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Montgomery beat rival Hughesville at home in Week 1 action 24-0

By Chris Masse 8 min read

MONTGOMERY--Evan Hugar missed 11 games as a defender last year and Lincoln Miller two.

Both were back Friday against Hughesville; Hugar at defensive tackle and Miller at linebacker. What a difference they made.

And now, a defense which allowed the fewest yards and points among District 4 teams last year, may be even better.

Hugar and Miller set up real estate in the backfield throughout Friday’s season opening game at Red Raider Stadium and ignited a swarming unit as Montgomery blanked Hughesville, 24-0. Hugar and Miller combined on a sack; frequently pressured the quarterback and both made multiple tackles for loss as Montgomery allowed just 72 yards and produced its fifth shutout over the past two seasons.

Trace Furman ran for 101 yards and a touchdown, while Josh Knoebel (88 yards) and Briar Persing (86) both scored and went over 80.

"I got hurt against Hughesville in the first game last year and just played offense, so I was glad to be back," Hugar said. "I love defense."

"A lot of my job is the same thing as his (Hugar’s); get physical and help the other guys get tackles," Miller said. "We’re trying to get the physicality going. That’s our mantra for the defense is to be physical."

They sure were Friday. Montgomery surrendered just three first downs, two coming on one fourth quarter series. The Raiders limited Hughesville to 2.6 yards per play and allowed just two plays go more than 10 yards, the longest a Nick Stubbs 15-yard scramble in which he avoided a sack.

It was a fabulous collective effort, but Hugar and Miller especially stood out. Both often do the dirty work which is critical to winning but can get overlooked by the casual observer. That includes offensively where Hugar starts along the line and Miller often is a punishing lead blocker.

But both were hard to miss Friday.

Hugar was a beast in the middle of Montgomery’s defense, frequently getting penetration and either shutting down inside runs and/or forcing hurried passes. It was a breakout performance for the junior who was part of a stout offensive line a year ago and now looks to be one of the area’s premier interior defenders.

"Evan Hugar on defense was definitely a playmaker tonight," Montgomery coach Joel Knoebel said. "We tucked him in on offense last year, but this year we’ve turned him loose on defense and you saw it tonight. We got a great effort out of him and he made some plays."

So did Miller.

In fact, Hugar and Miller often were a two-man wrecking unit in the backfield, combining for a 12-yard sack to end a second quarter series and nearly getting a few others. Miller forced five fumbles a year ago and his prowess coming off the edge brilliantly complemented the push players like Hugar and Connor Jarrett were getting up the middle.

"That senior class was great last year, so we need guys to step up," said Miller, a four-year starter. “There were a lot of freshmen out there and they all did well. That should help us moving forward."

Sophomore Gage Furman is one of those promising young players and flourished as a freshman last year. He made one of the game’s biggest plays late in the second quarter following a Carter Gordner interception at the 5-yard line. A play later, Furman drilled the ball-carrier, forced a fumble and recovered it. That set up his older brother Trace who bounced off a defender and scored on a five-yard touchdown run which put Montgomery up, 14-0 at halftime.

An exciting Hughesville defense gave Montgomery problems at times, but the Raider offense still started wearing it down and putting time-consuming drives together as the game progressed.

Persing ripped off a highlight reel 60-yard score on the game’s third play, but it was the chunks Montgomery started producing in the second half which finally started wearing down Hughesville’s defense. After Dylan Sherman kicked a 24-yard field goal, Josh Knoebel, who ran for 74 second-half yards) clinched victory with a 1-yard scoring plunge.

"We were very balanced in our rushing, and the second half we played a lot more physical, too," Joel Knoebel said. "We went back to our bread and butter stuff; some simple stuff and we just stuck with it. As we got consistent moving the ball, the guys got consistent in their roles blocking and coming off the ball."

Hugar, Jarrett and Ethan Hugar started up front last year. Cameron Woltz is playing guard for the first time and sophomore Brik Bonilla made his varsity debut at tackle. Freshman Lyle Huggler also saw time. It’s a growing process, so the way Montgomery improved up front as the game continued provided an encouraging sign.

That was especially true in the second half when every Montgomery possession lasted at least six plays. That included an 11-play, 71-yard drive which culminated in Sherman’s field goal making it, 17-0 with 4 minutes, 2 seconds remaining.

"It was a good start, but we should have moved the ball better offensively," Hugar said. "Throughout the year, our offense will get better. We just need more communication."

It also was a tough opening act for a new-look line, considering how dangerous Hughesville’s defense could be. The Spartans have a strong foundation there with first team HAC-III defensive end Jerry Barton making four tackles for loss. Colton Woolever set a tone early up front and linebackers Maliki Emmil and Chase Shrawder combined for nine tackles.

Emmil also intercepted a pass returning it past midfield. Now it’s just a matter of getting things going offensively. Doing so against a unit which allowed fewer than seven points per game last year was a tall order but it was self-inflicted mistakes which also loomed large.

"I thought our defense was awesome," Hughesville coach Howard Rainey. "We have the guy in the backfield; he makes a 60-yard run. We fumble on our 5 and they get the ball. It’s hard to win when you do that and play a team like that because they’re good."

The defense provides building blocks. Now, it’s a matter of breaking through offensively and sustaining drives. Do that and Hughesville could get where it wants to go.

The Spartans had chances, too, against Montgomery. They stopped the Raiders on a 4th-and-3 try from the their own 37-yard line but went four-and-out after taking over. Emmil’s interception set up Hughesville’s most promising drive with the Spartans reaching Montgomery’s 27. A procedure penalty, however, turned a 4th-and-2 into a 4th-and-7 and Miller stopped Connor Anstadt two yards shy of a first down.

After that stop, Hughesville did not pick up another first down until the fourth quarter.

"That’s what I told the guys. If we don’t make mistakes and complete some passes where the receivers run their full routes, we’re in that game and possibly winning if we don’t fumble inside the 10," Rainey said. "I think we’re in better shape than a lot of teams, just have to eliminate the mistakes."

Hughesville stopped Montgomery for negative yards on the game’s first two plays and it looked like it would force a bunt when Barton and Alphonzo Smith nearly sacked Persing on third down. Instead, the former tight end slipped the tackles near the right sideline, made a super cut toward the middle and outran the defense for an electrifying 60-yard score which put Montgomery up, 7-0.

"Having Briar back there helps out because it’s just another threat which is all you need for this offense," Miller said. "We have Josh and Trace who were both 1,000 yard rushers. I’m more of the blocking side of the ball; power back. You have to step into those roles sometimes and I’m perfectly fine with that."

Miller was one of four Montgomery players who topped 400 yards rushing in the Wing-T offense a year ago. All the facets of that offense started coming together in the second half. Hughesville bottled up the inside early, but Knoebel came alive in the second half, while Furman did damage to the outside and Persing added another big run, this one covering 22 yards. Miller added 43 yards, averaging over six yards per carry.

Beating a rival in a series which recently had been defined by close games was a good start. Still, it says a lot that the defending NTL-II champions were not exactly thrilled afterward. The Raiders went 10-2 last fall and nearly won the program’s first district championship.

They want more this season. So, while grateful for the win, Montgomery knows the hard work must continue.

"This is a building block but we had higher expectations than this," Evan Hugar said. "We expect a lot more this year. We have almost the same group of guys. We lost a couple of good starters, but we have replacements. We should be able to do better."

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