Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Devils earn conference title with 16-7 win over Cougars

Gurdon is the undisputed champion of the 7AA West conference.

The Go-Devils posted a 16-7 win over the Cougars of Lafayette County Thursday night, Nov. 6, in what can only be called a bizarre game.

Both teams made mistakes uncharacteristic of this late in the season, especially with the district title and a number one seed on the line. Still, the game was fairly evenly played until the fourth quarter, when the officials made their presence known in a big way.

With a little more than six minutes left in regulation time and the score tied at 7-7, the Cougar sideline was flagged three consecutive times for unsportsmanlike conduct without a play being ran. This moved the Devils from the Gurdon 45 to the Lafayette County 13 and resulted in the go-ahead touchdown.

The win, though, gives Gurdon home-field advantage for the first three games in the state playoffs, which begin Friday, Nov. 14.

The game began with the Cougars winning the toss and returning the opening kick to the Cougar 33.

After a gain of three on the first play, the Cougar quarterback was intercepted by Camron Kennedy at the Gurdon 40 and returned to the Lafayette County four.

Two plays later Hunter Johnson went in from a yard to put the Devils up 6-0. The point after made it 7-0 with 10:32 left in the first quarter.

The Cougars fumbled the ensuing kickoff, with Gurdon recovering at the Cougar 40.

It appeared as though the Devils were going to put the game out of reach in the first quarter, but this wasn't to be. After getting to the Cougar 24, penalties moved Gurdon backwards.

The Devils managed to get to the 15, only to see the drive killed by a holding call. A fourth down pass from Barry Nolan to Davion Williams lost five yards and gave the ball to the Cougars at the Lafayette County 25 with 6:59 left in the first.

The Cougar ground game came alive, moving to the 39 before a fumble gave the ball back to Gurdon at the Lafayette County 35.

However, the Devils were unable to capitalize on this bit of good fortune and wound up going backwards. The drive ended with Nolan being sacked at the Gurdon 44, forcing a punt.

The punt was returned to the Gurdon 43 with 3:29 showing.

This good field position made little difference, as the Cougars were four and out, gaining six yards on the aborted drive.

With 1:23 left in the first, the Devils gained 13 yards on three plays and entered period two with a 7-0 lead.

The Devils marched to the Cougar 15, with the help of an interference call, only to see the drive end on a bizarre note. Nolan had dived into the line on a quarterback sneak, only to have the ball stripped.

The "fumble" was returned for a touchdown, which was called back because of a clipping penalty. The Cougars proved to be their own worst enemy all night. Instead of lining up for a point after to tie the game, Lafayette County began its scoring drive at the Cougar 38 with 6:57 left in the half.

The Cougars needed six plays and had to overcome an holding penalty to tie the game. The touchdown came on a 30-yard pass with 4:04 showing. The point after knotted the score at 7-7.

Starting at its 32 after the kick, the Devils began moving downfield, only to have the drive end with Nolan being intercepted at the Cougar 29. The pick was returned to the Cougar 48.

The turnover didn't matter as the Cougars were unable to mount an offensive drive, losing a yard on four plays.

Nolan took a knee to end the first half after Gurdon took over on downs.

The Devils received the kick to start period three, which was played between the 20s as neither team was able to score in the quarter. Penalties and turnovers prevented either squad from doing much offensively.

Period three came to an end with Gurdon called for roughing the kicker, and the Cougars getting an untimed play in before the buzzer.

The final 12 minutes began with a distinct possibility of an overtime game.

The Cougars had the ball, and punted after two incomplete passes. Gurdon took over at its 36.

Jamelle Lacy lost two on first down. This was followed by Marcel Johnson being caught for a loss of three on second down. Nolan gained 14 on a keeper, putting the ball at the Devil 45.

Then the game got decidedly weird. As the teams prepared to line up and continue play, flags flew and the first unsportsmanlike conduct penalty was called against the Cougar sideline.

This gave Gurdon 15 more yards. But, before play resumed, the Cougar sideline was called on two more unsportsmanlike calls. One penalty moved the ball 15 yards, while the other was half the distance to the goal, putting the Devils at the Cougar 13.

Five plays later, Marcel Johnson went in from the one for the go-ahead score. The touchdown was set up by Hunter Johnson's refusal to go down without a fight.

With 7:01 left, the Devils made it 14-7 after the PAT, which drew another flag for roughing the kicker.

The ensuing kick was made from the Cougar 45, with the Lafayette County squad falling apart. The kick bounded and was fielded at the two and returned to the eight. Had it been untouched, it would have rolled into the endzone for a touchback and been spotted at the 20.

An illegal motion call moved the Cougars to the four. This was followed by a delay of game call, and the loss of another two yards to the two.

The end result was the Cougars punted, with the ball bouncing into a Lafayette County player at the Cougar 35 with 5:37 left in the game.

It was three and out for the Devils, with Gurdon taking a five yard penalty for delay to give the punter a better angle. The punt rolled dead at the Cougar three with 3:42 left in the contest.

The next play sealed Lafayette County's fate as the running back was driven back into the endzone for a safety, giving Gurdon a 16-7 lead with 3:35 to go, and the ball.

The Devils took the kick at the Cougar 45 and ran the clock out to preserve the win.

Unofficial statistics show the Devils to have been the dominant team in most aspects.

Gurdon was two of four in passing for four yards with one interception. The Cougars were three of eight for 71 yards, one touchdown and an interception.

Gurdon punted five times for 143 yards, with 51 yards in return. The Cougars punted twice for 65 yards, and a negative four yards in returns.

In penalties, the Devils were flagged six times for 40 yards, while the Cougars saw laundry fall nine times for 98 yards.

Gurdon fumbled three times, losing the ball once. The Cougars put the ball on the ground twice, losing it both times.

The Devils recorded one sack against the Cougars, while the Lafayette County defense had two sacks in the game.

Gurdon had 15 first downs in the game, while the Cougars only managed four.

The Devils ran a total of 57 offensive plays, to 35 by the Cougars.

Gurdon's ground attack gained 142 yards, while the Devil defense gave up a scant 45 yards rushing.

Overall, the Devils had 146 total yards, to 126 by the Cougars.

Lafayette County ran the ball 27 times for 45 yards, or a 1.7 yard per carry average.

Gurdon ran 53 times for 142 yards, or 2.7 yards per carry.

Lacy was Gurdon's leading rusher, carrying the ball 22 times for 78 yards. Hunter Johnson ran 10 times for 37 yards, while Nolan carried nine times for 10 yards.

Kennedy carried four times netting four yards, with Marcel Johnson running five times for two yards. Davion Williams had three runs for 11 yards.

The Devils will host the fourth place team from the 5AA conference Friday at Go-Devil Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.