By Neel Thakkar
Associate Editor-in-Chief
Following his team’s 33-26 win against Elk Grove (4-3 overall), Prospect (6-1 overall) head coach Brent Pearlman said, in a classic understatement, that his team “made a decision during the week … to come out and run the football.”
Mission accomplished.

The Knights’ offense generated 411 yards on the ground win against the Grenadiers with 355 of those yards coming from junior Peter Bonahoom, who eclipsed the previous single-game rushing school record set in 2006 by Parker O’Mara.
“The offensive line did great,” Bonahoom said.  “The holes were just huge.”
“We just do what we can, it’s these skill guys who make the difference,” senior offensive lineman Kyle Kapka said.  “Bonahoom was breaking tackles all over the place.”

For much of the game, though, it wasn’t clear if the efforts of Bonahoom, who averaged over 14 yards per carry, along with senior quarterback Miles Osei, who had 161 yards for the day, would be enough to counter a potent Grenadier offense.
That offense was driven almost exclusively by junior quarterback Nick Meyer, who accounted for an astonishing 401 of the 405 yards Elk Grove’s offense produced.  In his spare time, he could also be found on the defensive side of the ball playing safety. (click here for full box score)
However, the game began to shift in the Knights’ favor with the start of the second half.  After forcing Elk Grove to punt, Prospect began their first drive of the second half  starting at their own one-yard line. What followed was a four-minute-50-second drive, culminating in a 10-yard touchdown run by Bonahoom, who had 86 of the Knights’ 99 yards on that drive, putting his team up 27-20 following the extra point.
On their next drive, Elk Grove threatened to tie the game once again, but had to turn it over on downs just five yards away from the end zone.  From here on out, the Knights’ defense assumed control and secured the game after a rocky first half, holding Meyer, who averaged 10 yards per play in the first half, to just under six in the second.  They also held Elk Grove to 159 yards in the second half.
“[Prospect] had a new attitude in the second half,” Meyer said.
The night wasn’t over just yet for the Knights’ offense, though.  They engineered another drive, six plays long and entirely on the ground, capped with another score by Bonahoom, putting the team up 33-20 with one minute and 50 seconds to go.
“There was no need to pass tonight,” Bonahoom said.
If Bonahoom keeps running like he did Friday night, there might never be.
For more photos from the Homecoming football game, click here.