West Side’s Sage flashes All-State abilities on both sides of the ball in victory over South Fremont

DAYTON — A game that was billed as a matchup between two of the top offensive players in 3A football was decided by a pair of defensive plays.

The West Side Pirates (3-0, 0-0) turned a pair of takeaways into 14 points — the deciding scores in a 28-13 victory over the South Fremont Cougars (2-1, 0-0) at West Side High School.

Longtime West Side head coach Tyson Moser spoke after the game about the significance of the two defensive plays and ensuing scores.

“Turnovers are huge, then when you score on turnovers, that’s even bigger,” he said.

As for the overall performance of his team, Moser explained the pride he felt following the win.

“They executed the game plan perfectly — we wanted to kill the clock, keep their offense off the field,” he told EastIdahoSports.com. “I don’t know what the minutes were, but I know we ate a lot of clock tonight.”

With help from the two turnovers, stopping South Fremont’s first possession of each half, the Pirates finished the game with around 37 minutes time of possession — to roughly 11 minutes from the Cougars.

No player was more responsible for that effort than senior Drake Sage, who was selected First-Team All-State as a running back and Second-Team All-State at linebacker a season ago.

Sage intercepted South Fremont quarterback Cy Hill on the third play of the game, then nine plays later found the end zone for the game’s opening score.

“We played pretty good,” Sage told EastIdahoSports.com after the game. “We came out and got some momentum at the beginning (of the game) and just kept it. It was a good team win.”

Sage, the epitome of a workhorse, did not come off the field until late in the fourth quarter — playing nearly every down on both offense and defense, while also covering kicks and punts, returning both kicks and punts, and serving as the holder on field goals and extra points.

More than just playing nearly every down, he is productive every time he touches the ball.

Sage finished the game with 27 carries and one reception, with none of those touches resulting in less than a two-yard gain for the Pirates.

Moser said that Sage personifies West Side’s philosophy on offense.

“We just want to grind,” the coach said. “That’s our offense — our goal is three to four yards every carry, and I think we get that most of the time. And Drake’s got a knack for finding all of those little open seams.”

Something as simple as falling forward every time he’s tackled, Moser added, gives Drake an extra yard on every touch, “and that adds up over the course of a game.”

Sage, though, credited his offensive line.

“I think our line does most of the work — I just keep my legs moving, fight for extra yards,” he said.

The three-year starter finished with 208 yards and two scores on the ground, adding another five yards on his only catch.

Cougar quarterback Cy Hill would not let his team go down without a fight, however. The senior evaded pressure from the Pirate defense all night to complete 16 of 30 pass attempts for 180 yards and two scores. He added another 55 yards on 12 carries.

Hill leaned heavily on senior Nash Brower, who caught seven passes for 77 yards but dropped a perfectly thrown ball in the end zone, and sophomore Creed Inns, who hauled in five passes for 67 yards and a score.

Despite seeing South Fremont’s passer post solid numbers, Moser said he was very pleased with how his defense slowed the Hill-led South Fremont offense.

“Our defense played awesome — our defense did a great job tonight,” Moser said. “That’s probably the best quarterback we’re going to see, and South Fremont is a good team.”

Moser pointed to a stop in the closing second of the first half, sending West Side into the break up 14-7, as the biggest momentum swing of the night.

After moving the ball 70 yards with less than a minute running off the clock, the Cougars got the ball inside the West Side 5-yard line before they were turned away on the final play of the second quarter.

The Pirates scored on the opening possession of the second half to capitalize and maintain that momentum.

They did not yield the Cougars’ second score of the game until the final minute of the fourth quarter.

West Side traveled to South Fremont last season, falling 34-30 on Sept. 5 — the Pirates’ lone regular-season loss. Sage said after the game that there was some added excitement following Friday’s revenge win.

“We don’t lose at home, and we don’t lose to a team two years in a row, so we knew that we had to come in and get the win,” he said.

The Pirates will be at home again next week, when they host the Ririe Bulldogs (1-2, 0-0).