On a surprisingly pleasant night for late March, the Battle of the Unbeatens more than lived up to its hype as the visiting Gladiators broke away from a 22-22 tie with two late scores to escape with their perfect record still intact. Before I get to the details, let me remind you again to check the time for the varsity game (or any varsity game for that matter) on Friday night, since there is apparently still some confusion. I say that because I had seen several sources saying that the game at RHS Friday will kick off at 7:00, but the PA announcer tonight repeatedly said 6:00. So let's all do what we can to verify the correct time.
For a game that featured eight touchdowns between the two teams, you would think there was plenty of offensive efficiency tonight. Yes, there were some big plays and some great individual efforts, but the real story of this game was a constant parade of yellow hankies. There were at least 10 or more false start/encroachment flags, two holding calls, and two horse collar penalties. Two of those major penalties had direct impact on the game as one called back a Bison touchdown and the other led to a Gladiator TD after the Gap defense appeared to have stopped the drive. Quite a few Bison fans were expressing their disagreement with the officiating, especially during crucial stretches of the second half.
Despite the eventual final score, things were all rosy for the home team early in the game as the Bison stopped RHS cold on its first possession, immediately went to the air, and scored to take a quick 8-0 lead. Then early in the second period, a Bison running back swept right end from about 68 yards out and for a brief moment, it looked like the game might be over before it started. However, in what you could probably call the most significant turning point of the game, that TD was called back on a holding penalty and instead of the Gap taking a two-score lead, it ignited the Riverheads offense as the Gladiators put three TDs on the board before the halftime horn, all scored by freshman Shay Archie. (He is going to be a good one folks!!!)
Ironically the Bison somewhat helped the Big Red to score all three of those touchdowns. First, to make up for the yardage lost on the holding call, the Gap went to the air, and Riverheads intercepted around the Bison 40. On the second or third play after the turnover, Archie swept left end for the first Gladiator TD. Moments later, the Bison gambled on a fourth down around midfield but Riverheads held to again earn a short field. This time Archie raced right up the middle to put the visitors ahead 14-8 around the 3 minute mark.
It was then the home team's side to stomp the bleachers as a nice reverse-field kickoff return (without a penalty this time) went the distance and put the Bison back on top 16-14. Instead of kicking deep to put Riverheads in a hole, the Bison strangely tried a half pooch/half onside that the Gladiators fielded to get right back in business around midfield. With two minutes to work with, the Big Red got the job done as Archie repeated his first TD almost step for step, scoring with just 14 seconds left on the clock.
With Riverheads leading 22-16, the third quarter featured some of the quirkiest plays of the night, not to mention some of the officiating controversies. First of all, the Bison got a long kick-off return into Riverheads territory but fumbled it along the sidelines. The refs ruled that the player had been knocked out of bounds prior to the fumble, so the home team kept possession in great field position, but a play or two later they fumbled for real and a Gladiator pounced on it. Moments later a Big Red ball-carrier also fumbled but was ruled down, causing quite a few Bison fans to grumble about the quick whistle.
RHS then drove deep into Bison territory and seemed primed to take a two-score lead of its own. Instead they shot themselves in the foot with a holding penalty and the Bison took over around their own 20. They then quickly tied the score on a run right up the middle that went for about 70 yards after the ball carrier somehow squeezed through the initial line of containment. The Bison failed on a two-point conversion that would have given them the lead.
The rest of the game was pretty much all Riverheads as the Big Red got some very tough runs out of freshman David Austin. On one of his carries, the Gladiators were facing 4th and 14 and it appeared he had been stopped well short of the line to gain. But the second horse collar of the game instead gave The Pride a first down and they pushed it in for the go-ahead score.
The Bison had one last chance to even the score or possibly take the lead but the Gladiator D stiffened and took over close to midfield with around five minutes left in the game. This time Austin produced his best run of the night, breaking tackles until he was brought down around the 1. A final TD and conversion produced the somewhat-deceptive final margin.
In addition to the efforts of Archie and Austin, Logan Hostetter and Brendan Fortune ran the ball well for the Big Red. After going a perfect 16 for 16 on two-point conversions in their first three games, the Bison did manage to hold Riverheads to only a 3 out of 5 effort in that department but the TD advantage for Riverheads kept the game from being decided on conversions.
Other than the penalty issues, this was a great game for both teams and gives them each hopes for a bright future. Next week Riverheads will travel to Stuarts Draft to try and finish perfect for the season, while the Bison will be at Fort Defiance to try and get back on the winning track. As for Friday night's varsity game, the weather is calling for some morning showers, followed by the same clearing and sunshine that we saw today, followed by the promise of a warm evening. Mother Nature must be a football fan.
And can we get an Amen for the NCAA??? How nice of them to schedule the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games so as to not interfere with either varsity or JV football! So be sure to tune into those games on Saturday through Tuesday to see who pulls the next round of upsets.
For a game that featured eight touchdowns between the two teams, you would think there was plenty of offensive efficiency tonight. Yes, there were some big plays and some great individual efforts, but the real story of this game was a constant parade of yellow hankies. There were at least 10 or more false start/encroachment flags, two holding calls, and two horse collar penalties. Two of those major penalties had direct impact on the game as one called back a Bison touchdown and the other led to a Gladiator TD after the Gap defense appeared to have stopped the drive. Quite a few Bison fans were expressing their disagreement with the officiating, especially during crucial stretches of the second half.
Despite the eventual final score, things were all rosy for the home team early in the game as the Bison stopped RHS cold on its first possession, immediately went to the air, and scored to take a quick 8-0 lead. Then early in the second period, a Bison running back swept right end from about 68 yards out and for a brief moment, it looked like the game might be over before it started. However, in what you could probably call the most significant turning point of the game, that TD was called back on a holding penalty and instead of the Gap taking a two-score lead, it ignited the Riverheads offense as the Gladiators put three TDs on the board before the halftime horn, all scored by freshman Shay Archie. (He is going to be a good one folks!!!)
Ironically the Bison somewhat helped the Big Red to score all three of those touchdowns. First, to make up for the yardage lost on the holding call, the Gap went to the air, and Riverheads intercepted around the Bison 40. On the second or third play after the turnover, Archie swept left end for the first Gladiator TD. Moments later, the Bison gambled on a fourth down around midfield but Riverheads held to again earn a short field. This time Archie raced right up the middle to put the visitors ahead 14-8 around the 3 minute mark.
It was then the home team's side to stomp the bleachers as a nice reverse-field kickoff return (without a penalty this time) went the distance and put the Bison back on top 16-14. Instead of kicking deep to put Riverheads in a hole, the Bison strangely tried a half pooch/half onside that the Gladiators fielded to get right back in business around midfield. With two minutes to work with, the Big Red got the job done as Archie repeated his first TD almost step for step, scoring with just 14 seconds left on the clock.
With Riverheads leading 22-16, the third quarter featured some of the quirkiest plays of the night, not to mention some of the officiating controversies. First of all, the Bison got a long kick-off return into Riverheads territory but fumbled it along the sidelines. The refs ruled that the player had been knocked out of bounds prior to the fumble, so the home team kept possession in great field position, but a play or two later they fumbled for real and a Gladiator pounced on it. Moments later a Big Red ball-carrier also fumbled but was ruled down, causing quite a few Bison fans to grumble about the quick whistle.
RHS then drove deep into Bison territory and seemed primed to take a two-score lead of its own. Instead they shot themselves in the foot with a holding penalty and the Bison took over around their own 20. They then quickly tied the score on a run right up the middle that went for about 70 yards after the ball carrier somehow squeezed through the initial line of containment. The Bison failed on a two-point conversion that would have given them the lead.
The rest of the game was pretty much all Riverheads as the Big Red got some very tough runs out of freshman David Austin. On one of his carries, the Gladiators were facing 4th and 14 and it appeared he had been stopped well short of the line to gain. But the second horse collar of the game instead gave The Pride a first down and they pushed it in for the go-ahead score.
The Bison had one last chance to even the score or possibly take the lead but the Gladiator D stiffened and took over close to midfield with around five minutes left in the game. This time Austin produced his best run of the night, breaking tackles until he was brought down around the 1. A final TD and conversion produced the somewhat-deceptive final margin.
In addition to the efforts of Archie and Austin, Logan Hostetter and Brendan Fortune ran the ball well for the Big Red. After going a perfect 16 for 16 on two-point conversions in their first three games, the Bison did manage to hold Riverheads to only a 3 out of 5 effort in that department but the TD advantage for Riverheads kept the game from being decided on conversions.
Other than the penalty issues, this was a great game for both teams and gives them each hopes for a bright future. Next week Riverheads will travel to Stuarts Draft to try and finish perfect for the season, while the Bison will be at Fort Defiance to try and get back on the winning track. As for Friday night's varsity game, the weather is calling for some morning showers, followed by the same clearing and sunshine that we saw today, followed by the promise of a warm evening. Mother Nature must be a football fan.
And can we get an Amen for the NCAA??? How nice of them to schedule the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games so as to not interfere with either varsity or JV football! So be sure to tune into those games on Saturday through Tuesday to see who pulls the next round of upsets.
