Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Fumblitis Plagues Go-Devils In 9-6 Loss

Youth, inexperience and misdirection resulted in a 9-6 loss to Fouke Friday night in Gurdon's season opener.

The Panthers were outnumbered by the Go-Devils, but didn't let this bother them and their wing-T formation.

Fouke's quarterback, Mike Miller, wingback Jeremy Larey and tailback, Jacob Rawlinson, kept Gurdon's defense off-balance the entire game.

The game was also plagued with fumbles, as neither team could hang onto the pigskin. Gurdon put the ball on the ground nine times, losing two. Fouke fumbled six times, turning it over five.

Gurdon won the toss and took the opening kickoff to get the season underway at Gus Brown Field.

Pat Lomack fielded the kick at his 15, giving the Devils good field position at the 30.

Mario Charles gained a yard on first down, but back-to-back fumbles required Gurdon to punt on fourth down.

Rawlingson fielded the punt on his 40, taking it to Gurdon's 31.

Not that it mattered. On the first play from scrimmage, the ball was snapped over Miller's head and fallen on by Gurdon's Marion Berry.

Again, the center and quarterback missed the exchange, resulting in the ball hitting the ground. The Devils managed to recover the loose ball, but Coach John Pace wanted to talk to his charges.

Calling a time out with 9:31 to go in the first. Pace explained the situation to his squad and sent them back onto the field of combat.

With the ball resting on Gurdon's 44, Charles took it to the Fouke 47, then to the Panther 45.

Kenny Hughes carried the leather to the 28, but saw the play nullified by a yellow flag and a procedure call against the Devils.

Gurdon's offense was unable to overcome the penalty and punted, with the ball rolling dead at the 2.

Three plays resulted in Fouke reaching the 13 before the Panthers lost control of the pigskin yet again, which Gurdon recovered at the 5.

Before the ball could be snapped, the officials dropped more laundry. This time it was an offside call against Fouke, moving the ball to the two-and-a-half.

Charles carried twice before breaking the plane of the goal line. Josh Thomas split the uprights giving Gurdon a 7-0 lead with 4:03 left in the first.

The ensuing kick sailed into the endzone for a touchback.

Again, the Panther offense had problems as it was flagged for motion and a five-yard loss, back to its 15.

Undaunted, the Fouke youngsters began utilizing their misdirection, which appeared to confuse the Devil "D"fenders.

The Panthers ran eight plays, going from their 15 to Gurdon's 37 before the first period ended.

The second quarter began with Gurdon flagged for grabbing a facemask, moving the ball to the Devil 12.

Once again, the dread malady fumblitis struck, with the Panthers coughing the ball up again. Thomas fell on it at the 13, quashing the Fouke threat.

The Devils, after another offside call against Fouke, moved to the Fouke 31 before Jarrod Toland's pass to Lomack fell harmlessly to the earth on third down.

Pace went for it on fourth, only to see Toland sacked at the Fouke 48.

The Panther center began spraying the ball all over the backfield, snapping to Miller and Rawlinson, befuddling Gurdon.

Controlling the ball and clock, Fouke marched steadily downfield, managing to overcome penalties and recover its own fumble.

On third and 10 from the Gurdon 13, Miller dropped back and lofted a soft pass to Larey for six.

The PAT was wide right, leaving Gurdon in command of a slender 7-6 lead at the 0:42 mark.

The Devils were unable to move the ball during the remainder of the half.

Quarter three was marred by penalties and fumbles as neither team was able to take command of the contest.

Because of this, the Devils maintained their slim advantage as the buzzer signaled the end of the period, leaving only 12 minutes to decide the outcome.

The final stanza opened with Fouke in possession at Gurdon's 12, following the recovery of a Devil fumble.

The Panthers were unable to penetrate the Gurdon "D"fense and called time out with 10:45 left to talk things over with their mentor, who decided a field goal attempt was in order.

He was right. The kick was perfect from 28-yards out, giving the Panthers a 9-7 lead.

From here, the Gurdon offense started to gel. The Devils moved the ball from their 36 to the Panther 20 before losing their second fumble of the night.

Gurdon's defense stiffened, forcing a Panther punt after five plays.

With their final possession, the Devils began marching toward what they hoped would be paydirt.

A pitch lost two to the 21. This was followed by a pitch to Charles, who reversed to Lomack, who rambled to the 34.

Facing a third and five, Toland dropped back to pass. Firing over the middle, he saw the ball wind up in Rawlinson's hands, killing any hope of a Gurdon comeback.

Unofficial statistics show Gurdon ran 40 plays, compared to Fouke's 54.

The Panthers piled up 229 yards on 49 carries, while Gurdon racked up 131.5 yards on 31 rushing attempts. Gurdon was 0-3 in passing with one interception. Fouke attempted one pass, completing it for a 13-yard touchdown.

Gurdon was flagged three times for 22 yards, while the Panthers saw laundry fall in their direction nine times for 60.5 yards.

The Devils punted three times for 58 yards, with Fouke booting the ball twice for 76. There were no punts returned.

Charles led Gurdon's ground attack, carrying the ball 19 times for 60.5 yards. Kenny Hughes was next with 27 yards on four carries.

Lomack carried once, on the reverse, for 13 yards, while tight end Keon Penney also hauled the mail on a reverse once for 18 yards.

Nick Hughes carried twice for three yards, with Toland carrying twice for five. Kaleb Williams rounded out the rushing with two carries for four yards.

The Devils will have Friday night off before returning to action. However, when they to take the field again, it will be against former 7-AA foe Prescott, and won't be an easy game.

The Curley Wolves pounded Class AAA Ashdown 27-12 in their season opener.