Plainsmen Pull Past South in Shootout

An explosion of offense was displayed Friday in Cheyenne. It was the Laramie Plainsmen that made enough plays overall in a 52-42 victory over the South Bison.

Laramie (2-4) won their second consecutive game and defeated the Bison for fourth time in five meetings.

Plainsmen head coach Chuck Syverson said,

“I was pretty happy with us offensively. I thought that was as good as we’ve played offensively since I’ve been here. Defensively, we had some moments; the first two drives when we stopped ‘em; gave us a couple of short fields to work with.”

Laramie jumped to an early 14-0 lead behind its defense. A four down stop at the South 29-yard line and an interception led to two quick scores. David Corliss ran it in from 13 yards out for Laramie’s first score. That was followed by a Taylor Dodd to Conor Beeston nine-yard t-d pass.

The Plainsmen scored on four of their first five drives. It resulted in a 24-6 halftime lead.

Laramie took the opening possession of the second half and marched right down the field for a touchdown. Corliss took it in from 19-yards out.

The teams traded scores, and LHS led 38-14 before South made a charge. Two fourth quarter t-d runs by Dodd helped the Plainsmen hold on.

Laramie finished with 451 yards on offense. Dodd accounted for 327 yards and four scores. He threw for 217 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Dodd added 110 rushing yards and a pair of scores. Corliss ran for 74 yards and three touchdowns. Beeston added nine receptions for 130 yards.

Thanks to defensive stops, turnovers and special teams, the longest scoring drive by LHS was 64 yards.

Syverson said they’re just taking what defenses are giving them.

“I think we’re at the point in our offense and with our personnel right now that we feel we’ve got some good match-ups that we can take advantage of.”

Cheyenne South (0-6) rolled up an impressive 590 yards of offense. The Bison had five drives of 75 or 80 yards in the second half. Marquez Jefferson ran for 189 yards and three scores, while Austin Barker threw for 308 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Laramie piled up more than 50 points for the first time since 2011, when they scored 56 against South. The Plainsmen also have won back-to-back games in the same season for the first time since 2011, as well.

In their next action, Laramie returns home to play the Cheyenne East Thunderbirds next Friday night at 7 p.m.