Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Devils Enjoy New Gator Boots

Gurdon's Go-Devils went home Friday night wearing brand new Gator skin boots after thrashing Foreman 39-6.

The 7-1, 4-0, Devils simply dominated Foreman on both sides of the ball, with the first string defense shutting down all facets of the Gator offense.

Gurdon, ranked 4th in Class AA in the state, continue to thwart opposing offenses, giving up an average of only 5.5 points per game.

On the flip side of this coin, the Devil offense has been decimating defenses averaging 28.1 points per game. Gurdon has outscored its opposition 225-44.

In the last two games, Gurdon's offense has struck lightning quick as the Devils have shown the talent for making big plays.

Foreman, though, was fortunate the score wasn't worse. Gurdon turnovers kept the Gators from being really embarrassed, as the Devils fumbled the ball away twice.

Penalties also hampered the home team, as Gurdon was nailed six times for 85 yards.

The game opened with Foreman winning the toss. Chance Beasley took the kick at the 15, taking it to the 36 where the Gator offense set up shop.

J.W. Billingsley came out throwing, but missed Shaw Phillips on the game's inaugural play. A second down running play was stuffed, with Billingsley meeting members of the Gurdon defense in his backfield on third down.

The Devil rush got through the offensive line on the punt attempt, blocking the kick with Flint King falling on the loose ball at the 23.

The officials had tossed a flag, but the call was illegal motion against Foreman and the Devils declined.

Chauncey Charles rumbled to the 10 on Gurdon's first offensive play and a sure touchdown was lost when he fumbled on second down.

The Gators recovered the ball at their three.

Foreman's offense was unable to move against Gurdon's defense and three plays later punted to Rashun Hopson at the Foreman 40.

Hopson gave Gurdon's offense great field position by returning it to the Gator 23.

Charles eliminated most of this distance on first down, carrying to the 2 before being stopped. Brannon Hatley put the Devils on the board on the next snap.

The point after sailed wide left, but Gurdon held a 6-0 lead with 8:57 showing in the first.

Gentrey Baugh fielded the ensuing kick at the 16, taking it to the Foreman 39 before being brought down.

Still, the Gator offense couldn't solve the riddle of the Devil "D", wound up getting flagged for clipping and punted from their own 24.

The ball rolled dead at Gurdon's 47, where the offense again began.

Charles moved the Devils to the Foreman 43 on two carries before Eric Allen was sacked at the 44. He then missed connecting with Myram Mitchell and Coach John Pace called time out with 3:45 showing.

After Pace explained things to his charges, Allen simply kept the ball, racing 44 yards for the score to put the Devils up 12-0. The try for two failed as Allen's pass attempt was batted down.

Foreman had great field position to begin its next drive as the Devils were nailed with a facemask call, adding 15 yards to the carry. The Gators began on Gurdon's 44.

Three plays netted two yards, but the Gators decided to go for it on fourth down. Billingsley's pass was incomplete, thrown well over the head of the intended receiver, but a yellow hankie accompanied the ball to the ground and Gurdon was hit with a pass interference call.

This gave Foreman new life at the Devil 27. The Gators fought their way to the 16, but came up short on a second fourth down attempt.

One snap later, Gurdon was at its own 19 and the first quarter over.

Six plays later, Allen found Jeff Rhodes for six from 22 yards out to make it 18-0 Gurdon. The Devils went for two, with Charles getting the toss on an option play and capping the run to put the host team up 20-0 with 9:07 showing.

The Gators began at their own 27 by getting penalized for delay of game. This put Foreman back at its 22.Three plays netted five yards and the Gators again punted.

Gurdon began at its own 46 with Hatley, on first down, sawing through the Foreman defense to the 31. Adrian Meeks fought to the 26, but fumbled the ball away.

All the turnover did was delay the inevitable as Billingsley dropped back to pass, but found his counterpart instead of a Gator receiver. Allen returned the pick to the Gator 30.

Hopson moved Gurdon 12 yards closer to the 18 before Allen was sacked at the 20. Rhodes was nailed with an offensive interference call after the officials said he pushed a defender away and the Devils faced a third and 17 at the Foreman 35.

Allen found Demond Beasley, who took the pass to the Gator 2 with Hopson ending the drive and giving Gurdon a 26-0 advantage. The try for two was no good.

Following a fumbled reception, Foreman began at its 16, moving to the 34 before getting hit with an ineligible receiver call.

This led to another punt, with Hopson fielding the kick at midfield and losing three yards.

Charles, though, didn't let this affect him as he raced 53-yards for his only touchdown of the game to make it 32-0. Josh Griffin split the uprights to make it 33-0.

Mercifully, for the Gators, the half ended before Gurdon could do any more damage.

However, the Devils received the ball to start the third period. Charles fielded the kick at the 14, taking it to the Foreman 30 before being brought down.

Hatley did a great imitation of Charles by scoring on first down.

The snap on the PAT was bobbled and the ensuing pass attempt was picked off. Still, the Devils were firmly in command 39-0 and showed no signs of letting up.

Pace, though, had other ideas. While the first string defense remained in the game for a while longer, the offense was replaced by the second string players.

The Gators did their one, two, three, kick routine after Gurdon's final score, with the younger players getting plenty of valuable game experience for the future.

The second team began its first drive at the Gurdon 19 after Hopson lost five yards on a punt return.

After no gain on the first play, Oliver Webster lost the ball on a toss play with Foreman recovering at the Gurdon 28.

The Gators moved to the Devil six before being pushed back and forced to turn the ball over on downs.

While the second string was unable to sustain a drive for the remainder of the game, the players showed plenty of potential as they moved the ball between the 20s.

Period three ended with Gurdon up 39-0 and in possession of the ball on the Gurdon 29. Unfortunately, the Devils had to punt three plays later with Foreman taking over on its 29.

It was three and out for the Gators, with Gurdon using all four downs before giving the ball back.

Foreman's only scoring drive of the night began with 6:0