Westside showed why they were the number one team this week as they steamrolled the Elkhorn South Storm 45-3. This game was the biggest game in terms of two of the top teams facing off, but also a rematch of last year’s state championship. Westside won that game 56-0 in the biggest blowout in class A state championship history so Elkhorn South came in with a chip on its shoulder. Westside held one too in defending their home field.
It was what people expected at the start of the game, as the only points that were on the board in the first quarter came from a 44 yard Everest Scherlizin field goal. But then the Warriors blew it open in the second quarter after a turnover. Quinton Warren picked off the Storm and took it to the house for a pick six which was his third on the season already. Then the next offensive drive was only one play, a short check down to running back Tay Tay Jenkins who went all the way 76 yards. “We saw that the defense was blitzing on second down,” Jenkins said. “I slipped to the outside and was wide open. I broke a tackle and was gone.”
Later in the quarter after a Joe Simon interception once more it was Jenkins who caught a screen pass and took it 49 yards to make it 24-0. Jenkins came into the game with less than 100 receiving yards all year and he finished the win with 127 receiving yards on only three receptions. Right after the score the Storm’s running back fumbled the ball in the air where Bryson Williams got it and returned it for the touchdown to make it 31-0. Westside wasn’t done, however. They got the ball with under two minutes in the half and were going to run the clock down but Jenkins who was initially stopped in a sea of gold and white bounced off close to four defenders and out-sped everyone to the end zone for a 76 yard rushing touchdown. It was his third of that quarter and put a bowtie on the Warriors 35 point half.
The second half didn’t have too much fanfare. With the clock running after halftime the second half went by quickly. The defense only gave up a field goal and a long touchdown pass from Braylen Warren to Mo Purify II capped off the Warriors scoring and resulted in the final score of 45-3.
Westside put up a scoring clinic, which they usually do. But it was more surprising since before the game the Storm defense had only given up 33 points in the six games they won. Westside put up 45 and a couple of them on defensive scores. The key though was Jenkins who went for a mind blowing 288 yards from scrimmage with 132 rushing yards, 127 receiving yards and 29 kickoff return yards. On the year he has 795 rushing yards and has been the go to in more recent games for Westside. Warren threw for 234 yards and three touchdowns himself. Other than Jenkins, Purify was the leading receiver hauling in two passes for 64 yards and a touchdown. Westside really shined on the defense however, getting two defensive scores, one scoop and score and a pick six. They held the Storm to only 180 yards and only allowed three points stifling the usually solid Storm offense. “We have a lot of great defensive players,” Jenkins said. “They show effort, toughness and we wouldn’t be here without them.”
With the win Westside moves to 27 consecutive wins which is one win away from tying the class A record for most wins in a row. Westside’s next matchup is against the heated rival Creighton Prep junior jays. The two teams have been playing since 1958 and recently the Warriors have dominated the series with their last loss to the Jays coming in 2017. Jenkins transferred from Prep last year and is looking to go off against his former team. They will add another chapter to this historic rivalry as they will duke it out at Kinnick stadium at Omaha Northwest.
