Touchdowns were not only hard to come by; but non-existent for both Kodiak and Homer as the Bears and Mariners opened their football seasons with week one road games.
The Homer Mariners played Eagles River on Saturday in a pairing between DIII Homer and DII Eagle River. The Kodiak Bears traveled to Barrow on Saturday to battle the Whalers in Kenai’s place as the Kardinals were benched due to covid mitigation.
Eagle River 57 – Homer 0
The Eagle River Wolves dominated the Mariners on Saturday posting 57 unanswered points in the season opener.
The Wolves scored 50 points in the first half as Kolton Carlson scored four touchdowns and rushed for 124 yards. The Wolves are in Division II and aligned in the Northern Lights Conference; Division III Homer plays in the Mid-Alaska Conference.
The Mariners were limited by a positive covid test within the team; although the testing and contact tracing was completed early enough to allow the Mainers to travel to Eagle River.
Barrow 57 – Kodiak 0
Division III Barrow, state DI champions in 2017 and runner-up in 2018 and 2019, overpowered Division II Kodiak in Barrow on Saturday; as the Bears filled an opening in the Whalers schedule and their own. Kodiak’s scheduled week one opponent Redington was sidelined with positive covid results late in the week. Barrow’s scheduled opponent Kenai suffered a similar fate.
In the victory, the Whalers scored eight touchdowns with seven coming through the run game. Barrow lead 44-0 at the half and 57-0 after three quarters. Kodiak’s new head coach Taylor Masterson opened his Kodiak coaching tenure at his alma mater Barrow High School. Masterson graduated from Barrow in 2013 and served as defensive coordinator on the Whalers’ 2017 Division III championship team.
