By Amanda Perkins (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
They entered the second half with a 14-point lead, but the Seneca Indians could not hold their early momentum in the Class 3 state football championship Saturday at Faurot Field, finishing in second place against the Blair Oaks Falcons.
“It seemed we couldn’t get anything going our way offensively,” said Seneca head coach Cody Hilburn of the second half. “We put our defense on the field too much, and it felt like we needed to go on that one sustained drive, and we didn’t do it. Credit to Blair Oaks, a lot of that is a very, very good football team and a team that two-platoons, and they had a lot of fresh guys on the field, and we just didn’t finish.”
Blair Oaks head coach Ted LePage said his team’s second half adjustments included changing the option match-up due to Indians senior quarterback Kaden Clouse, sending additional pressure, and changing from a 30-front to a 40-front defense. “I think in this game, the 11 playing on one side of the ball and 11 playing on the other side of the ball was the difference…they hadn’t been in a tight game and we kept pressing on the offensive side…we wore them down, and that was the difference in the fourth quarter,” said LePage.
Six of Seneca’s primary players were a constant presence on both sides of the ball.
In the first quarter, Blair Oaks completed a 31-yard pass; on Seneca’s 16-yard line, junior Jace Renfro came up with a sack to force a field goal attempt, which the Indians blocked to take over on their own 20. Roman Miller and Kaden Clouse went back-to-back on 26-yard runs, and Clouse finished the drive in the end zone to put the Indians first on the board, 6-0.
Blair Oaks came in allowing less than three yards per carry. Seneca carried five times for 80 yards on their first drive.
The Falcons blocked Seneca’s PAT, and quickly answered with deep passes of their own to lead 7-6. Following senior Tyrone Harris, junior’s 28-yard kickoff return, senior tight end Hagen Ginger received a 50-yard pass from Clouse. Clouse then capped off the drive with a rushing touchdown, now leading 14-7. Blair Oaks answered with seconds left in the first quarter to tie the game, 14-14.
Seneca extended their lead to open the second quarter, with junior Roman Miller rushing for 14 yards, and Clouse rushing for 46 total yards and completing a pass to junior Brodie Probert for 32 yards. Drew Sherwood’s PAT was good, and Seneca led 21-14. The Indians got a defensive stop, then started a drive topped by Clouse, who scored his third rushing touchdown of the game, 28-14. The Seneca defense capped off a solid first half by standing up Blair Oaks on four straight plays after the Falcons had the ball first-and-goal from the four.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME
Seneca would end the first half with 286 yards (8.1 yards per carry, 10.2 yards per play). In the second half, the momentum changed, and the Indians averaged only 2.9 yards per carry and 2.8 yards per play.
“We knew they were a defense that was built to stop the inside run game, which is a strength of ours, and we knew we had to put together a good perimeter run package, and we did, and our kids came out and executed it, and then we were able to get the inside run going as well. We just couldn’t make the play when we needed to in the second half,” said Coach Hilburn. “…maybe they just got the momentum swing in their favor, but it definitely rolled in their favor and we had a hard time getting it back in ours.”
Seneca and Blair Oaks traded punts to start the third, and the Falcons stood up the Indians on a fourth-down play in Seneca’s own territory to get the ball back. Brodie Probert intercepted Blair Oaks in the red zone, but Seneca would fail to move the ball on that possession. The Falcons’ 64-yard touchdown pass would be the only score in the third quarter.
Blair Oaks picked off Seneca again at the top of the fourth and tied the game, 28-28. The Falcons intercepted again and converted into a touchdown with just under 7 minutes left in the game; Blair Oaks scored 21 unanswered points to lead 35-28.
The Falcons forced the Indians to punt and hit a field goal to take a 10-point lead with 1:44 to play. Seneca marched in the final minutes, but incomplete passes ended their championship bid.
“I can promise you we never stopped believing,” said Coach Hilburn. “I told them if we score, we’re going to go for two and try to win the thing. And that was our mindset, that was our belief, and it just didn’t happen.”
The seniors joined Hilburn in his first season at Seneca four years ago. “They came in with me as freshmen, and what they’ve accomplished, four straight district championships, I think they’ve tied the most wins over a three or four-year stretch, back-to-back state championship appearances, I can’t overstate what they’ve done for our program,” said Hilburn. “But again…I really do like winning football games, obviously, but man, it’s about doing it the right way, it’s about having guys that are going to go out and be great people someday, and that’s exactly what these guys are going to do.”
Senior quarterback and safety Kaden Clouse said he is thankful for his team. “They’ve been like a second family to me…they’ve always been there, and I will always be there for them.”
Nolan Napier, senior defensive end and offensive guard, took a beating for his team this season, blocking a running offense for three players averaging 1,000 yards rushing. “Yeah, it’s worth it,” he said. “I’d do it all over again, they never complain, they always praise us. They’re the best.”
“I couldn’t be more proud of my kids, top-notch young men,” said Hilburn. “I told them before we went out, they are champions in my mind, win or lose today. They came up short on the scoreboard but these guys are going to go graduate and they will be tremendous husbands and tremendous dads someday.”
The Indians end their season 13-1.
