A lot of little things put the young Campo Verde Coyotes behind the eight ball  Friday night in their Division III matchup with more established Higley High.

Special teams flaws and not-so-bright personal foul penalties to name the main trouble spots. Add in a solid offense from Higley piloted by quarterback Eric Kump and Campo Verde just wasn't ready to record its second win of the young season.

Kump and company sped away in the second half with ball control and defensive adjustments in completing a 44-20 victory over Campo Verde at Campo Verde High.

"Eric's a good one, a real competitor," Higley coach Eddy Zubey said. "Our offensive line has given him a lot of time to throw the first two games. He's been very good the first two games."

Kump,  a 6-1, 195-pound senior, was every bit as good as he was in a Week 1 victory over Carl Hayden (9-of-13 for 204 yards and four touchdowns). Against Campo Verde, Kump delivered a 9-of-14 effort for 204 yards and three TDs. He tossed scoring passes of 39 yards (to Tristan DaCosta), 67 yards (to Trent Lagerstrom) and 18 yards (to Michael Strnad). The 67-yard post pattern to Lagerstrom was a thing of beauty as he hit Lagerstrom in stride --- just as a coach would draw it up. That happened less than a minute after Campo Verde had pulled to within 14-7 on quarterback Luke Pineda's 12-yard TD run late in the opening period.

Pineda, a talented sophomore, accounted for 51 yards rushing and passing on Campo Verde's ensuing possession and the Coyotes marched for a TD on a short run by Josh McDowell to get back within 21-13. Pineda rushed for 75 yards on 10 carries, effectively running the option in the first half. Pineda also passed for 84 yards.

Next came penalities that worked to sabotage Campo Verde through to the intermission. A 7-yard punt and a long punt return by Higley after Campo Verde's first two possessions set up Higley's first two scoring drives. Three successive penalities -- two dead-ball unsportsmanlike conduct calls on players -- aided a Higley march to field goal. The Knights took a 24-13 lead to halftime.

"We still have learning to do," Camp Verde coach Max Ragsdale said. "Those unsportsmanlike conduct penalties aren't us. Those kill you."

The second half was pretty much all Higley. The Knights got  a 30-yard kickoff return from Strnad and marched 59 yards in 12 plays to extend their lead to 30-13. Campo Verde had the ball for only three minutes in the third period, a drive that ended with an interception in the end zone by Higley's Mythias Young.

Young's pick led to another Higley scoring drive, capped by Kump's TD pass to Strnad on the first play of the fourth period. Strrnad scored Higley's first TD of the game on a 34-yard run up the middle. Young was able to add a TD reception of his own later in the fourth period from backup quarterback Jacob Gonzales.

"We have to get a lot better," Ragsdale said. "Our schedule gives up no breaks. We're the new school. Everybody that knows they are going to play us marks a W on their schedule. It's up to us to get better to prevent that from happening."