He’s not much for offense.
But Friday night at French Field, Kentwood High defensive back Steele Warner was plenty offensive – on both sides of the ball.
Warner, a senior, returned a fumble for a touchdown and set a school playoff record on offense with a 91-yard rushing score on his only carry of the night as the fourth-ranked Conquerors blitzed Heritage 57-14 in a state preliminary game.
“I’m not much of an offensive guy,” Warner smiled. “They needed a running back (in the fourth quarter), so I stepped in for the play. I got through the hole, broke a couple of tackles and the adrenaline took me all the way to the end zone.”
It’s safe to say, plenty of Conquerors were amped up on adrenaline Friday night. In a game that was a runaway from start to finish, seven different Kentwood players scored as the Conquerors earned their first state berth since 2008.
“There were a lot of guys making plays,” said Kentwood coach Rex Norris.
Indeed there were. The Conquerors received big plays in every aspect of the game against Heritage, scoring on offense, defense, and special teams. Kentwood’s defense recorded five sacks while running back/defensive back B.J. Arceneaux collected his team-record fifth blocked punt of the season.
With the win, Kentwood (10-0) advances to a first-round Class 4A state playoff game against fifth-rank Bothell (8-2) at French Field either Friday, Nov. 12 or Saturday, Nov. 13. Bothell knocked off Union, 42-21. Kentwood hasn’t played Bothell since 2005, when it beat the Cougars 14-0 in a state preliminary game.
“They’re well coached. Very well coached,” Norris emphasized about Bothell. “We just have to keep getting better.”
It would be hard for the Conquerors to perform much better than they did against Heritage (3-7).
Kentwood cruised to a 14-0 first-quarter lead on an 8-yard touchdown run by Mikell Everette and a 15-yard scoring strike from quarterback Dane Manio to James Hatfield. Early in the second quarter, Warner broke the game open with a 27-yard fumble return for a touchdown, giving the Conquerors a 21-0 lead.
“Every year we have kids that kind of step up and surprise some people,” Norris said. “Steele has just been solid every year he has been here. This year, he has been given opportunities and he has taken advantage of them.”
Warner’s fumble return set the tone for a 28-point second-quarter scoring explosion. Dalton Blackmore followed Warner’s lead by collecting Arceneaux’s blocked punt and returning it for a touchdown. Moments later, Everette added a 7-yard touchdown run that was followed by a 5-yard scoring run by Arceneaux with 39 seconds left in the half, giving Kentwood a 41-0 lead at the break.
Heritage didn’t crack midfield until its final play of the second half.
Kentwood kicker Anthony Hagstrom connected for a 30-yard field goal early in the third quarter, pushing the lead to 44-0 while Lonzell Young added a 15-yard touchdown run later in the quarter, giving the Conquerors a 50-0 lead.
Warner completed Kentwood’s scoring with the 91-yard touchdown run around the left side with 8:13 to play.
The Conquerors finished with 352 yards rushing on 37 carries. Everette led the way with 166 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries. Everette carried the ball just one time in the second half.
“Hopefully this is something we can build off of,” Norris said.
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