Michelsen, Plano rout Mesquite, 51-17
Posted on 22. Aug, 2009 by Brian Porter in Varsity
Connor Michelsen completed two touchdown passes and rushed for another score Friday as Plano defeated Mesquite, 51-17, in a preseason scrimmage at John Clark Stadium.
Alex LaButis (46) and the Plano defense held Mesquite long enough for the offense to jump out to a 31-3 lead en route to a 51-17 victory Friday. (ThadFenton.com)
Plano will open the regular season at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Irving ISD Stadium against Irving MacArthur.
Michelsen has been locked in a battle for the starting quarterback position since the spring. Plano coach Jaydon McCullough had said the starter would be the one who could execute, move the offense and score, but he had also said it was possible both quarterbacks would play in the season opener.
Bordonaro went 3-of-7 passing on the first possession of the game, but the first-team offense was forced to punt and then had a sustained drive stall inside the Mesquite 10. All three Bordonaro passes were completed to Holt Hoetger.
Then Michelsen made his case. His first series resulted in a score, although he had little to do with it. Jared
The backfield combination of Jared Kirchmeier (33) and Kevin Merrill looked to be a winner Friday night. (ThadFenton.com)
Kirchmeier, who started at halfback, got the call on six straight carries to move Plano from its own 30 to the Mesquite 9, where it took Kevin Merrill one carry to find the end zone.
But it didn’t start so well for Michelsen. He tossed an interception on his first pass attempt. Then his second pass attempt was nullified by a penalty. But he came back to complete a pass to Matt Johnson before hooking up with Robert Robinson on a 55-yard touchdown pass.
Richard Lagow, the junior varsity starter at quarterback, came on and found Kobie Douglas on a touchdown pass. L.J. Ausama scored a rushing touchdown and the rout was on as Plano grabbed a 31-3 lead.
Michelsen came back with the starting offense and behind Kirchmeier and Merrill marched the team inside the Mesquite 20 before completing a third down pass to Robinson for a 19-yard touchdown strike and a 38-10 lead. Michelsen also scored on a 1-yard dive in overtime.
Robert Robinson displayed his game-breaking ability on a pair of touchdown catches Friday in a 51-17 scrimmage victory over Mesquite. (ThadFenton.com)
The defense quietly went about its work. Mesquite managed only a field goal off the opening two series from its first- and second-team. It didn’t reach the end zone until late in the scrimmage after the Plano offense had tallied 28 unanswered points. The defense allowed a second touchdown, but in the overtime session linebacker Kevin Smith got a stop with a fumble recovery.
Much ado had been made of an offensive line which had no returning starters. Kendall Hamrick steadied that line throughout the scrimmage at center and as the deep snapper. The line did not give up a sack and had only one rushing attempt go for loss, demonstrating the success they had throughout the scrimmage.
The receiving corps was somewhat quiet. Holt Hoetger opened the scrimmage with three receptions, all from Bordonaro, for 65 yards. Steele Hoetger was held out of the scrimmage for precautionary reasons but should be ready for the opener. Robinson had two touchdown grabs.
But the running game stole the show. After somewhat of a slow start, the combination of Kirchmeier and Merrill started breaking off yards in chunks. Kirchmeier had an early gain of 23 yards and a gain of 21 more in overtime, for example.
