The Gilmer Bobcats faced an explosive Northwest offense, and the Bruins raced up and down the field all night.
GHS hosted NHS last Saturday instead of Friday because of a referee shortage. Gilmer stumbled out of the gate while the Bruins promptly scored two touchdowns. They added three more for a 21-point lead at the half. The Cats drew within two touchdowns twice in the second half but never got any closer in a 42-28 defeat.
The game marked the start of region play and dropped Gilmer’s overall record to 3-2.
“We’ve got to rebound and get better in the secondary and we will. We have to get better offensively and defensively in some areas,” said head coach Paul Standard. “We’ve got to find some young guys who can come in for a few snaps because right now we’re playing with about 15 players. They’re playing their hearts out, but it takes a toll on them.
“I thought the quarterback (A.J. Callihan) overall did a good job. He had some nice reads and pitches. Northwest was doing some things up the middle that hurt us a little bit. I thought we ran our sweep play pretty good, which we did not last week. We’re going to bounce back. I know what these guys will do and what they’re like. We’re going to come back and get better.”
Gilmer entered the game averaging 372 yards on the ground. Northwest held the Cats to their lowest rushing output of the season at 259. NHS appeared determined to stop fullback runs up the middle. The Cats had previously averaged 27 fullback carries per game, but Peyton Chancey only rushed 16 times Friday.
GHS had its best passing performance on the season as A.J. Callihan was 5/8 for 89 yards.
Meanwhile, the explosive Bruins needed four plays or less on five of six touchdown drives and were effective on the ground and through the air.
Northwest signal caller Gavin Nuckolls manned the offense that attacked vertically and with quick passes. He threw for 340 yards and completed touchdown passes of 89, 62, 59, 53 and 10 yards. Nuckolls torched the Bobcats on the ground to start the game on the first snap with a direct power rush to the right edge where and broke a diving tackle on his 85-yard touchdown. He finished with 108 rushing yards on the night.
GHS earned one first down before punting on its opening drive, and Douglas Callihan’s 55-yard quick kick and was stopped short of the end zone by Hunter Britain at Northwest’s 1-yard line.
After a 10-yard run on first down, receiver Kade Mitchell, who was not covered on the play, caught a hitch pass before turning and racing for an 89-yard touchdown.
Down 14-0 with 6:34 left in the first, Gilmer punted again. However, Bobcat Jack Puckett knocked the ball loose from return man Kyle Cummings and Britain recovered.
GHS took over at the 50, and three straight Peyton Chancey runs set up a first down at the 35. Gilmer went to the air, and A.J. Callihan completed a 10-yard pass to Britain, and a 10-yard Northwest hold aided the Cats’ cause.
On the drive’s seventh play, Douglas Callihan took a hand-off to the left behind pulling linemen Puckett and Jamie Bautista. Callihan broke three tackles and ran through two more Bruins before scoring.
Carter Gearhart’s first of four extra points cut Northwest’s lead to seven with 3:05 remaining in the first quarter.
The Bruins third possession started at its 49 after recovering Gilmer’s onside kick attempt. NHS overcame a 10-yard penalty and needed seven plays, its most of the night. From Gilmer’s 10, Nuckolls had time to scan the field before rolling to the left and completing a short pass to Mitchell for a 10-yard touchdown.
GHS was down 21-7 in the final minute of the first. Starting from its 45, Chancey, Britain, Cheyne Smith and Douglas Callihan all rushed to help earn two first downs. On third down and 5 from the Bruins’ 27, Douglas Callihan rushed left and was flagged 15 yards when he hurdled a defender.
The drive stalled at the 38, and NHS began its next series with two incompletions. On third down, Nuckolls heaved a deep pass to Zirous Davison for a 62-yard touchdown.
Gilmer found itself behind 28-7 with 7:34 before the half. The 80-yard, 14-play drive included 41 passing yards with completions of 25 yards to Chancey and 16 to Smith. The pass to the latter gave GHS a first down at Northwest’s 16. Five straight rushes ensued, and the final was a 1-yard Chancey touchdown.
The Bruins got the ball back with a 14-point lead, 1:15 on the clock and 66 yards between them and the end zone. On the third play, Nuckolls went deep down the seam once again to Mitchell, who caught the pass between two defenders and ran into the end zone.
The 53-yard touchdown and extra point made the score 35-14. GHS did not receive the ball with enough time to mount a drive before the half.
Chancey broke a 27-yard run to begin the third quarter, but the offense hit a snag when it lost 2 yards on third and 4. A.J. Callihan’s fourth down pass fell incomplete, and NHS took over at its 36.
It was the Bruins’ lone drive that did not produce points. They advanced to Gilmer’s 20 but their 37-yard field goal attempt was wide.
The Cats got their next drive going at their 20 with 4:08 left in the third. Douglas Callihan rushed for 27 yards on first down, and two plays later, A.J. Callihan completed a 29-yard pass to Britain for a first down at the Bruins’ 16. Four more runs followed, and the final was a 7-yard A.J. Callihan keeper to the right pylon.
With their lead at 35-21 in the last minute of the quarter, the Bruins’ final scoring drive began at its 23. The four-play series concluded with a quick pass to Evan Jones, who turned the jets on and flew down the sideline for a 59-yard touchdown.
GHS received the ball behind 42-21 at its 21 with 10:31 left in the game. Douglas Callihan, Smith and Britain continued to test the outside before a 14-yard pass to Britain. Chancey then tore up the middle for 20 yards for a first down at the Bruins’ 9.
Smith took an option pitch to the right on the possession’s 10th play and scored from 6 yards out.
With a 14-point edge and 5:46 to play, NHS recovered the onside kick and drained the remaining time off the clock.
GHS is 3-2 and 0-1 in region play and off Friday. The Bobcats return to the field next Friday, Oct. 3 at Heritage (4-1).
“We’ve got a week off. We’re going to practice them a couple days (Monday and Tuesday) then give them some time off,” Standard said. “And we’re going to get ready for Heritage, which is a big one. We’ll work on fundamentals and also on our game plan to take advantage of the extra couple days, but we also want to give them time to heal up.”