Bremen “bombed” early by Rensellaer in football Regional

Rensellaer had the long 2.5 hour trek to Bremen this year for the Regional Championship game.  “Bus lag” was not an issue for the visiting Bombers in a 48-13 route of the Lions.

The Rensselaer offense that has averaged more than 55 points per game this season got stopped on a three-and-out on its first possession, and only scored 14 points in the second half of Friday’s Class 2A regional at Bremen.

Renssellaer forced six turnovers and produced 400 yards of total offense by games end.

It’s the second straight regional title for Rensselaer (13-0) and fourth appearance in the semistate overall, all of them since 2009.   It will be the first of those final four games held at home as the Bombers meet Lafayette Central Catholic on Friday.

Renssellaer seem to have everyone contribute in the ballgame, specifically in the first half.  But one Bomber standout was Rylan Arihood who rushed for 137 yards and four touchdowns to bring his season totals to 37 TDs and 1,844 yards.

Another standout was Trevor Hill.  He had 140 total yards and two big-play touchdowns — a 44-yard scamper on a shovel pass from quarterback Dylan Wright for the first score of the night, and a 59-yard run for the Bombers’ first score of the second half after the offense got stagnant for a few series.

It just wasn’t Bremen’s night as getting momentum was even a struggle, despite consistent attempts.  One of those tough breaks occured when Garrett Eldridge  and Dylan Wright, (who had a big play of his own, granted accidental) — late in the second quarter on fourth down.   Wright was back to punt, but hesitated, and it was enough for a Bremen defender to block his attempt. But the ball went right back to Wright, who rambled 10 yards for a first down.   Bombers later scored on that same drive.

Six turnovers by Bremen, five interceptions were thrown by QB Matt Box which proved to be to costly in the end for the Lions.

Bremen mustered just 31 yards of offense and moved the chains just once in the first half. Fleming ripped a pass away from a receiver, which he took back for a second-half touchdown, only to have it nullified by a penalty.

Bremen finishes the season 7-5.  The future looks bright for Bremen as 95% of their starting offense & defense will return, including one of the better 1-2 punches of Box and Ryan Topper offensively.