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North vs Reitz Panthers - at Reitz Bowl Sep 28, 2012

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Game Recap

MISTAKES COST HUSKIES IN 40-21 LOSS TO REITZ

Mistakes cost the Huskies dearly in last Friday night’s 40-21 loss to the Reitz Panthers and they lost a game that they could have won.  Despite the final 19 point margin of loss, opportunities presented themselves throughout the game but North failed to capitalize.

On Reitz’ first possession of the game, the Panthers marched into North territory on five well executed plays.  When a first down pass fell incomplete and on second down Austin Payne stopped up a screen play for no gain, Reitz was faced with third-and-ten—and the Huskies had a chance to make a stand.

On third down, Reitz’ quarterback dropped back and threw a quick out pass to his left.  The ball lacked speed and Payne stepped in front of the pass for an interception.  He quickly moved to his own left and turned up field.  He gained five yards before being hit, and unfortunately, was stripped of the ball.  Reitz recovered and instead of North gaining possession either via punt or turnover, the result was a Panther first down at the North 28.  Four plays later, they had their first score of the game.

LONG, NARROW MISS

Playing without star running back, Blake Howell (out with a sprained ankle), the Huskies responded with an eleven play drive that made it as far as the Reitz 27 yard line.  Following a quarterback sack, the drive stalled out and sophomore Zac Turi was called upon to attempt a 47 yard field goal.  With a gusty wind at his back, the kick was long enough but missed just to the left of the upright.

Midway through the second quarter, on a drive that started at their 6 yard line, the Panthers drove the ball out to midfield before the Husky defense stiffened.  On 1^st down at the North 47, defensive tackle Dylan Simmons stopped Reitz’ fleet-footed tailback dead in his tracks.  On second down, line backer Drew Watters flew across the field to hold a screen pass to a short gain.  On third down, Simmons and linebacker Du’Vante Lane nailed the Panther tailback at the line of scrimmage to bring up fourth down at the North 41.

FLEA FLICKER

The Panthers offense had lost all momentum and they were forced to call time out.  North’s defense had stymied their opponent and was on the verge of getting the ball back. 

Reitz came out of the timeout and aligned themselves in an odd formation.  On the snap, a series of handoffs resulted in a “Flea Flicker” play with the ball ultimately being lateraled back to the quarterback who then threw deep to an open receiver who caught the pass and went 41 yards to give the Panthers a 14-0 lead at the half.

SECOND HALF

North’s first possession of the third quarter got off to a great start.  “Big” Mike Johnson took a sweep around left end, deployed a text book stiff arm to a would be tackler, and made his way to the 46 yard line for a first down.  After a penalty and two short runs, North was facing 3^rd and 11 but received a ‘gift’ first down at the Reitz 39 due to a Panther pass interference penalty.  Two successive passes that slipped off receivers’ fingers stalled the drive at that point.

A picture perfect “Coffin Corner” punt by sophomore Chase Whitler backed the Panthers up to their six yard line.  DT Antwan Ogburn dropped a runner for a loss, Du’Vante Lane nearly picked off a second down pass, and the pass rush flushed the Reitz QB out of the pocket for a short run on third down.  On fourth down, punting from his own end zone, the Panther kicker barely got the ball to the 20 yard line before it bounced out of bounds.

North made the most of a golden opportunity.  Two running plays up the middle jack hammered the ball to the 13 yard line.  On third-and-two, quarterback Max Mooney took the snap and rolled out to his left.  He found Whitler open in the end zone and hit him with a bullet pass that netted the Huskies their first score of the night.  Zac Turi’s extra point kick made it 14-7.  The Huskies were back in the ball game.

HIGH WATER MARK FOR THE HUSKIES

Reitz returned the kickoff to the 25 yard line and the North defense ‘buckled down’.  DE Bruce Crider stopped a runner for a short gain on first down and sophomore linebacker Ryan Wargel read a screen pass perfectly on second down and dropped the runner for a loss.

Reitz faced 3^rd and 10 at their 25 and had lost all the momentum in the ball game.  A North stand would force another punt and give the Huskies another short field from which they could tie the game.  This would prove to be the “high water” mark for North hopes on the evening.

After taking the snap in a shot gun formation, the Husky front line was on the Panther quarterback immediately.  At one time or another, three different defenders had both arms around the hapless Panther as he squirmed and twisted, looking for escape routes.

Three separate times it appeared as though he would be tackled for a seven yard loss (or more).

Three separate times he squirmed his way free from his pursuers.

And then he burst free for a 23 yard gain to the 48 yard line.

With a first down at midfield, the Reitz drive was sustained and the Huskies were begrudgingly forced to give ground.   A pair of North penalties helped to keep the drive alive.  On 2^nd and goal from the North 7, a pair of Husky defenders again had hold of the Reitz quarterback and looked certain to drop him for a loss.  Instead, he broke free and dove into the end zone with one second to play in the third quarter. 

The Panthers missed the extra point but led 20-7 as the game entered the final stanza.

FOURTH QUARTER RALLY

Max Mooney put the Husky offense ‘on his back’ on the next possession.  On second and 6 from the 40 yard line, Mooney ran the option play to the right.  Few quarterbacks in recent history have been as deceptive with their fakes as the North senior.  Yanking the ball ‘back’ from the hip of the dive back at the absolute last second, Mooney ‘showed’ the ball to the defensive end just long enough to convince the defender that he might pitch the ball back, and then he cut straight up field with the ball himself.  Angling into the middle of the field, Mooney went 50 yards before being brought down.

Unfortunately a holding penalty (thrown from well behind the runner—often indicative of either a needless block or a questionable call) negated all but 13 yards of the gain.  Still, North had a first down in Reitz territory.  Four more running plays had gained a first down but left the Huskies faced with 3^rd & 7 at the 33.

Mooney took the snap, faked a handoff, and then rolled to his right.  The ‘play action’ had frozen the defensive backs in place and allowed Whitler to get behind a defender.  As the defense closed in on Mooney, he stood tall and lofted a pass to Whitler in the end zone.  The sophomore jumped up, cradled the ball in his arms, and landed on his back for a touchdown.  Turi’s kick cut the Panther lead to just six points at 20-14 and, once again, the Huskies were ‘back’ in the game.

THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK

The Panthers were far from done, however.  On 1^st down a ‘Chop Block’ penalty against Reitz negated a 70 yard run by their speedy tailback.  On a replay of first down from their 16, they chose to hand the ball up the middle to their fullback.

He broke through North’s line, made a linebacker miss, and went untouched for the final 75 yards of an 84 yard touchdown run.  Defensive back Kevin Lockett batted down a two-point passing attempt to hold the deficit to 26-14.

North went ‘three and out’ on its ensuing possession and compounded the issue by allowing a 16 yard return on a 29 yard punt.  The result was Reitz with the ball at the North 29 yard line.  Despite their tailback fumbling at the end of a 16 yard run, it was the Panthers’ ‘night for luck’ as the loose ball bounced right to a blue-and-gray clad player.  One play later, Reitz scored to make it 33-14

AGAIN WITH THE MIRACLES

The Green and White continued to make a game of it however.  Junior Maalik Butler gathered in the ensuing kickoff at the 8 yard line, found a crease, cut over in front of the Reitz sideline, and streaked 55 yards to the Panther 37.  On the first play from scrimmage, Mooney again ran ‘play action’ with a fake, rolled to his right, and this time hit 6’5” senior Brock Underwood on a post pattern for a 37 yard touchdown pass.

It marked Mooney’s first 3 touchdowns passing game of his career, and with Turi’s kick, the Huskies were again ‘only’ 12 down at 33-21.

North was thinking ‘miracle’ in Reitz Bowl when Austin Payne recovered an on-side kick with 3:55 to play at the 49 yard line.  The Huskies had just scored twice in the span of four minutes of play and the time remaining on the clock was similar.

The heavens were ‘aligning’ for one of the great come backs in Husky history.

GAME, SET, MATCH

A first down sack of Mooney dampened spirits a bit, but the quarterback looked to be okay as the Huskies lined up on 2^nd & 15.  Taking the snap in the shot gun formation and immediately looking deep down field for Whitler, Mooney let fly with a bomb.

Reitz picked off the pass and the defender threaded his way back to the North 13 on a nimble 44 yard return.  Two play later, the Panthers put the game out of reach at 40-21.

A BETTER GAME THAN THE SCORE

The Huskies played much better than the score would seem to indicate.  Despite trailing throughout the game, North displayed an awareness of the field and the circumstances and played throughout with the confidence that they could win.

That the Huskies lost is attributable to missed opportunities that could have changed the tide of the game when would-be tacklers failed to secure a runner in their grasp.  Key penalties at inopportune times prolonged drives for the Panthers.  The difference between winning and losing is often measured in inches and on this night, the Huskies ‘gave away’ not just inches but yards and thereby sealed their fate.

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