BLOOMFIELD — Collins-Maxwell/Baxter did not end its football season in the manner it wanted to, or on the day it expected to for that matter. Needing a win to secure a likely Class 2A playoff spot, the Raiders narrowly fell on the road to Davis County 33-31.
Senior Zach Samson did all he could to will his team to victory in the final football game of his career. Samson was 13-for-18 throwing with 189 yards to go along with 161 yards on the ground and three touchdowns.
His main target through the air was Austin Moorman, who caught seven passes for 116 yards. Bryce Kemp caught two balls for 27 yards. Brady Stover had four catches for 46 yards. Kemp had the other touchdown for the Raiders, returning a fumble 65 yards for a score.
Kicker Joe Nissen had seven of the 31 points, connecting on four PATs and hitting a 37-yard field goal in his only attempt.
Clayton Weltha led the team with 12 tackles, followed by Logan Cory's 10. Kemp recorded nine stops. Moorman, Nick Littell and O'Connor Austin each had seven stops. Trevor Ehlers had five tackles. Stover and Hunter Gunderson each had four stops.
CMB's season came to an end with its coach, Rob Luther, at 100 career victories for the Raiders. Luther has taken a school that was largely irrelevant four years ago to year-in and year-out district contenders.
Raiders leaders from this season include Samson, who amounted more than 2,500 yards of total offense from the quarterback position. Samson completed 112 passes on 188 attempts for nearly a 60 percent completion percentage. He accumulated 1,718 yards and 18 touchdowns through the air. Samson also kept the ball moving on the ground, rushing for 844 yards on 134 carries and finished off drives with touchdowns 13 times, his longest of which was a 71-yard scamper.
Senior Gabe Schabillion was the team's second-leading rusher. He ran for 385 yards and seven touchdowns on 73 carries, a 5.3 yards per carry average. Zach Huffaker was the team's third leading rusher with 230 yards on 31 carries.
Moorman led the Raiders in receptions and receiving yards. He totaled 46 catches for 680 yards and four touchdowns. Moorman was also a return specialist for the Raiders, returning 12 kickoffs for 220 yards. Moorman intercepted two passes and recorded 37 tackles on the defensive end.
Kemp caught 28 passes for 604 yards and 11 touchdowns, averaging more than 20 yards per reception. Kemp was also the third leading tackler with 63 stops on the year.
Weltha's 85 tackles led the Raiders, followed by Cory's 66. Littell had 59.