Six Fumbles Prove to Be the Difference as Clarke Central Outlasts Apalachee 43-19
By Elizabeth Grimsley
Six fumbles turned a game that looked like a decisive moment in Apalachee’s season into just another route as Clarke Central won the Region 8-AAAAA matchup 43-19 Friday night.
There were a few moments throughout that looked to provide the spark the Wildcats (0-4, 0-2 Region 8-AAAAA) needed to turn the game around. However, missed opportunities didn’t allow them to capitalize on Clarke Central’s (3-1, 2-0) mistakes.
An interception for the Wildcats with a little over 18 seconds left on the clock in the first half that resulted in an 89-yard touchdown by senior running back Jody Mathis brought the Wildcats within a point of the Gladiators.
“It was huge for us,” Apalachee head coach Shane Davis said. “It goes back to show some things that we did after getting the touch in there right at the half.”
Up to this point, Apalachee had only averaged 11 points per game, and Friday night, the Wildcats had more than that in the first half alone. But the interception almost didn’t happen because Mathis wasn’t even supposed to be on that side of the field.
“I just saw it coming,” Mathis said. “I called my teammate because I wasn’t supposed to be over there. I saw it, so it told him to go to the other side. Then once he tipped it, I caught it.”
Although the momentum didn’t continue into the second half, Apalachee still managed to add one more touchdown for a season-high 19 points, besting their previous season-high by 5 points.
“We had a lot of really big plays on defense this game,” junior quarterback Chance Rodriguez said. “It got our offense going and made it easier to score.”
But even a complete band even larger than the home team’s and bleachers full of cheering family and friends couldn’t turn the game around or erase the six fumbles for the Wildcats.
“Once it got rolling, it kind of snowballed, and we didn’t even give ourselves a chance,” Davis said. “We got both of those fumbles back, and then ended up giving them two at the end.”
In order to prevent this from continuing on into future games, Davis said that the best thing to do it try and forget.
“If you start thinking about it, you’ll start concentrating on that and you won’t do your other stuff. Then you will turn the ball over,” Davis said. “Mentally we got tired and didn’t play very well.”
All Apalachee can do now is head back home, get back on the field and continue to concentrate on improving its game before it takes on Flowery Branch on Oct. 4 at 7:30 p.m.
“It’s almost got to be like hitting a baseball,” Davis said. “If you strike out, you’ve got to go right back up there and swing again.”
By Elizabeth Grimsley
Six fumbles turned a game that looked like a decisive moment in Apalachee’s season into just another route as Clarke Central won the Region 8-AAAAA matchup 43-19 Friday night.
There were a few moments throughout that looked to provide the spark the Wildcats (0-4, 0-2 Region 8-AAAAA) needed to turn the game around. However, missed opportunities didn’t allow them to capitalize on Clarke Central’s (3-1, 2-0) mistakes.
An interception for the Wildcats with a little over 18 seconds left on the clock in the first half that resulted in an 89-yard touchdown by senior running back Jody Mathis brought the Wildcats within a point of the Gladiators.
“It was huge for us,” Apalachee head coach Shane Davis said. “It goes back to show some things that we did after getting the touch in there right at the half.”
Up to this point, Apalachee had only averaged 11 points per game, and Friday night, the Wildcats had more than that in the first half alone. But the interception almost didn’t happen because Mathis wasn’t even supposed to be on that side of the field.
“I just saw it coming,” Mathis said. “I called my teammate because I wasn’t supposed to be over there. I saw it, so it told him to go to the other side. Then once he tipped it, I caught it.”
Although the momentum didn’t continue into the second half, Apalachee still managed to add one more touchdown for a season-high 19 points, besting their previous season-high by 5 points.
“We had a lot of really big plays on defense this game,” junior quarterback Chance Rodriguez said. “It got our offense going and made it easier to score.”
But even a complete band even larger than the home team’s and bleachers full of cheering family and friends couldn’t turn the game around or erase the six fumbles for the Wildcats.
“Once it got rolling, it kind of snowballed, and we didn’t even give ourselves a chance,” Davis said. “We got both of those fumbles back, and then ended up giving them two at the end.”
In order to prevent this from continuing on into future games, Davis said that the best thing to do it try and forget.
“If you start thinking about it, you’ll start concentrating on that and you won’t do your other stuff. Then you will turn the ball over,” Davis said. “Mentally we got tired and didn’t play very well.”
All Apalachee can do now is head back home, get back on the field and continue to concentrate on improving its game before it takes on Flowery Branch on Oct. 4 at 7:30 p.m.
“It’s almost got to be like hitting a baseball,” Davis said. “If you strike out, you’ve got to go right back up there and swing again.”