By Gaylen Duskey
realfang@citlink.net
Usually when you have a 33-point lead in the third quarter the game is over.
Friday night the usual didn't come easy as Wirt County frittered away most of its 33-point lead in a nail-biting 45-38 victory over Calhoun County at Red Devils Stadium in Mount Zion.
Calhoun did just about everything wrong in the first half to allow Wirt to take a huge lead. Then the Red Devils did just about everything right in the second half before finally running out of time to drop to .500 on the season at 4-4.
The loss makes Calhoun's playoff hopes pretty simple: It needs to win its two remaining games and hope for the best.
The Red Devils took an early 6-0 lead when Aaron Yoak intercepted a Wirt County pass on the first play of the game and ran it back 25 yards for the score.
Then Wirt scored the next 39, most through the generosity of the Red Devils.
Wirt's first score came after Calhoun fumbled the ball away at its own 11. The next came after the Red Devils fumbled the ball away at the 18. Then Wirt scored after Calhoun lost the ball at its own 38.
Somewhere in there was Wirt's legitimate drive in the first half -- 65 yards. The Tigers last score before intermission when the Tigers recovered a fumble and ran it back 46 yards for the touchdown.
And, for the Red Devils, their generosity did not stop there in a play that was something a microcosm of the game. Calhoun took the second half kickoff and burst loose going all the way to the Wirt 45 ... only to fumble the ball away.
The Tigers moved the ball into Calhoun territory but seemed on the verge of blowing their scoring chance when they faced a fourth-and-goal from the 19.
Unfortunately Calhoun's pass defense parted something akin to the Red Sea and quarterback Jake Hutchinson hit Levi Kerby for the touchdown. That made it 39-6 and set off one of the most remarkable come backs in recent Calhoun history.
Calhoun's rally started at the 7:30 mark of the third quarter when quarterback Zack Moore hit Preston Milam for a 19-yard score. Randy Fluharty ran the extra points to make it 39-14.
Then for some reason Wirt County decided to pass the ball and keep passing it.
Whether the Tigers were:
1. Trying to deliver a killing blow to the Red Devils, or,
2. Trying to run the score up on the Red Devils, or,
3. Simply had a brain cramp is unknown.
But whatever the reason Wirt's penchant for passing (the Tigers ran the ball four times in the third quarter and two of them were quarterback sacks on passing attempts) the passing stopped the clock and did not generate much offense.
The clock stoppage more than anything else allowed the Red Devils to right the ship and make a blowout interesting.
The next time Calhoun got the ball Moore broke loose on a 40-yard run on a designed quarterback sneak. Fluharty's extra points run made it 39-22 and what had seemed impossible earlier -- a Calhoun victory -- was looking possible.
Calhoun made it even more interesting early in the fourth quarter when Fluharty's seven-yard touchdown run at the 11:53 mark, accompanied by Moore's extra points run made the score 39-30.
Wirt then did something it badly needed to do. It engineered a clock-eating drive behind its running game. Calhoun's defense rose up to stop the Tigers at the five by Hutchinson hit Dalton Brindo in the end zone as he stepped out of bounds for touchdown.
That gave the Tigers, now 6-2, a 15-point lead with 5:34 remaining.
Calhoun kept the pressure on the Tigers, however, and closed to within one touchdown of the Tigers when Moore bulled the ball in from 10 yards out. Fluharty's extra point run made it 45-38 with 2:10 remaining.
The Tigers were able to hold onto the ball for the rest of the game thanks to a Hutchinson to Zack Cheuvront pass on fourth down with about a minute to play.
Wirt passed for 255 yards and five touchdowns on 20 of 34 passes with two interceptions. On the other hand the Tigers only rushed for 60 yards.
Calhoun passed for 60 yards and rushed for 174 with Moore leading the way with 78 and Randy Fluharty adding 66.
Calhoun goes to Braxton County, 4-5, this coming Friday before closing out the regular season at home against St. Marys.
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