ARVADA — Arvada West football might have a new offensive identity this season.
A strong offensive line anchored by senior Giovanni Panozzo — University of Wyoming commit — and a trio of solid sophomore running backs has given the Wildcats a ‘ground and pound’ look offensively through two weeks into the season.
“It is a little different than normal for me, but whatever it takes to win,” A-West coach Brad Pyatt said of the Wildcats being a power running offense in their first two games. “We are playing great defense so that formula wins a lot of games.”
The Wildcats (2-0) dominated Boulder to the tune of 41-7 on Thursday night at the North Area Athletic Complex. A-West jumped out to a 41-0 lead in the first half to induce a running-clock before halftime.
A-West sophomore Adrian Symalla had rushing touchdowns of 42 and 35 yards on his first two touches in the first quarter. He capped off his first half with a 33-yard touchdown catch and run with just over four minutes to play in the first half to push the Wildcats’ lead to 41-0.
“I owe it all to them,” Symalla said crediting his success to the Wildcats’ offensive line. “Those are my guys. I’ve got to buy them dinner later tonight.”
Sophomore Jaiden Green had a 22-yard rushing touchdown has the Panthers’ defense had no answer against A-West’s rushing attack. Symalla and Green both went over 100 yards in the Wildcats’ opening victory over ThunderRidge.
“We still have (sophomore) Caleb Gomez who is one of the fastest kids in the state,” Pyatt said about his wealth of talent at running back. “We’ve got a three-headed monster and a great offensive line.”
Pyatt, A-West graduate and former NFL receiver, has always had a passing-minded offensive system since taking over the Wildcats’ program. However, that seems to have changed this season.
“Last week was a good test for us,” Pyatt said opening up the season against ThunderRidge with a 30-3 victory. “We are big and strong up front. It’s probably the biggest and strongest team I’ve ever had. We will rally behind those big guys.”
Sophomore quarterback Logan Duhachek got into the rushing attack with a 2-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter against the Panthers. A-West’s defense got into the scoring act with a pick-6 by junior defensive lineman Daniel D’Amico less than a minute after Duhachek found the end zone.
“We have great team chemistry,” A-West senior linebacker Tegan Schantz said. “We have some great senior leadership on this team.”
While the Wildcats’ defense didn’t give up a touchdown for the second straight game, Boulder did get a defensive touchdown when junior Ramses Schorr recovered the football in the end zone after a high snap went over A-West’s back-up quarterback Jaydon Sundbye’s head in the final minutes of the game.
A-West hits the road for the first time this season when it faces Horizon (0-1) on Friday, Sept. 8. The Wildcats hosts 4-time defending 5A state champion Cherry Creek on Thursday, Sept. 14, at NAAC for their first really big test of the season.
“We’ve got some teams coming up,” Symalla said. “We’ve got to lock in and finish this season up.”
Boulder (0-3) will look to grab its first victory of the season next week when it hits the road to face Silver Creek (0-2) on Sept. 8.