Box Score
May 18, 2002 Pocatello Silverbacks vs. Madison Lionz

POCATELLO 20 MADISON 17

REXBURG - Jeff Belnap and Brock Gunter did it again. The most impressive thing about Belnap and Gunter this game wasn't so much their stat line. Belnap did pass for 266 yards and a touchdown pass and rush for 64 yards and two touchdowns and Gunter did make some amazing stabs in catching 9 passes for 139 yards and a great struggling stretch for Pocatello's first score. No, what was MOST impressive was Jeff Belnap's 65-yard drive with 58 seconds on the clock to score the go ahead touchdown with 16 seconds left in the game to defeat the spirited Madison Lionz 20-17 before a raucous partisan Madison crowd.

It is said that football is a game of inches, it was never more true when the Lionz had possession of the ball on their own 38-yard line with less than two minutes remaining in the game and a first down. The Lionz knew that with Pocatello down to two timeouts, all they had to do was make a first down... and they did, the first play, Josh Black broke a 17-yard run to the Pocatello 45-yard line. But now they needed another first down. After three runs the Lionz has a 4th down and 1/2 a yard (18 inches) to seal the victory over the defending league champions. Pocatello's ferocious defense stepped up, lead by Al Covington (7 tackles), Spencer Perry (6-1/2 tackles), Shaun O'Hearn (5-1/2 tackles), Tyler Wheatley (6-1/2 tackles), Chris Howerton (4-1/2 tackles, 1-1/2 sacks) and the Sutton Brothers (Troy - 5 tackles and Trent - 4-1/2 tackles), a defense that held the Lionz to 267 yards of offense, the Silverbacks held on 4th down setting up Belnap's miraculous drive. The drive started with Belnap hitting Reggie Jackson on a 10-yard out route. Jackson also had a great day, a day which saw him rush for 126 yards and receive another 52 yards, but also a day that saw him muff a punt near his end zone early in the second quarter, a hustling Heber Hepworth of the Lionz recoved the muff in the end zone putting the Lionz up 10-0 at the time. Jackson was also sweeping into the end zone in the first half, when Madison's Matt Landon stripped the ball from him at the two-yard line, recovered by Spencer French to kill a Pocatello scoring chance. However, following Jackson's reception on that final drive, the Silverbacks then got into scoring position after Belnap broke pocket right and rambled for 25-yards, then he hit Gunter on a 15-yard crossing route setting up the Silverbacks at the Madison 15 with 23 seconds left. The next play he found Gunter in the left corner near the pylon. Gunter made a juggling catch near the sideline and went out at the one. With 18 seconds remaining, Belnap took it in over Eric Hancock for the win.

Madison would have last hope, however. Unbelelievably, after Madison had a short kickoff return to their own 25, Dave Allen (5-15-0-140-1) found John Clark down the right sideline for a 50-yard completion to the Pocatello 35-yard line with only 3 seconds left. Allen's "Hail Mary" on the last play, however, could not get the right defelections of the Pocatello secondary and trickled harmlessly to the soft turf of Madison's Ferguson Field. For Madison, tail back, Dave Jensen had a great day, rushing for 84 yards and catching a screen pass and racing 71 yards for a touchdown, that would put the Lionz up 17-0 with 8:13 remaining in the second quarter. Madison's defense, which employed a "bend but not break" philosophy, giving up 511 yards of offense to the Silverbacks, was lead by Tagg Williams (9-1/2 tackles), Derrick Dye (7 tackles), Andrew Ulberg (5-1/2 tackles) and Rodney Peach (5 tackles). The best all-purpose game for the Lionz, however, may have been by Heber Hepworth. Besides the great play on the muffed punt, he contributed on defense and offense and had two great kickoff returns, one he almost broke, returning it 50 yards to the Pocatello 35 after Pocatello's first score. The Lionz (5-2) get the bye week before hosting what will be a motivated Helena Titans (3-3) team as the Silverbacks (6-1) get a bye weekend before traveling to play another team scrambling for a playoff spot, the Mini-Cassia Bulldawgs (3-4).

Pocatello

Madison

Scoring Summary:

First Quarter:

Madison: Drake 39-yard field goal 3:25

Second Quarter:

Madison: Hepworth recovered muffed punt in end zone (Drake kick) 11:36
Madison: Jensen 71-yard pass from D.Allen (Drake kick) 8:13
Pocatello: Gunter 22-yard pass from Belnap (kick failed) 5:05

Third Quarter:

Pocatello: Belnap 1-yard run (Belnap kick) 10:13

Fourth Quarter:

Pocatello: Belnap 1-yard run (Belnap kick) 0:18

	Pocatello	Madison
First Downs	21	9
Rushes, Yards	38-245	36-138
Passes	19-36-2	5-15-0
Passing Yards	266	140
Sacked-Yds Lost	0-0	2-11
Total Net Yards	511	267
Punts, Average	3-38.5	3-45.0
Penalties, Yards	3-35	6-50
Fumbles, Lost	6-2	1-0

Individual Statistics: Rushing: Pocatello - R.Jackson 23-126, Belnap 5-64, Wheatley 8-42, Anderson 2-13. Madison - D.Jensen 21-84, Allen 5-25, Black 7-20, Hepworth 1-5, Simmons 2-3, French 1-1.
Passing: Pocatello - Belnap 19-36-2-266-1. Madison - D.Allen 5-15-0-140-1.
Receiving: Pocatello - Gunter 9-139, Fillingame 5-53, R.Jackson 4-52, Palmer 1-22. Madison - D.Jensen 1-71, Clark 2-53, Graham 1-13, Harris 1-3.

Tackles: Pocatello - Covington 7, Wheatley 6.5 (1/2 sack), Perry 6.5, O'Hearn 5.5, Troy Sutton 5, Howerton 4.5 (1.5 sacks), Trent Sutton 4.5, Harris 2.5, Crangle 2, Anderson 2, R.Jackson 2, Byington 2, Bowen 1. Madison - Williams 9.5, Dye 7, Ulberg 5.5, Peach 5, Jones 4.5, Landon 4.5, Rammell 4, Davis 4, Thompson 4, French 3.5, Simmons 2, Hilder 1, Egan 1, Hepworth 1.

Interceptions: Pocatello - None. Madison - Dye.

Missed Field Goals: Pocatello - Belnap (42 yards).