CALDWELL, Idaho - The Carroll College Football team remained unbeaten in Frontier Conference play, out-gunning No. 12 College of Idaho 43-29 on Saturday afternoon at Simplot Stadium in Caldwell.
Jack Prka (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho / SR) led the Fighting Saints (6-1, 5-0) to their third-straight win over the Yotes (6-3, 4-2) in Caldwell in record-breaking fashion on Saturday.
If there was any doubt surrounding the effectiveness of Carroll quarterback
Jack Prka and the Saints offense, it was erased on Saturday. In a league filled with playmaking quarterbacks, Prka reminded everyone not to leave him out of the conversation.
The senior signal-caller had the most impressive game of his four-year career, demolishing Carroll's single-game passing yardage record, a mark he set just over a year ago.
Carroll elected to receive the opening kick, eager to erase the sting of last season's 35-21 loss to the Yotes at Nelson, and prove their position at the top of the standings is no fluke.
Right from the get-go, the Carroll offense was clicking. Prka and the Saints marched down the field on a 13-play 89-yard drive, but were ultimately stood up at the one yard line, coming away empty-handed on the game's opening drive.
After forcing a quick C of I punt, Carroll regained possession in plus-territory, but Prka would throw his second interception of the season as Willie Nelson ducked under a short out-route to set the Yotes up with a short field of their own.
For the third-consecutive time in the series, neither team put up points in the opening quarter.
Just two-and-a-half minutes into the second frame, the Yotes would open the scoring. Rylie Byington punched in a run from one yard out to cash in on the Carroll turnover, and C of I would go up 7-0.
The teams would exchange punts following the Yotes score, and midway through the second,
Chris Akulschin (Gig Harbor, Wash. / R-JR) would ignite the Carroll offense. Prka hit Akulschin on a play-action pass in the shadow of their own goal post, and the Saints' top receiving threat broke away from everyone for a one-play, 93-yard touchdown to even the game at 7-7. The 93-yard score was the longest of both Prka and Akulschin's career.
With 3:30 remaining in the first half,
Cameron Pruitt (Boise, Idaho / R-SR) made a game-changing play for the Carroll defense. Pruitt undercut a route in the middle of the field, picking off Andy Peters to set the Saints up in scoring position.
After a pair of completions to
Carson Ochoa (Yorba Linda, Calif. / R-JR) for 34 yards, Prka would bury into the line and across the goal line to give the Saints their first lead of the game, 14-7, with just 1:51 remaining in the half.
Peters and the Yotes offense responded, completing a pair of passes longer than 25-yards on a near perfectly executed two-minute drill. Peters matched Prka with a rushing touchdown of his own, and the teams would head into the break tied at 14-14.
Coming out of the break, the nation's No. 6 Defense (233.7 ypg), forced another quick stop to give Prka and the offense a chance to go back on top.
Gavin Vandenacre (Townsend, Mont. / R-SO), had a break-out performance on the afternoon, making a pair of big plays on Carroll's first possession of the second half. Prka hit the local product for a 42-yard bomb in the middle of the drive, then capped the 7-play 80-yard drive with a 19-yard strike to the big frame of Vandenacre to put Carroll ahead 21-14.
Peters extended several plays with his legs on the ensuing Yotes possession, eventually connecting with Tommy Hauser to tie things back up at 21-21, on a quick six-play drive that took just two minutes off the clock.
Again, the Saints had little issue moving the ball down the field on a porous Yotes defense. Prka engineered an eight-play, 72-yard response drive, completing passes to five different Saints.
Ryan Rickman (Salem, Ore. / R-SR) caught his second touchdown of the season, this one from nine-yards out, and Carroll went ahead 28-21.
Peters once again made drive-extending plays on the ensuing possession, and C of I quickly scored again. Hauser caught his second touchdown of the game, but the extra point attempt would be blocked by
Hunter Peck (Windsor, Colo. / SR), and Carroll would cling to a one-point lead, 28-27.
Chris Akulschin, who has been playing as well as anyone in the NAIA in recent weeks, added another big play to his five-catch, 223-yard performance. Akulschin caught his second long touchdown of the day, a 65-yard pitch and catch from Prka, to extend the Carroll lead to 35-27 heading into the fourth.
The Saints went backwards near their own goal line on their first possession of the fourth, and a high snap on the punt resulted in a safety that would bring C of I within one score, 35-29.
In the final frame, the Carroll defense flexed its muscle. Carroll mixed-up their defensive fronts, brought pressure from all angles, and disrupted nearly every play the Yotes attempted.
Braeden Orlandi (Valley Springs, Calif. / R-FR) grabbed his second interception of the season, and he wouldn't be the only Saint defender to find the football in the final quarter.
Gunner Guilio (Couer d'Alene, Idaho / R-SO) also pulled down his second pick of the year on the next C of I drive, with a relentless Carroll blitz forcing Peters to loft balls into coverage.
One final time, Prka and the offense went out and put points on the board. The Saints made good on Giulio's pick, putting together a 7-play, 50-yard scoring drive that culminated with Prka finding Ochoa in the corner of the end zone on another beautiful play-action call from 11 yards out. The Saints would go for two in an attempt to make it a 14-point game, converting on a Prka to Vandenacre pass, 43-29.
Caden Young would enter the game following an injury to the C of I starter Peters, driving the Yotes deep into Carroll territory with time dwindling.
Forrest Suero (Helena, Mont. / JR) put an end to any sort of a comeback effort, picking off a Young pass near the goal line to put an exclamation point on the first ranked-win of the year for the Saints.
Entering the game, Prka was the nation's leader in completion percentage at 72.9 percent. His 23-29, 461 yard, five touchdown performance improved his NAIA-best mark to 74 percent on the season. His 461 yards through the air tops his prior school record of 407 yards by 54, and his five touchdowns is a new career-high.
Chris Akluschin nearly matched the Carroll single-game receiving yard mark, finishing his day with 223 yards on just five grabs, while Vandenacre added 113 yards, and Ochoa finished with eight grabs for 83 yards.
Cam Pruitt led the Saints in tackles, finishing with 10 total to go along with his interception, with
Gunner Giulio right on his heels with nine tackles and a pick of his own.
Carroll dominated the stat sheet, out-gaining the NAIA's No. 8 offense 518 yards to 332 yards, holding the Yotes to 159 yards less than their season average.
With the win, the Saints remain atop the Frontier Conference standings, and will now divert all their attention to a senior day battle with No. 10 Southern Oregon next Saturday in Helena.
Visit www.carrollathletics.com for a preview of that game, and to stay up to date with everything going on in Carroll Athletics.
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