the air, Vallivue sophomore Onix Carson put in a heavy shift on the ground for the Falcons. Aside from Moore, who ran the ball 11 times, Carson had the second-most rushing yards for the Falcons, ending with 52 yards on just four rushes.

Before Bair is suiting up in Boise State blue, he has one final season with the Bobcats — and has big plans.

“We would love to win a conference championship; it’s been 20 years since we beat Minico,” Bair said. “I’d love to win a couple of games, make a run in the playoffs, and I definitely think we can do that.”

EAGLE 34, KUNA 6

The No. 1-ranked Mustangs (2-0, 1-0) rolled on Thursday night in their 5A SIC River Division opener.

Noah Burnham needed just 12 carries to rack up 135 yards and two TDs. Austin Ramsey added 85 yards and a score on just four carries. And quarterback Davis Harsin finished 13-for-22 for 148 yards and two TDs, both to Seth Brock.

Makeo Sneddon (eight tackles) and Eli Mikita (seven tackles) led the Eagle defense, which surrendered only a single score in the second quarter. Stats for Kuna (2-1, 0-1) were not reported.

BOISE 10, OWYHEE 7

Harrison Hatten booted a 30-yard field goal with 5 minutes left in the fourth quarter to break the tie and lift Boise to its first 3-0 start since 1988.

Cooper Smith scored the lone touchdown for Boise (1-0 5A SIC River) on an 89-yard punt return in the first quarter. Boise’s defense came up with two second-half interceptions to keep the score low. Owyhee (2-1, 0-1) drove for the potential tying field goal in the final 20 seconds, but it missed.

Individual stats for both teams were not available at press time.

BORAH 35, NAMPA 6

The Lions (3-0, 1-0) rode Jevon Nelson once again Thursday night, saddling up the senior for 145 all-purpose yards and a pair of touchdowns in both teams’ 5A SIC River Division opener.

Borah quarterback Jacob Detwiler went 16-for-21 for 223 yards. Stats for Nampa (0-2, 0-1) were not reported.

POST FALLS 48, TIMBERLINE 22

Aidon Nixon had a hand in two touchdowns, and Heath Res added another. But the Wolves (0-3) lost their 13th straight game.

MIDDLETON 41, SKYVIEW 27

The Vikings (2-1) racked up 27 points in the first quarter and ran for 383 yards, averaging 9.6 yards per carry in a nonconference home win Thursday.

Cole Holman led the ground game, running for 201 yards and two touchdowns. He also caught a 14-yard touchdown pass.

Patxi Franks added 128 yards and a score on 13 carries. And Middleton quarterback Cash Weeks finished 7-for-18 for 116 yards and two TDs.

Cache Beus carried the Hawks (1-2), going 27-for-37 for 377 yards and four TDs. Mason Krahn hauled in 10 catches for 179 yards and three TDs. But Skyview was unable to run the ball, finishing with minus-21 yards on 21 carries.

BISHOP KELLY 49, CENTENNIAL 17

Peter Minnaert scored three touchdowns as the Knights (2-0) scored their second straight win over a 5A opponent. Centennial dropped to 0-3. No other details were reported.

Emmett linebacker Kenyon Carter fights off a tackle by Fruitland’s Austin Tesnohlidek and dives across the goal line to finish a pick-six interception Friday to end the Huskies’ 27-14 win during the the Battle in Boise at Albertsons Stadium.
Emmett linebacker Kenyon Carter fights off a tackle by Fruitland’s Austin Tesnohlidek and dives across the goal line to finish a pick-six interception Friday to end the Huskies’ 27-14 win during the the Battle in Boise at Albertsons Stadium.

EMMETT 27, FRUITLAND 14

Haus Davis made a one-handed grab for the go-ahead touchdown with 45 seconds left, and Emmett’s Kenyon Carter returned an interception for a TD as time expired in the second game of the Battle in Boise at Albertsons Stadium.

WEISER 37, LA GRANDE 0

The Wolverines (2-0) held their Oregon opponent to 145 total yards and kept them off the scoreboard for the road win.

Weiser ran for 226 yards, averaging 8.1 yards per carry. Kaleb Grove ran for 94 yards and two TDs, and Jayden Walker added 92 yards and two more scores. Walker also caught a touchdown.

HORSESHOE BEND 48, IDAHO CITY 8

Kaelun Jones dominated on both sides of the ball, running for 145 yards and two TDs while adding 18 tackles and a sack for the Mustangs (2-1). Horseshoe Bend quarterback Carson Drake threw for 133 yards and four TDs in the nonconference win.

TRI-VALLEY 58, RIMROCK 14

Ronaldo Gomez ran for 101 yards, and he threw for 55 more and a score in a loss for the Raiders (0-2). Kas Bachman added 118 total yards of offense and a touchdown for Rimrock.

Stats for Tri-Valley (1-1) were not reported.