West Salem's Salvador Herrera breaks away from the Sprague defense on Friday. (Photo by Blake Thiess)
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In all his years in the West Salem football program, from the freshman team to junior varsity on up, Salvador Herrera had never beaten Sprague.
He took out four years of frustration on the Olympians on Friday.
Herrara rushed for a school-record 258 yards and five touchdowns on 22 carries as No. 8 West Salem beat No. 3 Sprague 61-52 in an exhilarating Central Valley Conference contest.
“This is the best game I’ve ever played,” the 5-foot-9, 180-pound Herrera said. “I’m at a loss right now. This is the biggest win of my life.”
In a video-game style display of offense – the teams combined for more than 1,000 yards of total offense – West Salem (5-1, 3-0 CVC) constructed a 41-14 lead late in the first half only to witness Sprague (4-1, 2-1 CVC) soar back in the second half.
More Herrera heroics then clinched it for the Titans.
Herrera and the West Salem ground attack utilized a new single-back formation with two tight ends and gained 403 total yards. The Titans scored on nine of 11 possessions in the game.
“They had a good game plan,” Sprague coach Robin Hill said. “Defensively, we didn’t do a good job of taking care of our own individual responsibilities, and so they took advantage of us. We didn’t get as many turnovers or stops as we needed to win the game.
West Salem's Brett Smith returned after missing the last two games. (Photo by Blake Thiess)
“Obviously, he (Herrera) took advantage of something up front. He’s a really low-to-the-ground, quick runner. He’s like (Oregon State’s) Jacquizz (Rodgers). He’s hard to find behind his linemen, he has good cutbacks, and he’s fast and tough. He was absolutely the player of the game for them.”
Junior quarterback Brett Smith aided Herrera’s efforts. After missing two games with a broken bone in his throwing arm, Smith ran for 105 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. He was just 3-of-5 passing for 74 yards and a score.
“Coming into the game, we knew we weren’t going to throw as much, so we had to utilize Sal (Herrera),” Smith said. “I felt confident in the guys, confident in our coaches and our scheme. This is the best game the (offensive) line has ever played. I’m really happy with our guys, and I’m happy with how we responded to their rally.”
Sprague scored three times in the first six minutes of the third quarter to make it 41-39. In contrast to the Titans, the Olympians were most effective through the air. Senior quarterback Jeff Kidd was 29-of-38 passing for 434 yards and three touchdowns. Senior tight end Jeff Weisenhaus caught 14 passes for 235 yards.
“It hurts to lose, but it’s a blessing in disguise,” Kidd said. “It showed a lot of character. I’m proud of them. Our goal is still state, like everyone else, and that’s still possible.”
Smith scored on a nine-yard scramble in the third quarter to halt Sprague’s momentum and extend West Salem’s lead up to 48-39.
But Sprague got within two twice in the fourth quarter. The Olympians cut it to 48-46 on Parker Miles’ two-yard run. Herrera followed with a 42-yard touchdown run to give West Salem a 54-46 lead, and a 42-yard touchdown pass from Kidd to Weisenhaus closed the gap to 54-52 with 6:31 remaining.
Sprague quarterback Jeff Kidd nearly led his team back from a 41-21 deficit at halftime. (Photo by Blake Thiess)
West Salem’s final score to go ahead by nine came with 2:31 to play on a 25-yard run by Herrera after a seven-play drive that covered 70 yards, highlighted by Smith’s 30-yard scamper into Olympians’ territory.
Sprague’s final drive reached the West Salem 18 before time ran out.
“Those guys up front came off the field after that first series and said, ‘Coach, keep running the ball. We can move these guys,” said West Salem coach Shawn Stanley, who played at Sprague under Hill in the late 1980s and coached under him from 1997-2000. “Sometimes with a program like Sprague, there’s an aura around them and kids buy into that. I don’t think our kids bought into that. They respect them. But they knew what they were capable of.”
And Stanley didn’t mind that he had to sweat this one out despite his offense scoring 61 points.
West Salem's Salvador Herrera watches on the sidelines during his team's 61-52 win. (Photo by Blake Thiess)
“I love winning like that because it stretches your kids, physically and mentally,” he said. “It was a battle. To be up, then to be down and rise to the occasion is the biggest thing I take away from it.”
FIRST QUARTER
WS – Salvador Herrera 15 run (John Herring kick) 11:42
WS – Kadin Rabago 1 run (Herring kick) 6:22
S – Parker Miles 2 run (Miles kick) 2:28
WS – Herrera 70 run (Herring kick) 2:07
SECOND QUARTER
WS – Chase Fowler 10 pass from Brett Smith (Herring kick) 11:03
S – Chad Coburn 11 run (Miles kick) 7:10
WS – Herrera 9 run (kick blocked) 5:23
WS – Rabago 2 run (Herring kick) 1:52
S – Jeff Kidd 1 run (Miles kick) 0:04
THIRD QUARTER
S – Brian Conklin 25 pass from Kidd (kick blocked) 11:32
S – Coburn 62 pass from Kidd (kick failed) 8:41
S – Miles 3 run (kick blocked) 6:05
WS – Smith 9 run (Herring kick) 3:56
FOURTH QUARTER
S – Miles 2 run (Miles kick) 10:50
WS – Herrera 42 run (kick blocked) 9:16
S – Jeff Weisenhaus 42 pass from Kidd (Coburn run failed) 6:31
WS – Herrera 25 run (Herring kick) 2:31
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