October 22, 2009 at 8:42 a.m.
CL Wildcats burned at home by big-play Fridley offense
CL Wildcats burned at home by big-play Fridley offense
"The interception return for a TD killed us," said Wildcat head coach Bill Weiss. "We were never able to bounce back from it. You can't do things like that and expect to win. It was a frustrating, disappointing night."
The Wildcats got off on the wrong foot right away in this one as the Tigers returned the opening kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown to give themselves a 7-0 lead just 13 seconds into the game. The Wildcats failed to move the ball on their first drive. Lining up to punt on fourth and 10 from their own 35, the snap sailed over punter Brandon Dawson's head. Dawson hustled back to the 10, picked the ball up and quickly tried to punt it. But the swarming Tigers blocked it and pounced on the ball at the 9, first and goal. They scored three plays later to go up 13-0 with just over four minutes gone in the first quarter, missing the extra point.
The Wildcats then went on an impressive 11 play, 76 yard touchdown drive that took up four minutes on the clock. Fullback Nathan Gilman led the way, churning out three runs totaling 38 yards as the Wildcats moved the ball down to the Tiger 22. On first down, the Tigers were called for holding Wildcat tight end Bryan Eichten, making it first down on the 12. On the next play, a counter play to the right was perfectly executed, and Jordan Hickcox waltzed around right end and into the end zone. Dominic Novak's extra point cut the Fridley lead to 13-7.
The Tigers answered right back. They moved the ball down to the Wildcat 43, but a holding penalty pushed them back to their own 46, first and 21. The quarterback nicely faked a handoff into the line, ran right and took off, outrunning all Wildcat pursuers on his way to a 54 yard touchdown. The Tigers converted a two-pointer and led 21-7 with 90 seconds left in the first quarter.
Gilman and the Wildcat offensive line continued to punish the Fridley front seven as the Wildcats moved the ball 30 yards in six plays to get the ball to the Fridley 35. But then came Fridley's game-changing interception return for a touchdown.
Cory Lushanko gave Wildcat fans some excitement on the ensuing kickoff as he returned the ball all the way to the Tiger 36 yard line. The Wildcats took advantage of the short field. Sargeant had two seven yard keepers in a row on the drive and, on fourth and 1 from the 10, burrowed his way up the middle to give the Wildcats first and goal from the 9. On the next play, Josh Wilson took a pitch right and raced into the end zone, cutting the Fridley lead to 28-14 with over 7 minutes left in the second quarter.
The Wildcats tried an onside kick, but Fridley recovered at their own 48 and started to move the ball downfield. They went for it on fourth and 4 from the Wildcat 30. The Fridley quarterback dropped back to pass, but had nowhere to throw as the Wildcat defense quickly closed in on him. It looked like he was going to escape up the middle, but defensive end Steven Wagner made a nice tackle at the line of scrimmage and the Wildcats took over on downs. After the Wildcats went three and out, the Tigers went on a 10 play drive that ate up the rest of the half. But on third and 10 from the Wildcat 21, defensive lineman Clay Olson didn't fall for the quarterback draw, making a tackle at the line of scrimmage. The ball was overthrown on fourth down, and the Wildcats went into the locker room trailing 28-14.
After three two and outs by the Wildcats sandwiched around a short Fridley drive, the Tigers got the ball at their own 48. They scored on a 54 yard run and, after a Wildcat fumble on their next drive, scored on a 56 yard run to increase their lead to 41-14 and effectively put the game away with five minutes gone in the third quarter.
Starting from their own 24 on their next possession, the Wildcats relied on Lushanko as he carried the ball seven times for 42 yards to help the Wildcats move the ball into the red zone. On third and goal from the 1, Lushanko leaped over the top of the pile up the middle for a touchdown with five minutes left in the third quarter. The Tigers added a touchdown in the fourth quarter after yet another long run, making the final score Fridley 48, Chisago Lakes 20.
"We just flat out made too many mistakes," said Weiss. "We've been so inconsistent this season and we were hoping to get things turned around. We've dug ourselves a pretty deep hole. During a game, you sometimes get a momentum wave in your favor. Against Fridley, that momentum wave went against us. It's frustrating. We know we're a better team with that, but you can't argue with the results."
The Wildcats were scheduled to play their final regular season game of 2009 last night at Columbia Heights, but the game results weren't available in time for this week's issue of the Press. A game against Columbia Heights is certainly winnable for the Wildcats, but they're not taking anything for granted this year.
The top three teams for the Section 4AAAA playoffs, which start next Tuesday, October 29, seem set. Mahtomedi will, not surprisingly, end up with the number one seed, followed by St. Paul Central and Como Park. Central dropped down from Class AAAAA this season, while St. Paul Johnson moved out of the section by dropping down to Class AAA. The other teams are all bunched together, so the Wildcats could end up seeded anywhere from fourth to seventh once the seeding formula is applied after last night's games.
"Mahtomedi is once again pegged as the team to beat in our section," said Weiss. "They've done well this year and have historically been the top team. As we move into the playoffs, I've got to coach better and we have to play better to see what we can get going in the time we have left this season. We need to win our first section playoff game and go from there."
Strange Circle
Football can certainly be an unpredictable sport at times. Take this strange circle of wins in the North Suburban Conference. The Wildcats destroyed St. Francis earlier this season. St. Francis handed Fridley their only loss of the season a couple of weeks ago. Fridley pounded Columbia Heights. Columbia Heights beat North Branch, and North Branch beat Chisago Lakes in the season opener. That's Chisago Lakes over St. Francis over Fridley over Columbia Heights over North Branch over Chisago Lakes. At least two of those game results don't make any sense, but you never know what's going to happen once two teams step out onto the field.
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