The Blackfoot Broncos lost their starting quarterback for the entire second half but behind a power running game and suffocating defense, the defending 4A state champs advanced to the semifinals once again.

    Alonzo Ramos suffered an apparent lower leg injury late in the second half, only a few plays after he tossed the go-ahead touchdown to put Blackfoot up 21-14 entering the half.

    He never returned to the field and finished 10-of-11 for 169 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions.

    His replacement, senior Dallas Thompson, threw the ball two times in the final two quarters — one of which went to Colby Pearson for a 10-yard score. Instead of relying on a balanced offense, though, the Broncos utilized a punishing running attack.

    For the game, Blackfoot ran the ball 50 times for 187 yards.

    “My hats off to them for what we were able to do without us being able to throw the ball like we practice without Alonzo,” said Blackfoot head coach Stan Buck. “Because you just don’t rep it enough with those other guys.”

    In the second half alone, the Broncos ran it 35 times, and the success on the ground kept the ball away from Bishop Kelly’s powerful offense, a potent attack that through its first nine games had averaged 48.5 points per game.

    “They’re a very tough, physical team,” Buck said. “We knew that going in. Our kids stepped up and we started making plays. I told them, ‘That was an outstanding effort in that second half.’”

    In the first quarter, it appeared the Knights would easily reach 50.

    Junior quarterback Bowen Ogata connected with Cory Brady and Turner Simmons in the air, and the Knights kept Blackfoot off balance with a running game, too.

    Ogata passed for 229 yards and three scores for the game, but after Bishop Kelly ran for 71 yards in the first half, the Knights rushed for five after halftime.

    Part of the problem for Bishop Kelly, ranked third in the state, was it didn’t have the ball. The Knights ran just seven plays in the third quarter.

    One of those plays came with under 30 second to play.

     Ogata dropped back from the Knights’ 45-yard line on first and 10, scrambled right and went deep down field.

    He had thrown into tight coverage and Pearson, a starting safety on defense for the Broncos, snatched the game’s only turnover with 24 seconds left in the third.

    From there, Blackfoot had a 14-play drive that ate up over eight minutes of clock.

    After Gabby Botello nailed a 29-yard field goal, it was 30-14 and there were four minutes to play.

    “We knew that the field goal would put us up 16 and them in a tough situation,” Buck said. “Obviously, they can get back in it with two scores, but they’d have to capitalize on the two-point play. And they weren’t able to do that. So the field goal was big.”

    Bishop Kelly did takes its next drive 74 yards down the field to score, but couldn’t find the two-point conversion or recover the onside kick.     

    In the semifinals, Blackfoot will play the No. 5 Skyview Hawks, who beat Minico 28-14 in Rupert.

    In the other semifinal matchup, Middleton, 36-7 winners over Twin Falls, takes on Bonneville, who beat Moscow 18-6.