Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Team Still Needs Two Wins in 7AA For Playoffs

Blown opportunities and some questionable calls from the officials helped the Horatio Lions beat Gurdon 8-6 Friday night.

The Go-Devils won the toss to start the game and received the opening kick. Nick Hughes fielded the boot at the 27 and carried it 20 yards to the 47 where Gurdon's offense took over.

Quarterback Brian McGalliard took the snap, wheeled and handed to D.D. Sheppard. Sheppard blasted through the middle of the Lion defense and sprinted 53 yards for what appeared to be a touchdown. However, a hankie had floated to the ground and the Devils were flagged for clipping.

Instead of leading 6-0, Gurdon was staring at a first and 25 from its 32. Three plays later, the Devils punted to Horatio, with Coy Williamson returning the ball to the Lion 35.

The home team began its only scoring drive of the night, with the help of an offside call against the visiting Devils on a third and five play, thereby keeping the drive alive. Jeff Risner finished the drive going in from the eight. The Lions went for two and were successful, making it 8-0.

The ensuing kick sailed out of bounds at Gurdon's 44, where the Devils took over.

Gurdon began what looked like a scoring drive, but was stalled by penalties. In fact, after moving to the Horatio 15, the Devils were flagged twice for illegal motion. The visitors were unsuccessful on fourth and 16 when the combine of McGalliard to Sheppard only managed to move the ball to the 20.

Horatio's offense began moving downfield as Jeremy Patrick gained 15 on first down. However, two plays later, on third and 10, Steven Wagner dropped back to pass, winged the ball and found his opposite number, Robert Smith.

Smith returned the interception to the Horatio 40 to end the first period.

Once again, the Devilsbegan moving steadily downfield, with Sheppard carrying the brunt of the load as Hughes played the entire game with a bum knee.

The Devils moved to Horatio's nine before losing two and seeing McGalliard picked off on third and goal. Chad Wagner intercepted the pass, taking it to Gurdon's 46 before Chris Brown brought him down.

The Lions managed one first down before Gurdon's defense stiffened, forcing Horatio into a third and long. Steven Wagner again dropped back to pass, again winged the ball, and for a second time found Gurdon's Smith.

This time, Smith rumbled from the Gurdon 30 to the Devil 44 where the offense began.

Gurdon started another march toward the promised land, but fell short after McGalliard was sacked at the 19 on third and eight. A blown play on fourth down gave the Lions the ball at their 17 with a minute left in the first half.

Horatio ran out the clock and went to the locker room with an 8-0 lead at the break.

The home team received the kick to start the third quarter, with the ball being kicked out of bounds by Phillip Porcelli, who was filling in for an injured Joshua Thomas. This allowed the Lions to begin the second half at their 35.

Horatio began slicing through the Gurdon defense, moving to the Devils' 34 before Brown introduced himself to Steve Wagner up close and personal, dropping the Lion signalcaller for a 12-yard loss on third down.

Gurdon head coach John Pace was looking for a fake on fourth down. Therefore, he had his players stay in their standard defense on the punt, which rolled into the endzone for a touchback.

Now, it was the Devils' turn to march downfield for a score. McGalliard completed two key passes in the drive, one a screen to Sheppard for a first down, and the other to Mario Charles at the 15. From the 15, Sheppard plowed through the defensive front for the score on two plays. With Thomas sidelined with a knee injury, the Devils went for the tie.

However, before getting the ball snapped, Horatio was flagged for being offside. This moved the ball to the one and a half yard line.

When play resumed, there was a mixup in the backfield and Sheppard fumbled the ball, which was recovered by Horatio. The Lions led 8-6 at this point, and scoring for the night was over.

For the remainder of the game, the two squads moved the ball up and down the field, but neither could punch it through for a score.

On its final drive of the night, Gurdon began at the 20 after a Horatio punt again rolled into the endzone for a touchback.

The Devils, with 3:33 left, rambled to the Horatio 40, where penalties stalled the drive. McGalliard completed a screen to Brown, who bulled his way from the Lion 40 to near the 15, but the play was nullified by a motion penalty.

Instead of first and 10 at the 15, the Devils faced a second and 15 from the 45. Two passes resulted in losses to the Gurdon 37, and McGalliard missed Travonn Crow with the fourth down toss to seal the team's fate.

Early in the game, assistant coach Randy Kizer was warned by an official after repeatedly questioning the calls. He was told he would be ejected if he continued.

This was after the zebras missed what appeared to be a holding call against Horatio which could have kept a Gurdon drive alive. In addition, the officials called a time out when the Lions had too many men on the field, allowing the extra player time to get on the sidelines.

Unofficial statistics showed Gurdon dominating the Lions. Overall yardage showed the Devils with 214 to Horatio's 144. Gurdon had 204 yards rushing while all of Horatio's yards were on the ground. The Devils were four of 10 for 10 yards and one interception through the air, while the Lions were zero for two with two interceptions.

Sheppard carried the ball 27 times for 179 yards in the game. This gave him a 6.6 yard per carry average.

Hughes, despite playing hurt, carried seven times for 26 yards (3.7 yards per carry). McGalliard lost two yards on three tries, while Mario Charles carried three times for no yardage. Brown carried once for a yard.

Gurdon punted once for 33 yards and no return. The Lions punted twice for 92 yards and no return.

The Devils were flagged seven times, all crucial penalties, for 50 yards, while the home team saw laundry fall to the ground five times for 32 yards in penalties.

Gurdon fumbled twice, losing both, while Horatio put the ball on the ground once, turning it over to the Devils.

This loss drops the Devils' record to 5-2 overall, but the team is 2-1 in 7AA play.

In order to insure themselves of a playoff spot, the Devils need to win at least two of their next three games.

Gurdon travels to Nashville Friday night to take on the ever-tough Scrappers on their turf. Kickoff is set for 7:30 at Scrapper Stadium.