Michael Veldman was perfect and so were the Bulldogs as they improved to 3-1 and 3-0 in the Granite Ridge Conference with a convincing 54-0 win over Mora Friday night.

 

Veldman went 8-of-8 for 149 yards and three TDS. He also ran one in from 14 yards out. 

 

Becker led the Mustangs 48-0 by halftime, which led to plenty of subbing in the one-sided affair as Becker continued its dominance of the Granite Ridge Conference.

 

Nineteen different players on offense saw action in the game as well as 27 on defense. Hokan Bengtson’s defense  has given up just 48 points in four games, averaging a little over 10 points a game.

 

The defense has also racked up 133 tackles, five fumble recoveries, 10 sacks and one fumble recovery for a TD in those four games. Beau Pauly is leading the team with 36 tackles, two sacks and one forced fumble. Milan Kent has 15 tackles, one fumble recovery and four sacks.

 

Mora won the coin toss but conceded to Becker, which turned out to be a big mistake. It took the Bulldogs just three plays to get  on the scoreboard when Veldman dropped back to pass after two short runs and found Eric Blomgren for a 54-yard TD to quickly jump ahead. The Bulldogs went for two and got it when Veldman hit Matt Conzemius at the four yard line and he powered the ball in from there.

 

On Mora’s first possession moments later, RB Justin Mantel fumbled the ball at the 20 and Kent pounced on it to give Becker the ball back less than two minutes into the game. On the very next play, Veldman found Blomgren again in the end zone and Becker was soaring at 15-0 when the XP was converted by kicker Austin Rasmussen.

 

Cody Gruenhagen kicked off for Becker and Mora’s Mantel returned the ball to the 18 before he was tackled by Tyler Thorson. Three plays later, the Mustangs kicked the ball back to Becker at midfield. Veldman and the offense mixed things up with four rushing plays and three passes before Veldman carried the ball from 14 yards out to paydirt to put the Bulldogs up 22-0 with five minutes left in the first quarter.

 

On Mora’s next possession, QB Richard LaFave threw a lazy pass from his eight yard line where Becker’s Jake Fobbe picked it off and ran it back to the one yard line. On the next play, Kent powered into the end zone to put the “Dogs up 28-0 (XP missed).

 

The Mustangs stalled again on offense and they punted the ball back to Becker where they set up shop at their own 22 yard line. Four plays later and the horn sounded for the end of the first quarter.

 

But that didn’t mean Mora escaped more doom.

 

Fifteen seconds into the second, Veldman drove the team to the six yard line then handed the ball off the C.J. Schwintek who rolled across the goal line in easy fashion.

 

Becker led 34-0 with almost an entire three quarters left in the game.

 

The Bulldogs got the ball back quickly again moments later as Mora failed to get anything going on offense. Veldman crouched behind center with 9:05 left in the first half and a big lead. It took he and Blomgren just three plays to traverse the field when Veldman found Blomgren from 38 yards out to push the score to 41-0 (XP good).

 

Mora had to gamble on their next possession and they went for a fourth down and four run from their own 45 and failed to convert.

 

Veldman was pulled and Andrew Stanger came in to call the signals. It didn’t take him long to expose the Mustangs on defense, finding Fobbe from 57 yards out for the final score of the half at 48-0.

 

The second half saw Coach Dwight Lundeen and company empty the bench as players like Hayden Fassler, Blake Barthel, Tyler Schmitz and Luke Anderson saw extended playing time. Anderson took over QB duties for the first part of the Becker drive and led the team on a nine play drive to Mora’s 37. Morgan Kramer came in and  drove the team the rest of the way, handing the ball off the Gabe Dertinger at the 12 and Dertinger scored the final TD of the game.

 

From there, the rest of the game was getting the younger players some playing time as Mora could only muster 130 yards total for the game compared to Becker’s 405.

 

Blomgren finished with 121 yards on four catches and three TDs. Fobbe had one catch for 57 yards and one TD. On the season, Blomgren has 17 receptions for 273 yards and six touchdowns. Matt Conzemius has 17 receptions for 255 yards and three TDs in four games.

 

The entire receiving corps has 51 receptions for 727 yards and 10 TDs. They are averaging 14 yards per reception and 181 yards per game.

 

Schwintek carried the ball six times for 42 yards and one TD against Mora. For the year, Schwintek has 254 yards on 39 attempts with two TDs. Becker’s rushers are averaging 133 yards per game.

B

ecker has amassed 1,263 total yards in the four games averaging 30 points a game. The defense is averaging just 12 points a game.

 

Becker is now 3-0 in the conference as well as Albany, Becker’s next opponent Friday night. Little Falls is 2-1, Zimmerman 1-1, Milaca 1-2, St. Cloud Cathedral 1-2, Foley 0-2 and Mora 0-3.

 

This next week is Homecoming week and many festivities are leading up to the big game Friday where the two undefeated teams from the GRC face off on Becker’s home turf.

 

It should be good.