Clear Creek Middle School’s football season got underway with two wins.
CCMS was in Fannin County last Tuesday to take on the Rebels, who led the eighth-grade Bobcats until the final minutes of regulation. A Bobcat touchdown pass evened the score, and after the rivals battled through three overtime periods, it was the Bobcats who came out on top, 30-22.
The seventh-grade Cats won every phase of their game.
The Rebels had no answer on either side of the ball, and they failed to field two kickoffs. Clear Creek scored every time its offense took the field, and the Bobcats forced a running clock in the fourth quarter en route to a 32-0 win.
Eighth grade
Head coach Willie Dodaro was happy to see his players stay the course when things were not going their way.
“Our kids are physically tough and that’s our motto,” he said. “I told them after practice one day, sometimes we’re not going to win some games, but people used to walk away and say, “I don’t want to play Gilmer any more,’ win or lose. That’s the motto in this town. That’s the way it is. That’s what kept us in the game. We kept playing Gilmer football.”
Even when everyone in the stadium knew the Bobcats had to complete a pass, they did.
Trailing 8-0, CCMS punted the ball back to Fannin with 4:52 left in the fourth quarter. It was the Cats’ third punt of the game, with their only remaining possession ending on downs.
Clear Creek’s defense had forced one second half punt to that point, and it needed to do it again if the Bobcats were going to have a chance. The Rebels started at their 12, and after a pair of runs, they completed a screen pass for a first down at the 25.
CCMS spent two time outs, and Fannin faced third down and five. The Rebels went to the air, and an incomplete pass stopped the clock.
The Cats took over at their 48-yard line following a Rebel punt. After a 12-yard gain by halfback McCoy Sutton, CCMS finally found the end zone. Quarterback A.J. Callihan hit a wide-open Ryan Rellinger in stride down the middle of the field for a 40-yard touchdown.
The Cats still needed the conversion, and they were flagged for a holding penalty on their first attempt. With the ball now on the 13, Callihan rolled to his right and connected with fullback Madden Hopkins in the end zone to even the score at 8-8 with 2:01 on the clock.
Clear Creek’s defense forced a third punt, but its offense was not able to gain much ground after receiving possession with 29 seconds left in regulation.
Each team received a possession at the defense’s 15-yard line for overtime. CCMS was up first, and the Cats scored on four plays with Callihan sneaking in from a yard out. Sutton took a sweep into the end zone on the conversion for a 16-8 Bobcat lead.
Fannin’s offense needed three plays and used a 1-yard quarterback sneak to score. The Rebs completed a pass on the conversion to tie the score at 16-16.
FCMS was on offense first to start the second overtime. The four-play drive ended with another sneak, but the pass on the conversion fell incomplete.
Down 22-16, CCMS had to score, and the Rebels were in position to win as the Cats faced fourth down from the 12. Callihan found Hopkins again for a shot pass, and he rumbled into the end zone. FCMS intercepted Callihan’s pass on the two-point conversion as the score remained even, 22-22.
The Bobcat offense took the field for the third overtime, and following a 3-yard gain by Rellinger, Hopkins carried twice. His final run covered 7 yards for a touchdown. Callihan kept the ball on the conversion and crossed the goal line for a 30-22 lead.
Fannin went to the air exclusively when its offense returned to the field, and it only resulted in 3 yards. The Rebels’ halfback pass on fourth down was broken up by Rellinger in the end zone, and the Bobcats celebrated their rivalry win.
Prior to the dramatic ending, the Bobcats had a rather pedestrian first half offensively. They were limited to 30 yards through two quarters, and 21 of those yards came on the final two plays of the second quarter.
“We couldn’t find that groove on offense and were kind of sloppy, but they never quit,” Dodaro said. “The story of this game was heart. Being able to hold them to 2 or 3 yards on first down seemed like it knocked them off beat.”
Hopkins had a strong day punting and was able to keep the Rebels from starting drives in Bobcat territory. FCMS scored the game’s first points on its third and final drive of the first half. The seven-play, 53-yard possession ended with a two-yard quarterback keeper, which was set up by a 23-yard completion.
Seventh grade
Fannin was set to receive the ball to start the game, but when the Rebels did not secure Kashane Perigo’s bloop kickoff down the sideline, Jackson Jones pounced on the ball for CCMS.
The Cats took over at their 46, and FCMS got a steady dose of Clear Creek’s rushing attack. Quarterback Slade Smith, fullback Cal Morrison and halfbacks Silas West and Noah Rice swapped carries to pick up three first downs.
Facing fourth down and 5 from the 10-yard line, Smith’s keeper around the left edge capped the nine-play drive. Morrison covered the 3 yards on the 2-point conversion for an 8-0 lead with 1:59 left in the first quarter.
FCMS punted after three offensive plays, and CCMS was back in business at its 33 for the longest drive of the game. Clear Creek’s bevy of backs continued to move the offense down field, and Smith’s 16-yard run was the longest of the drive and advanced the Cats to the Rebels’ 37.
On the drive’s 14th play from the 11, Smith rolled to his right. His pass was in the vicinity of three receivers, and it was Bobcat Gauge Crump who made the touchdown catch behind all defenders. Morrison added the conversion again for a 16-0 lead with only 29 seconds left in the half.
However, the Bobcats were not done scoring. Perigo’s kickoff was fielded, but Morrison’s hit jarred the ball loose and Bryson Shore recovered.
Starting from the Rebels’ 36, it took CCMS just two plays to score. After a 32-yard pass from Smith to Morrison, they connected again for a 4-yard touchdown. Morrison crossed the goal line for his third conversion as the Cats’ led 24-0 at the half.
CCMS was unable to recover the onside kick to begin the second half, but its defense held and Fannin eventually turned the ball over on downs at the Cats’ 40.
Clear Creek stuck to its steady rushing attack, as Lian Hup and Perigo received some carries. The 13-play drive ended with Hup scoring from 2 yards away, and he also added the conversion. With a 32-point lead, the final six minutes of the game ticked off the clock uninterrupted.
“Slade Smith and Cal Morrison are beasts,” Dodaro said of his quarterback-fullback combo. “Slade did a fantastic job of running the offense. I was very pleased with the entire day.”
CCMS hosted White County at press deadline.