Bray tosses 6 TD passes in Aurora Christian's win
Aurora Christian quarterback Austin Bray threw for 6 touchdown passes to help David Beebe earn his first victory as a head coach in a 42-6 nonconference win over Senn in Aurora.
"It feels really weird," said Beebe, for 10 seasons the Eagles' defensive coordinator for his brother, Don, now solely the team's offensive coordinator.
"You're just wearing a different hat," David Beebe said. "It worked really well, but Don and I have always worked well together."
The passing game clicked between Bray, tailback Nick Edlund and receiver Jacolby Maxwell, as Aurora Christian (1-0) led Senn 35-0 before halftime.
Bray, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound senior, completed 23 of 31 passes for 287 yards. He threw 4 touchdown passes to Edlund and 2 to Maxwell, who overall caught 10 passes for 138 yards.
David Beebe praised the shiftiness of Senn's skilled players, which was another way of saying the Eagles defense can sharpen its technique. "I was very thrilled with our quickness and pursuit," the coach said. "We definitely have to work on tackling and getting kids on the ground."
Aurora Central Catholic 21, Wauwautosa (Wis.) East 7: Senior Brandon Babler, who hadn't played football for Aurora Central since his freshman year, returned in a big way.
The 6-foot, 165-pound running back and defensive back ran for 2 touchdowns and returned an interception for another score, accounting for each of the Chargers' touchdowns in a 21-7 win in Wisconsin.
Estimating Babler's yardage on the bus ride home from Wauwautosa, Chargers coach Brian Casey said Babler ran for nearly 100 yards and scored on carries of 40 and 10 yards. Casey figured quarterback Matt Rahn, who missed his junior season due to a knee injury, threw for around 80 yards and ran for 40.
Casey said Babler's 30-yard interception return for touchdown was the Chargers' first since 2011, helping Aurora Central Catholic (1-0) go up 21-0. Brendan Ruehl also intercepted a pass.
A negative was senior running back and defensive back Roman Padilla sprained an ankle early in the game and tried to play through it. He sat out the second half.
St. Francis 48, Menomonie (Wis.) 7: Playing in Madison, the Spartans (1-0) gained 310 yards in the first half and held Menomonie to 13, leading 41-0 at halftime. Mike Fitzgerald, formerly Marist's offensive coordinator, celebrated his first win as a head coach.
"We had two goals: play for each other and respond positively to adversity. Our guys did both," Fitzgerald said.
Wide receiver Mike Shaw had over 100 yards receiving and 2 TDs including an 83-yard touchdown on the first drive on 3rd-and-15.