Junior Cobras down Robinson in OT
FOUNTAIN LAKE — Penalties played a significant role Thursday night as the Fountain Lake junior Cobras and Joe T. Robinson junior Senators battled for a conference win at Allen Tillery Field.
Two holding penalties late in the game against the junior Senators were the deciding factor as the junior Cobras (3-1, 1-1 4A-7) took the 26-20 win in overtime.
A penalty pushed Robinson back to a first-and-21 situation at the Fountain Lake 24-yard line with 53 seconds remaining in the game. The junior Senators took to the air on three of the following four plays, but
they could only gain 15 yards as the junior Cobras’ defense held strong to force the turnover on downs with 21 seconds to go.
Fountain Lake coach Josh Wesson chose to take the easy route, letting quarterback Caleb Lacy take a knee to send the game into overtime.
“It was a great physical battle,” said Robinson head coach Brian Maupin. “Thursday nights, you want to see the guys compete you want to see them battle. It’s good to see a physical brand of football like this. Fountain Lake comes off the ball. I think (Lacy) is a fantastic player. He plays all over the field.”
The junior Senators won the overtime toss, taking the ball at the
10-yard line at the north end zone. A three-yard pass completion was negated as the second costly holding call moved the ball back to the
25-yard line. Quarterback Jack Cleveland was sacked two plays later by Trystan Redifer, who knocked the ball away, and Demarius Grant came up with the ball, ending Robinson’s overtime drive.
Lacy and Steven DeArmon worked the ball down to the 2-yard line. Fountain Lake fourth-and-goal before Lacy sneaked up the middle for the winning touchdown.
“They’re our workhorses,” Wesson said. “They go both ways. They never come off the field. That’s what we try to pin in their minds during the week.
“We practice up-tempo quite a bit. The days of going out and running kids in gassers are over. We reach kids a different way. We practice up-tempo. There aren’t any breaks we’re rolling all practice. I’m extremely proud of them. Lacy, there at the end, he went and got me a touchdown, so I was proud of him.”
Lacy accounted for three of the junior Cobras’ touchdowns Thursday night, putting the Cobras on the scoreboard first on a 34-yard run with 1:52 left in the first quarter. He ran the ball in on the conversion play to make it 8-0.
The junior Senators picked up back-to-back touchdowns on long plays, a 39-yard run by Kirby Owens and a 34-yard pass from Cleveland to Lucas Roling to give Robinson a 14-8 lead with 5:31 left in the half.
“They had great athletes across the board,” Wesson said. “We still had a bitter taste in our mouth from last week. We went down to Ashdown, turn the ball over six times. It just wasn’t our night. They still had a bitter taste in their mouth.
“Tonight, it was just a mixture of guys running the ball. This team is so unselfish. That’s what makes them really good. I’ve got kids who’d rather win than (get) playing time or carries. They’re fun to coach.”
A majority of the game’s penalties occurred in the second half. Robinson was called for eight fouls in the game for 65 yards, while the Cobras were penalized twice for 15.
“We had some guys step up and make some really big plays,” Maupin said. “I thought we competed to the whistle. One inch could go either way. I’m just happy with the way our guys competed. I’m not satisfied with the result, but I’m very enthused by the way we competed and the atmosphere. That’s 4A-7 football, and I like that seventh, eighth, ninth, varsity — it doesn’t matter. It’s great football in this conference, and it’s great football when these teams get together.”
Lacy led the junior Cobras offense with 33 carries for 128 yards and three touchdowns, and DeArmon accounted for 62 yards and a score on 15 touches. Landin Kizer was 1-for-4 passing for nine yards to Kadin Hilton.
Defensively, Hilton had a 25yard interception return along with five tackles. Juan Diggs tallied six tackles and DeArmon had five.
Owens led the junior Senators with five carries for 94 yards and two touchdowns with two receptions for one yard.
“I feel like we’ve got a good onetwo, or maybe even three, punch in the backfield,” Maupin said. “It’s good to see Kirby capitalize on his opportunities and make the most of them.”
Roling had four catches for 68 yards and a touchdown, and Zach Wofford had three catches for 45. Cleveland was 11-for-18 passing for
124 yards.
“Jack, he’s a big-time leader,” Maupin continued. “He’s one of those kids that you want to be the face of your program. He does everything right. He’s hard-nosed. He plays safety for us on defense, so he’s not just a pretty-boy quarterback. He’s a gritty guy who just makes plays up and down the field. I couldn’t be more proud of him.”
The junior Cobras travel to Nashville for their next game on Thursday, while the junior Senators will host Arkadelphia.