Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Wolves Pounce On Gurdon, Rain Ends Game

It was one of the shortest games Prescott ever played, just lasting ten and a half minutes, but the Curley Wolves won it, 14-0.

Thanks to a weather front that moved through Prescott Friday night, the Prescott-Gurdon was stopped with 1:35 left in the first quarter. The officials only postponed the game 20 minutes, but the Gurdon coaches decided end it at that point.

Weather forecasters had predicted all week that a front would move into the area late Thursday night and that a probability of rain would fall Friday morning with a better chance of thunderstorms developing Friday night.

It was sunny nearly all day Friday. Late that afternoon clouds began to form and weather radar indicated the front coming out of Texas and Oklahoma into Arkansas.

KATV, which was to have filmed parts of the Hope-Nashville game (at Hope), the Prescott-Gurdon game, and then the Arkadelphia-Sylvan Hills game, decided that the weather at Hope was already too severe to stay for any portion of that one.

KATV's Jeff Wingfield, when he arrived at Prescott, warned that the severe weather coming into Hope would soon be in Nevada County.

The officials, who stopped the game so no players would be exposed to the lightning, decided the delay. However, lightning was still at least 20 to 30 minutes away. Prescott's coaching staff wanted to finish out the quarter, but the officials ruled that a 20-minute break be taken.

Meanwhile, at Hope, officials at that game also made the decision to send the players inside with Nashville leading by two touchdowns. However, that game was finished Saturday night with Nashville winning 44-14.

The decision by Gurdon's coaching staff probably indicated their thoughts concerning the outcome, with the Curley Wolves jumping out to a 14-0 lead in three possessions, and the Prescott defense stifling everything the Gurdon offense tried.

No one will ever know the outcome of the game had it been played the four quarters, but the victory by Prescott now moves the Wolves to 3-0 for the year with the real season beginning this Friday when PHS travels to Bismarck.

During the quarter Friday night Gurdon had 12 offensive plays and Prescott had 11 -- the only thing that could be compared to close. Gurdon had only one first down while Prescott finished with five.

At no time during the short-lived game did the ball ever get on Prescott's end of the field. Never after the kick-off.

Once more the coin toss was won by Prescott to begin the game. The Wolves always kick off when they win the toss, and they receive to begin the second half.

Long legged Cedric Flemons booted the kick into the end zone, giving Gurdon the ball on the 20-yard line.

The Curley Wolf defense had moved the Go-Devils back two yards after the first play, with no gain on the second. On third and 12 the Prescott defender mis-read the play and Gurdon quarterback Jarrod Toland connected with Kenny Hughes for a 26-yard gainer and a first down at the 44-yard line.

However, the Wolves stopped the Go-Devils' forward progress at the 45, bringing up a punting situation.

Prescott fans from last year remember the long lean body of Cedric Flemons, and how his reach adds a few feet more to that, and how many times he deflected a pass, or batted one down or came around and tackled a back behind the line. Yeah. He did it again Friday.

Flemons blocked the Gurdon punt with Scott Graham falling on it at the Gurdon 15, easily within striking distance for the Curley Wolves.

On Prescott's first offensive play Gurdon lined up offsides, moving the ball to the 10 for the Wolves.

Fullback Sam Marlow gained four yards on his first try to move the ball to the six. Carlos Vanhook gained four more on the next play for the first down, then Vanhood got the ball again and went in for the touchdown.

Mike Fountain made the point after try and Prescott led 7-0 with 7:40 left in the period.

This time Terrell Burton kicked off for Prescott with Gurdon moving the ball from the 10 to the 25-yard line.

On fourth and 15 the Go-Devils punted with Fountain taking the punt at the Gurdon 40 and moving it closer to the goal by 12 yards.

Prescott quarterback Al Johnston didn't connect on the next three pass attempts, causing Prescott to punt.

His first attempt was for Rashad Johnson, who, it appeared, ran the wrong pattern. Johnston's second attempt was too short for Marlow in the end zone. On third down the Wolves had motion and were penalized. Playing the third down over Johnston went into shotgun formation for a pass. However, he nearly was run out of bounds before he attempted a pass for Johnson near the goal line.

Johnson tried to punt the ball out of bounds inside the 10, but instead it took a bounce into the end zone for a touchback.

Thanks to a delay of game penalty against Gurdon and the Prescott defense, the Go-Devils had to punt from their own 13-yard line. The punt was blown dead at the Gurdon 37.

Vanhook gained six yards for Prescott on the first play, then another (and last) Johnston pass for Johnson fell incomplete, bringing up a draw that worked.

Marlow took the ball on the delay and went up the middle to get the first down at the Gurdon 15.

He got another first down at the three by running up the middle in an opening the line had made for him. Then Marlow got the ball again and went around on the right side for the TD with 1:35 left on the clock for the first period.

Fountain once more kicked the extra point to make it 14-0 for Prescott.

The officials immediately and very hastily conferred among themselves and decided to call the 20-minute break, which was the last Prescott saw of the Go-Devils for this season.

Marlow was Prescott's leading rusher with 35 yards, and he scored a touchdown. Vanhood rushed for 12 and he scored as well. The net yardage for the Curley Wolves was 47.

Johston attempted four passes, missing on all of them.

Toland also attempted four passes, connecting with two (one for zero gain) and missing two.

Gurdon had a minus eight yards rushing for a net total of 18 yards.

Prescott had one penalty for 10 yards while Gurdon had two that totaled 10.

This week the Curley Wolves will open 7AA Conference play by going against the Lions at Bismarck. Seating is limited.

Next week the Wolves will travel to Nashville for a re-match (how many re-matches have there been in football) against the Scrappers.

The two teams were the two best teams in the state last year in Class AA with Prescott winning 28-13 in the regular season and 14-8 at Little Rock's War Memorial Stadium for the championship.

It's good that the Curley Wolves can use that as a goal for this year -- to make a repeat -- but first things first. It must be Bismarck, then Nashville.