Telegraph Staff Writer
After trailing by as many as 16 points, the Union County High School football team had a chance to tie the game with 1:08 remaining, but an incomplete pass on a two-point conversion play following Rayvon Durant’s 1-yard touchdown run resulted in host Chiefland winning the Region 3-1A championship by a score of 29-27.
Chiefland (11-1) now advances to the state semifinals, where it’ll host Region 2 champion Madison County (10-3) on Friday, Dec. 3.
Union Head Coach Andrew Thomas was left scratching his head, wondering what happened to the Tigers (12-1). He said so many facets of the game were uncharacteristic of his team, whether it was the three fumbles lost in the first half or the numerous missed assignments and missed alignments on both sides of the ball.
“That’s disappointing to lose like that,” Thomas said. “You play your best and get beat, you can live with that, but when you play the way we did tonight and get beat, it’s frustrating. That’s a tough one to swallow.”
It was far from a perfect game for Chiefland, which committed 20 penalties for 175 yards and had two turnovers, but the Indians built a big lead off big plays in the first half, in which they averaged 8.9 yards per rushing attempt.
Union’s defense clamped down in the second half, preventing the Chiefland offense from scoring and holding the Indians to an average of 3.6 rushing yards per attempt.
The Indians, however, made the one play that proved to be the difference when Jon Adams blocked a punt and returned it for a fourth-quarter touchdown.
“They played better than us,” Thomas said. “That’s why they won. It’s a simple as that.”
Union forced Chiefland to punt on the game’s first series, but the Tigers fumbled the ball away on their first play from scrimmage, with Adams recovering for the Indians at the Union 31-yard line. A roughing-the-passer penalty helped Chiefland drive inside the 10-yard line, but the Indians hurt their effort with two illegal-procedure penalties. The Indians eventually had to settle for Dylan Cochran’s 28-yard field-goal attempt, which was good, putting Chiefland up 3-0 at the 6:34 mark of the first quarter.
The Tigers’ second drive went way better than their first, with Durant gaining 28 yards on the first play, which also saw Chiefland get penalized for a personal foul. The additional yardage put Union at the Chiefland 25. Quarterback A.J. Cortese scored on a run from there. Johnny Edwards added the extra point as the Tigers took a 7-3 lead just 33 seconds after Chiefland’s first score.
Two electrifying plays by Union’s offense were answered by the Indians’ Dakota Fisher, who broke free for a 76-yard run to the Tigers’ 1-yard line. That set up a touchdown run by quarterback Clint Thomas with 4:30 to play in the opening quarter. Cochran added the PAT for Chiefland, which now led 10-7.
Union fumbled for the second time on the ensuing series, with Chiefland’s Lawrence Rivers recovering to set the Indians’ offense up at its own 46. The Indians, though, couldn’t capitalize and punted after three plays, but they flipped the field in a major way, pinning the Tigers at their own 3-yard line.
It was a three-and-out for the Union offense, too. Punter Caleb Crawford, standing in his end zone, had to scramble to field a bad snap. The rushed punt traveled 11 yards, setting Chiefland up at the 19-yard line.
Four plays later, the Indians were in the end zone again on Thomas’ 2-yard touchdown run with 9:35 remaining in the second quarter. Cochran added the PAT for a 17-7 Chiefland lead.
The Tigers’ offense moved quickly down the field. A 14-yard reception by Daylyn Diston and a pass-interference penalty moved Union to the Chiefland 35. After two runs by Durant and an incomplete pass, the Tigers went for it on fourth-and-3 at the 28-yard line, turning the ball over on downs after an incomplete pass.
Two penalties had the Indians facing first-and-20 on their next possession, but they were able to pick up a first down on a pair of 12-yard runs by Thomas and Fisher. The Tigers stiffened and forced Chiefland into a fourth-and-2 play at the Union 40-yard line. Thomas picked up the first down and more, sprinting his way toward his third touchdown of the night with 3:10 left until halftime. Cochran missed the PAT, but the Indians led 23-7.
Cochran rushed for 90 yards in the half and finished with 126 yards on 17 carries.
The first play of the Tigers’ next drive saw Cortese launch a deep pass to a wide-open Dee Williams for a 67-yard gain to the Chiefland 8. Union, though, fumbled on the following play, with Adams making the recovery for the Indians.
Connor Bresee and Dayviontae Thompson combined to tackle Junior Brown for no gain on the first play following the turnover. After two straight illegal-procedure penalties, the Indians fumbled the ball, with the Tigers recovering at the Chiefland 10-yard line.
Diston slipped for a 1-yard loss on a run attempt, but two plays later, he was running into the end zone after making a catch for an 11-yard touchdown with 22 seconds remaining in the first half. Diston then carried the ball on a successful two-point conversion, which allowed the Tigers to go into halftime trailing 23-15.
Chiefland drove past the 50 on its first possession of the second half, but tackles by Trevor Holtzendorf on consecutive plays helped force the Indians to punt on fourth-and-8 from the Union 43-yard line.
The punt had the Tigers starting their second drive of the half at their own 1-yard line. Thomas Williams and Durant had runs of 5 and 3 yards, respectively, to set up third-and-2, but Williams was then held to a 1-yard gain.
Union punted, but got the ball right back when Chiefland fumbled for the second time. Starting at their own 40, the Tigers got a 6-yard run from Cortese, with a personal-foul penalty tacking on additional yardage. Durant, who rushed for 108 yards on 15 carries, then got loose for a 39-yard touchdown run to make the score 23-21 with 2:09 left in the third quarter. Thompson was brought down a yard shy of the end zone on the unsuccessful two-point play.
The Tigers continued to hold the Chiefland offense in check. Holtzendorf made a tackle for no gain, while Curran Webb had a 4-yard sack. Jacob Jenkins’ tackle of Fisher for a 2-yard loss forced the Indians to punt on fourth-and-13.
A 10-yard run by Crawford had the Union offense on Chiefland’s side of the 50, but the Tigers bogged down at the 45 and had to punt. That’s when Chiefland’s Adams made the play that would prove to be the ultimate difference, blocking the punt, scooping up the ball and taking it the distance for touchdown with 6:48 to play. The Indians’ PAT was blocked, but they led 29-21.
Union crossed midfield on the next series, with Diston catching a 15-yard pass for a first down at the Chiefland 45. Durant was tackled for a 3-yard loss on the next play, while two straight incomplete passes led to a punt.
The Indians seemed in good position to do more than go three-and-out when they next had the ball, but an illegal-procedure penalty on third-and-1 had them eventually punting on fourth-and-2 from their own 28. The punt was downed at the Union 38 with 3:15 to play.
Cortese promptly completed a 20-yard pass to Diston, who finished with five receptions for 66 yards. Two plays later, after a sack, the Tigers were facing third-and-16. A pass-interference penalty reduced the yardage to gain, but a pass breakup by Paul Davis had the Tigers going for it on fourth-and-1. A run by Durant picked up the first down. After a 6-yard pass to Diston, Cortese, who was 7-of-16 for 154 yards, found a wide-open Evan Hall for a 21-yard gain to the Chiefland 5-yard line. Durant then had a 4-yard carry, setting up his 1-yard touchdown run.
The failed two-point conversion had the Tigers attempting an onside kick, which the Indians recovered. Two kneel-downs by Thomas allowed Chiefland to run out the clock.
Union’s defensive effort may have improved over the course of the game, but the overall performance of the offense had the Tigers’ coach wondering what could’ve been.
“We had opportunities left and right on offense, and we missed them,” Thomas said, adding, “We just didn’t execute. Way too many missed assignments. We had plays every time. What did we miss, two or three wide-open passes? In a game like this, you’ve got to hit them. You can’t miss them.
“It’s disappointing. We didn’t play well.”
The Tigers finished with 333 yards of offense, which was just 4 yards less than what Chiefland had. Union entered the game averaging 324.3 rushing yards per game, but finished with 179 yards on 34 carries.
This year’s team consisted of a large junior class, but Thomas gave kudos to his seniors, saying, “It’s not a big class, but they bought into what we’re doing and really kind of led the charge for us to be where we’re at, in this position.”
