Image courtesy of the Eagle Tribune

By David Willis

 DERRY, N.H. — After breaking free for a 40-yard gain on his first carry of the night, Brady Spellman had a simple message for the Pinkerton sideline.

“We came back to coach (Brian) O’Reilly and said, ‘Just keep running it!’ said the star running back. “Everyone knew what our money was today. Just keep running it.”

That’s exactly what the Astros did.

Spellman erupted for a whopping 214 rushing yards in the first half alone, Jordan Ball added 71 ground yard in the first two quarters and Pinkerton’s defensive starters allowed just 71 yards of total offense, as the Astros rolled to another statement victory, 37-14 over Concord.

The Crimson Tide entered the game ranked No. 6 in the state, two spots behind Pinkerton. Both teams came in at 3-1.

“Our offensive line showed why they’re the best in the state,” said Ball, with finished with 89 rushing yards, playing just one series in the second half. “This team is feeling good. We had a slow start, but now four straight wins. We’re good to go right now.”

Spellman needing just 11 carries to run for the 214 yards — an average of 19.5 yards per attempt.

His first carry of the day went for 40 yards, his second for 14 yards and his third was a 44-yard touchdown. Two series later he broke free for a 32-yard score, then ending the first half — and his night — with a 38-yard gain to set up a field goal.

With the Astros taking a 30-7 lead on the fourth play of the second half, O’Reilly gave Spellman and the rest of the starters the rest of the night off.

“The linemen made huge holes, and I’m glad I had the chance to run through them,” said Spellman. “I’ve definitely never run for 200 yards in a half before. “We just kept running and running off the guards and tackles, and there was plenty of space in front of us.”

The big night for Spellman and the rushing attack was no surprise to O’Reilly.

“Brady’s Brady, he’s a very special runner,” said the coach. “It was so obvious that they had no answer for him, that I did something that I almost never do, I just kept running the same play over and over. They had to figure out a way to stop it, and they never did. And Jordan did a nice job with the trap, and he’s very good on the fullback toss. He’s a shifty runner.”

Ball added touchdowns of 1 and 5 yards — the second set up by his own interception — and Ryson Michaud capped the scoring with a 7-yard TD before the backups took over.

The Pinkerton defense also limited the state’s top rusher and returning Division I Central offensive Player of the Year Colin Savard to just 58 yards on 12 carries before he had to leave the game with an injury in the third quarter.

“Colin’s obviously a great back,” said Spellman, whose squad hosts Manchester Central for homecoming next week. “But we’re a tough defense. When everyone is out there is doing their jobs, we’re great. Everyone was rallying to the ball. We want it to feel like we have 12 players out there. We are beating very good teams right now, so we feel great.”