Tigers outrun by Warriors in 4th quarter
FRANKFORT — The start of the 2014 season for the McClain Tigers didn't follow their own lead of the past two seasons. McClain lost their season opener to the host Adena Warriors, 25-22 Friday night in Frankfort at Bostic Field.
The Tigers entered the game with players taking snaps at the varsity level for the first time in a starting role, but they played tough like battle-tested veterans. The difference was the Warriors were able to take advantage of some miscues by the Tigers and made plays of their own to seal the win on their home field.
After forcing a punt on the opening drive, it was Adena (1-0) who scored the first points in the season opener, putting together a nine-play, 75-yard drive that ended with Cale Free taking the ball four yards to the end zone with 4:20 left in the first quarter. The PAT by Jonathan Thomas made it a 7-0 score.
For the game, the Warriors' offense totaled 318 yards. AHS quarterback Jonathan Thomas passed for 90 yards, going 5-of-10 in the air.
Though they were down, the Tigers got back on track in the ensuing drive with a touchdown of their own to make the score 7-7.
Before the 1-yard touchdown run by senior Ryan Faulconer, the Tigers put together a n 11-plays 75-yard drive (all runs) with new starting quarterback Jason Flowers (a senior) starting things off with a 6-yard dash. From there, Faulconer raced 10 yards, and senior Alex Hollar had a 2-yard run.
Hollar came back with an 18-yard burst around the left corner of the field on a reverse sweep, taking the ball to the Adena 38-yard line.
Flowers came back with a 7-yard run, and later in the drive, a TD run by Faulconer was called back by the officials due to a holding penalty on the Tigers.
McClain didn't flinch, as the next three plays saw Faulconer carry the ball for 12, 3 and on third-and-goal 1-yard for six points with 11:55 left in the second. The PAT by Travis Hall tied the score at 7-7.
Faulconer finished the game with 24 carries for 146 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Tigers in rushing. He averaged 6.1 yards per carry.
Hollar totaled 25 yards (eight carries) on the night, and Flowers had 12 rushes for 29 yards.
The Tigers finished with 294 total yards of offense, with 197 yards on the ground (45 rushes) and 97 yards passing from quarterback Flowers.
Flowers was 7-of-12 for the night through the air.
What hurt the Tigers was their defense's inability to stop the rushing attack of the Warriors on a consistent basis. AHS totaled 228 yards on 36 carries as a team just in rushing, though no player had over 100 yards individually.
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What the Warriors did have was four ball carriers totaling over 20 yards each, including Isaac Thomas with 81 yards on seven carries and Calob Thatcher with eight rushes for 63 yards.
After the Tigers tied the score at 7-7, Adena answered with another touchdown drive, this time going 63 yards in seven plays. The TD came with a 26-yard pass to the right corner of the end zone with the pass by Jonathan Thomas to Wyatt Shanton (in single coverage) for what amounted to a 13-7 advantage with 8:36 left in the first half.
AHS then forced a three-and-out, and after getting the ball on their own 20-yard line, it took them just two plays to reach pay dirt yet again in the second frame. The first play of the drive went 19 yards off a run by Free, followed by a run by Jonathan Thomas that went 61 yards through and around the Tigers' defense with 6:16 left in the first half.
McClain's Hall stopped the 2-point conversion attempt, leaving the Warriors with a 19-7 lead.
The Tigers weren't finished for the first half, as they were able to chip away at the AHS defense with short-yardage plays after getting the ball on the Adena 14-yard line after a high snap on a punt attempt.
The five-play drive ended with Faulconer powering his way one yard with 52.2 left in the opening half. The PAT by Hall made it a 19-14 halftime score.
Neither team was able to score a point in the third, but the Warriors finished a drive they started in the third frame with a fourth-quarter score, ultimately putting them ahead for good.
The 10-play, 72-yard drive began with 3:34 left in the third and ended with 11:22 on the fourth-quarter clock with Thatcher running past the defense of the Tigers, untouched, to the end zone for 22 yards and six points.
After two chances at an extra point kick, the Warriors eventually went for a 2-point conversion, but it was broken up by Faulconer and Hollar, keeping the Tigers down by 11 points.
MHS was able to put together one last TD drive, going 75 yards on 10 plays.
Though the Tigers didn't throw the ball much in this game, their final TD drive was full of passing with Tristan Pitzer catching the first two passes of the drive for gains of 15 and 12 yards.
Later in the drive, on third-and-19, Flowers dumped the ball off to Faulconer, who maneuvered and powered his way for a 16-yard gain. That was followed with another completion to Pitzer, this one for 14 yards, taking the Tigers to the 5-yard line.
On second-and-goal, Faulconer powered his way 4 yards with 2:39 left in the game. Faulconer then scored the 2-point conversion on a run.
AHS recovered an onside kick attempt by the Tigers and ran the clock to all zeros.
The Tigers had defeated the Warriors the past two seasons, including a 47-21 win last season.
McClain (0-1) will have their home opener on Friday, Sept. 5 when they host the Unioto Shermans (1-0) of the SVC. Last season, the Tigers defeated the Shermans by a 31-19 score at UHS.
On Friday, the Shermans won against the Vinton County Vikings, 39-25.
Game Notes: Hollar had an interception … AHS also had one interception … McClain didn't throw a pass until there was 7:10 left in the second quarter … Hollar had a 27-yard run called back due to an illegal block penalty called on the Tigers … Faulconer had a sack on defense … In the past 11 meetings, five games have been won by six points or fewer in this non-conference rivalry.