Game balls for Eagle Valley in Week 3 win at University

A team that earned a huge road win this week was Eagle Valley from Class 3A. Traveling over three hours to play a top-10 team on the road, the Sun Devils picked up a 38-30 win in double overtime over No. 8 ranked University from Class 2A. With the win, Eagle Valley could make a jump and find its way into the top 10 polls next week. A big reason for the victory was the play of some players who earned our game balls for their performance in the win. <h3><strong>Eric Hasley, 2022, 6’3, 180, WR/DB</strong></h3> Hasley made some huge catches from his receiver spot in the win. He showed he had excellent hands and could catch everything coming to him. His frame allows him to catch in traffic, but you have to worry about the speed he has, evident by his touchdown catch just before halftime when he ran past two defenders and hauled in a tough catch. He showed he can beat the one-on-one coverage and goes all out for the reception as well. And the routes he ran were good enough to get separation for his quarterback to throw him a good ball. While Eagle Valley looked to establish the run, they were able to be balanced in large part due to Hasley having a big game. <h3><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="22699" first="Will" last="Geiman"], 2022, 6’0, 195, QB/LB</strong></h3> Late in the game, Eagle Valley rode its senior quarterback to the win. They used his arm, and he showed great touch, accuracy and decision making to throw some key touchdowns. He also stood in the pocket and took the hit after releasing the ball throughout the game. Then in overtime and double-overtime, they relied on his legs, and the hard-nosed running he brought allowed them to score a key touchdown and two-point conversion in the second overtime period. Geiman made some big, timely plays to keep Eagle Valley ahead in regulation and then in the overtime periods to win it. He even flashed some big plays on defense, none bigger than his sack in double-overtime that forced a long fourth-and-goal. <h3><strong>Josh Bissett, 2023, 5’7, 140, RB/DB</strong></h3> University has some tall, athletic, quick wide receivers that can be a factor in its spread offense. Though Bissett did give up some size against some of the receivers, he made a number of plays against the passing game on defense. He showed good technique and ball skills to deflect some passes away. He has the speed to run with receivers stride for stride down the field on a deep pass attempt as well, taking away some big shots University tried for. Bissett proved to be an asset in the secondary and is fundamentally sound at the position. <h3><strong>Codi Raper, 2022, 5’10, 170, RB/LB</strong></h3> A man who was a factor in all three phases of the game. On offense, he was effective on the fullback dive in the offense, showing he can be a player to run between the tackles and get those tough yards to stay in front of the chains. He was also a good lead blocker for Geiman when he kept the ball to run it himself. On defense, he was good roaming the middle of the field and sticking his nose in the play against the run, and he got some penetration at the line to blow some plays up behind the line of scrimmage. He also recovered a fumble in the red zone in the second half. A steady, physical game from Raper resulted in some timely stops on defense and good runs on offense that added up to the end result.