Last Friday in Ripon Christian’s 42-0 pasting of Calaveras, Cady showed why coach Phil Grams decided to elevate him to the varsity level to fill an important position on the back end of the defense.

The 6-foot-1, 155-pound ball hawk accounted for three of the five turnovers forced by the Knights and even scored on two of them. The Knights recorded their second straight shutout. This one came against a winless, but improved, Calaveras team that was ultimately sunk by Cady’s big plays in the second and third quarters.

“Amos had a breakout varsity game for us,” Grams said. “We brought him up as a sophomore because we knew he was a difference maker. That’s exactly what he was on Friday. He iced the game for us by turning defensive into offense.”

The sophomore free safety helped Ripon Christian build on its early momentum in San Andreas with his first interception of the game, leading to a short-yardage touchdown run from Trevor Van Elderen to make it 20-0 with 8:36 left in the half.

Ripon Christian threatened to score again on its next drive but what stymied by a lost fumble. The boost in spirit was short-lived for the host Red Hawks, however, as Cady picked off a pass on the next play and returned it 25 yards for his first TD.

The Knights led 35-0 at halftime, and Cady was not done yet. In the middle of the third quarter, he picked up a loose fumble and ran it back 62 yards to paydirt.  He also finished with three tackles and a pass break-up.

Ripon Christian (2-1) is on its bye and kicks off Southern Athletic League play Sept. 15 at Denair.