Bishop Kelly evens nostalgic series with Boise

By John Gardner
The Idaho Statesman

Josh Shrum 270 yards

Tim Brennan BK coach

Flash back 30 years. Tim Brennan was a bright-eyed 11-year-old boy living in Boise the first time Bishop Kelly High and Boise played football against each other.

"I was at the game, and I was sitting right up there, I think," said Brennan, pointing to the visitor's side of the stands. "I think it was before both upper decks were built."

Brennan, a 1977 graduate of Bishop Kelly, is now the head coach for the Knights, who took the Bronco Stadium field for just the second time in its 36-year history Thursday night, to battle the Braves again.

The series sits at 1-1 after the Knights' 35-0 victory under rainy skies.

Boise won the inaugural meeting 21-7. Among the others who were there that night was Dave Skinner, now the play-by-play announcer for Bishop Kelly on KFXD-AM.

Skinner was Bishop Kelly's starting quarterback, leading the undermanned Knights to a 7-0 lead through three quarters.

"We'd lost to Highland 69-0 that year, and Boise beat 'em, so we thought it was going to be a night of misery," Skinner said. "We were decided underdogs in this game. It was a lot of fun. The thing I remember the most was our goal-line stand right before the half."

For two quarters anyway, it was deja vu all over again.

Bishop Kelly (6-3 overall, 6-2 Division II West) was the heavy favorite this time, bringing in an exciting brand of veer-offense football.

Boise, on the other hand, hadn't won a game since late in the 1998 season.

But, after the Knights took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter, Boise came alive and looked to make it a game. The Braves drove the ball to the Bishop Kelly 7-yard line in eight plays, but the Knights' Mitch Mitchell intercepted a John Russell pass at the 5-yard line on second down to stop the threat.

Bishop Kelly took advantage five plays later, when tailback Josh Shrum broke through the secondary and raced 73 yards for a touchdown.

The Braves didn't lie down, however, driving to the Knights' 35-yard line on the next possession, before being stopped on fourth down.

"Boise played very well. They have a class coaching staff," Brennan said. "They work real hard, but they didn't get any breaks early. They really came ready to play."

And they weren't done yet.

Mark Nickerson returned a punt 46 yards to set up a short field for Boise. The Braves drove to the 16-yard line, but a field-goal attempt was blocked.

In the second half, Bishop Kelly must have resembled the Braves of 1970.

On the Knights' second offensive possession, Shrum broke through the middle again and raced 42 yards for his third touchdown.

Shrum added another touchdown 5 minutes later, and his night was essentially done. He finished the night with 270 yards on 25 carries and four touchdowns.

All of his touchdowns were up the middle.

"They weren't closing down on us so much. They were just letting us run through, giving us a lot of lanes, a lot of looks," Shrum said. "They were trying to close down Joe (Bleymaier) more, and it opened up the middle."

The performance also capped an incredible season in which he transferred from Mountain Home before the season, then proceeded to rush for 1,379 yards and 15 touchdowns in only eight games.

"It was real good for me and the team," Shrum said. "Hopefully, we'll get into the playoffs."

A large contingent of Bishop Kelly faithful will be on hand tonight at Warren Reynolds Field to watch Skyview take on Kuna.

The Knights need Skyview to defeat Kuna in order to make the playoffs in their first season as a Division II member.

"We've just got to hope for the best," Brennan said. "We're hoping Skyview wins, but you know what, if they don't, the sun will still come up tomorrow."