Heartbreak Friday
Oneida and Scott High both played well, but ultimately lost tight ballgames
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Highlanders drop a close one to state-ranked Meigs County
HUNTSVILLE | Scott High played state-ranked Meigs County to the wire here Friday, although the Tigers were ultimately able to escape with a 23-17 win.
Meigs County, which would have been considered a prohibitive favorite by most observers, started the game looking every bit as strong as it was supposed to, forcing a three-and-out and swiftly marching the length of the field for a touchdown and an 8-0 lead.
From there, though, the Highlanders put back-to-back scores on the board to take a 14-8 lead, and had an opportunity to retake the lead at the end of the first half.
It was a 15-14 Meigs County lead at halftime, and the Tigers made it 23-14 with a score on the first possession of the second half.
After stopping the Highlanders, the Tigers had an opportunity to salt the game away, but the Scott defense got its first stop of the night, and Meigs County turned the ball over on downs. The Highlanders then tacked on a field goal to make it 23-17, and had Meigs County backed up inside its five-yard-line with five minutes to play. However, the Tigers converted a third-and-20 with a long pass play and was able to run out the clock.
For as close as the game was, the Highlanders had trouble getting Meigs County off the field. The only times the Tigers failed to score was on a pair of end-of-half possessions, and the lone drive that saw them fail to convert on fourth down. The Highlanders were repeatedly able to get the Tigers into third downs, but Meigs County converted over and over, finishing the game seven of eight on third down.
The most crucial third down that Meigs was able to convert was the third-and-20 from its own five-yard-line midway through the fourth quarter, when it looked like the Highlanders were on the verge of getting the ball back on the plus side of the 50 with an opportunity to win the game.
Meigs County only attempted five passes in the game, completing three, but the 34-yard deep ball was a back-breaker.
The stat sheet looked like a game that was lopsided. Thanks to 270 rushing yards, Meigs County finished with 332 yards of total offense to Scott High’s 180.
But the actual game was a tooth-and-nail battle that could have gone either way. After giving up a three-play, 65-yard drive to start the game, the Highlanders dug in and found success on offense, then made Meigs work for its ensuing scoring possessions.
One advantage the Tigers had was dominating the time of possession. The Tigers’ final drive started with 10:01 remaining on the fourth quarter clock, after Justyn Lynch’s 32-yard field goal made it 23-17. The Highlanders would not get the ball back.
Ultimately, three plays made a tremendous difference in the game. Scott had a dropped swing pass on fourth-and-two late in the second quarter that would have at least set up a chance at a go-ahead field goal. Early in the fourth quarter, the Highlanders had a second-and-goal at the Meigs one-yard-line but were unable to punch the ball into the end zone, settling for Lynch’s field goal after a mishandled snap resulted in a big loss on third down. Finally, Meigs’ 37-yard pass on third-and-20 proved to be the game’s pivotal moment.
The Highlanders’ touchdowns both came on the ground. Quarterback Gage Privett scored on a one-yard run to cap a lengthy drive. Then, after a perfectly-executed onside kick that was recovered by Lynch — the kicker — the Highlanders drove for a go-ahead touchdown that came on a 22-yard run by Michael Bond. Bond finished with 73 yards on 19 carries. Privett completed 12 of 18 passes for 88 yards in what his coach, Billy Hall, called one of his best performances even though the yardage wasn’t eye-popping. Jaigen Morgan had seven catches for 57 yards.
Game Capsule
First National Bank Player of the Game: Senior kicker Justyn Lynch had a touchback, kicked and recovered an onside kick, and had a 32-yard field goal.
Trophy Masters Lineman of the Game: Normally excelling as a defensive end, junior Houston Stanley was called upon to slide into the offensive guard position and had an outstanding performance blocking.
Scott Morgan Farmers Co-Op Play of the Game: After Gage Privett’s one-yard touchdown run late in the first quarter, Scott High caught Meigs County off-guard with a well-executed onside kick that was recovered by Justyn Lynch just across the 50-yard-line. That set up a go-ahead touchdown by Michael Bond.
The Game Was Over When: The Highlanders’ best chance to get the ball back for a potential game-winning touchdown try was when Meigs County faced a third-and-2o from its five-yard-line. But after the Tigers converted the first down with a 37-yard pass play, they had to convert two more third downs — one of them a third-and-six and the other a third-and-two — to finally run out the clock.
Scoring Summary: Daniel Mow 47-yard run (Tuff Ricker run) … Gage Privett 1-yard run (Justyn Lynch kick) … Michael Bond 22-yard run (Lynch kick) … Ricker 5-yard run (Colt Howard kick) … Ricker 21-yard run (Ricker run) … Lynch 32-yard kick.
Stats That Stood Out: Scott was penalized 6 times for 35 yards — a season low … Meigs County was 7 of 8 on third down, though the Highlanders were pretty good in their own right, finishing 9 of 15 on third down.
What The Coach Said: “We told them, boys, if we play good football and stop hurting ourselves, we’ll be in the game with anybody we play … They’re really good up front. They get in there foot-to-foot and try to just blow you off the football … We talked about not looking ahead to anybody else. We need to take care of our stuff. And wherever the cards fall, we’ll have to live with it … The growth (the seniors) have had from freshman year to this year is crazy. Even the growth from last year to this year is insane. I cannot be prouder of them. And the thing is, we’re still getting better. We’re still having to learn how to do things we haven’t faced before. We’re having to learn how to win. We’re having to learn how to play in tight games. And these kids, they stand up and go right at it.” — Billy Hall.
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Fourth quarter dooms Oneida at Sweetwater
SWEETWATER | For three quarters, the game belonged to Oneida. But two turnovers in the final period tilted things in Sweetwater’s direction, and the Wildcats took advantage to escape with a 22-19 win in a game that was every bit as closely contested as the classic battles when these two programs were region opponents in the 1990s.
In a defensive classic, Oneida used an Amauren Kidd field goal to hold a 3-0 lead at halftime, then expanded it to 10-0 on the strength of a 42-yard run by Ben Gilbert near the end of the third quarter.
From there, though, Sweetwater used a pair of turnovers to surge in front, and ultimately held on for the win.
The stat sheet showed that Oneida was the better team. The Indians finished with 217 yards of offense to only 118 for the Wildcats, and limited Sweetwater to only 31 yards on the ground. But the turnovers proved costly, directly leading to two of Sweetwater’s three touchdowns. One of those was scored by the Wildcats’ defense.
Oneida also forced a Sweetwater turnover, a fumble that was caused by Waylon Hill and recovered by A.J. Harper.
Gilbert was Oneida’s leading rusher, finishing with 97 yards and a score on 11 carries. Brock Ryon was 14 of 20 through the air for 101 yards and a score.
The two teams traded punts to start the game, before Oneida turned in the game’s first big play on the forced fumble by Hill, which Harper pounced on at Sweetwater’s seven-yard-line.
What could have been disastrous for Sweetwater proved less painful when the Wildcats were able to make a goal line stand and force the Indians to settle for a 23-yard field goal by Kidd.
Nevertheless, the Indians held the lead for the rest of the first half and the third quarter on the strength of Kidd’s kick, as their defense shut down everything Sweetwater tried through the first three quarters.
Oneida had an opportunity to add to its lead early in the second quarter, but on a fourth down play at Sweetwater’s 15-yard-line, a pass was broken up by the Wildcats to force the ball over on downs.
From there, the two teams exchanged punts for the remainder of the first half.
The second half started with Oneida turning in a lengthy drive that chewed up almost all of the third quarter clock. But a pair of penalties turned a first-and-10 at Sweetwater’s 23-yard-line into a first-and-29, effectively killing the drive. But Gilbert made one of the biggest plays for the night with a 49-yard punt to Sweetwater’s one-yard-line, which set up yet another big play by the Indians’ defense.
On the first down play, Jeremiah Paris was dropped in the end zone for a safety, giving Oneida a 5-0 lead.
One play after that, a kick that was returned 31 yards by Grady Keeton set up a 42-yard touchdown run by Gilbert. The Indians led 12-0, and appeared to be on their way to victory.
But Sweetwater was not finished. The Tigers finally got something going offensively, marching steadily down the field with a mix of runs and passes to score on a one-yard run by Nolan Dacus, which cut Oneida’s lead to 12-7.
Oneida got itself into trouble on the ensuing kickoff, and was forced to start its next possession at the 10-yard-line. One play later, Sweetwater turned an Oneida fumble into a scoop-and-score by Bryson Bonnough, as the Wildcats took their first lead of the game.
On the play after that, another fumble gave Sweetwater possession at Oneida’s 26-yardd-line, as Jeremiah Paris recovered. That led to a 15-yard touchdown run by Lance Mizer on third-and-long, and Sweetwater led 22-12 with 4:36 remaining on a stunning turn of events.
Oneida was able to battle back with a series of passes from Ryon to William Hill, which set up a 15-yard touchdown from Ryon to Drayton Wade. That made the score 22-19 with still 3:10 remaining.
But Sweetwater was able to run out the clock after picking up a first down via a penalty on a third-and-10 play, after which the Wildcats simply took a knee at the Indians’ 24-yard-line.
As a non-region battle, the outcome of Friday’s game did not impact the Indians’ playoff outlook. Oneida can still earn a home game in the postseason with wins over Polk County and Eagleton the next two weeks.
Game Capsule
First National Bank Player of the Game: Senior wide receiver Grady Keeton was Oneida’s leading receiver, with six catches, and had a team-high 129 all-purpose yards.
Trophy Masters Lineman of the Game: Reece Lamb anchored an Oneida defensive front that limited Sweetwater to just over 100 yards of offense, and had a tackle for loss.
Scott-Morgan Farmers Co-Op Play of the Game: With 39 seconds left in the third quarter and Oneida facing fourth-and-37 from midfield, senior Ben Gilbert turned in a 49-yard punt that was downed at Sweetwater’s one-yard-line, setting up a safety that gave the Indians a 5-0 lead.
The Game Was Over When: A penalty on third-and-10 gave Sweetwater a first down, and the Wildcats were able to take a knee and run out the clock on a 22-19 win.
Scoring Summary: Amauren Kidd 23-yard kick … Safety … Ben Gilbert 42-yard run (Kidd kick) … Nolan Dacus 1-yard run (Johnathan Prince kick) … Bryson Bonnough 10-yard fumble return (Dacus run) … Lance Mizer 15-yard run (Prince kick) … Brock Ryon 15-yard pass to Drayton Wade (Kidd kick).
Stats That Stood Out: Sweetwater won with only 118 yards of total offense … Oneida had 144 return yards, with 88 of those belonging to Grady Keeton.
What The Coach Said: “We had some mistakes, but we had plenty of chances in the first half. We should’ve had, I thought, a couple more touchdowns. We had the ball at the 10 and couldn’t punch it in. The penalties killed us … It was first and 30 one time. It’s hard to overcome first and 30 … We played hard. The kids played their tails off. We’ve played a very difficult schedule. Every team is going to be in the playoffs except one. All of them will have winning records, or at least .500. We fought and I’m proud of them for that. Hopefully it’ll pay off down the road.”
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Playoff Update: Big games loom this week
Each week brings a bit more clarity to the race for postseason seeding, yet much remains undecided with only two weeks remaining in the regular season. Here’s the way it breaks down:
Oneida
In Region 2-2A, the math remains a bit simpler because there are only four teams. Thus, everyone will make the playoffs and no one will be left out. For Oneida, the remaining two games of the regular season aren’t about qualifying for the postseason, but about determining where the Indians will play the first Friday night of November.
As the season enters the next-to-last week, one thing no one saw coming at the start of the season: Oneida and Polk County are the last two teams that are unbeaten in the region standings.
Polk County, 3-4 entering last week, stunned Eagleton Academy, 23-13, in its first region game of the season to move into a tie with Oneida atop the region standings. It was Tellico Plains that was the region favorite coming into the season, but now the Bears are 0-2 and staring at a potential trip to face the Region 1-2A champion in the first round.
Oneida and Polk County will meet this week at Jim May Stadium, for what now promises to be an even bigger game than it was once expected to be. In a nutshell: with a win, Polk County can guarantee itself a postseason home game and a regular season Region 2-2A championship.
The Indians cannot lock down either of those things with a win over the Wildcats this week, because a win this week, followed by a loss to Eagleton next week, could create a three-way tie atop the region standings if Polk County defeats Tellico Plains next week.
Meanwhile, the only way for Tellico Plains to get out of the fourth spot is for Oneida to beat Polk County this week, and the Bears to beat Polk County next week. Even still, there could be a three-way tie created if both of those things happen and Oneida defeats Eagleton next week.
In other words, with only two weeks remaining, almost nothing has been decided in Region 2-2A.
What is a little more clear is the possible playoff opponents, depending on how it all shakes out. The two teams that host playoff games in Region 2-2A will face either Cumberland Gap or West Greene in the first round. The two teams that travel will go to either Happy Valley or South Greene. There’s a very clear difference between the two tandems. Happy Valley (9-0) and South Greene (6-2) are both 2-0 in region play, and will face each other on Oct. 30. On the other end, Cumberland Gap (3-5) and West Greene (0-8) are both 0-2 in region play, and will also face each other on Oct. 30. So far, every game in Region 1-2A has been decided with a running clock in the fourth quarter, with the exception of South Greene’s 42-20 win at West Greene.
So for Oneida: With a win against Polk County this week, the Indians will be very close to locking down a home playoff game. Even with a loss this week, however, the Indians could still lock down a home playoff game with a win at Eagleton next week.
Scott
The bottom line for Scott High heading into the final two weeks of the regular season: after last week’s 23-17 loss to Meigs County, the Highlanders no longer control their own destiny.
At 3-0, Meigs County has now secured a playoff berth, though the Tigers have not yet guaranteed themselves a home game. At 3-1, Kingston is also guaranteed a playoff berth. Those two teams will face off on Oct. 30 with the regular season region championship on the line. Beyond that, little is determined.
Behind Meigs and Kingston are Sweetwater (2-1), McMinn Central (1-2), Scott (1-3) and Austin-East (0-3). Two of those teams will get into the playoffs; two will not.
For Scott to keep its playoff hopes alive, the Highlanders need McMinn Central to beat Sweetwater on the road this week. If that happens, both of those teams are 2-2 in the region standings, and the Highlanders will have an opportunity to snag the No. 4 seed with a win at Sweetwater next week.
On the other hand, if Sweetwater defeats McMinn Central, the Highlanders will need a lot of help. In that scenario, Sweetwater will move to 3-1 and secure a playoff berth, while McMinn Central would drop to 1-3. The Highlanders would then need Austin-East to pull off a fairly significant upset at McMinn Central on Halloween night, coupled with Scott defeating Sweetwater.
So, in other words, a win by McMinn Central this week puts Scott back in control of its own destiny, while a win by Sweetwater leaves Scott’s playoff fate at the mercy of an Austin-East team that is really struggling this season.
Meanwhile, Austin-East isn’t mathematically eliminated from the playoffs yet, but needs a lot of things to go its way.
On the other side of the bracket will be the playoff qualifiers from Region 1-3A. Currently, Gatlinburg-Pittman is 3-0 (8-0 overall), while Unicoi County is 3-1 (6-2 overall), Johnson County is 2-1 (3-5), Pigeon Forge is 1-2 (2-6), and Chuckey-Doak is 1-2 (4-4). Claiborne, at 0-4, has been mathematically eliminated from playoff contention.
Having already defeated Unicoi County, Gatlinburg-Pittman has a big leg up in the hunt for a regular season region championship and No. 1 seed. Unicoi County and Johnson County will meet on Halloween night in a game that could determine the other team from that region that gets a home playoff game.
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