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Last-second field goal lifts Tigers to 18-15 win over Wildcats
John Deal kicked a 21-yard field goal as time expired to lift the Mountain Home Tigers to an 18-15 SIC 4A football win over the Columbia Wildcats last Friday night at Tiger Field in Mountain Home.
The game proved to be a defensive struggle with scores early on resembling a baseball score.
Columbia took a 2-0 lead in late in the first quarter when the snap from center went over Jake Posey's head into the end zone where he dove on it and was tackled for a safety.
Mountain Home scored in the second quarter, Jesse Donez returning a punt into Wildcat territory at the Columbia 47. Jake Posey passed to Billy Derome on a seven-yard touchdown pass to cap off an 11-play drive. John Deal's PAT made it 7-2, Tigers, with 7:35 left in the first half.
The Tigers managed to get down inside the Columbia 20 yard-line just before half-time, but the drive stopped at the Wildcat 18 when the clock ran down.
The Tiger defense shut down the Columbia running game all night, but Wildcat quarterback Matt Kinn connected with Ky Tucker on a 47-yard pass play that gave Columbia a first and goal at the Tigers one yard-line. Two plays later, Kinn sneaked it across the goal-line for the score in the opening three seconds of the fourth quarter. Taylor Olsen's PAT hit the crossbar and bounced back, but Columbia regained the lead, 8-7, with 11:57 left in the game.
Mountain Home answered the Wildcat score with a score of their own, going 66 yards in 14 plays, Matt Ward going the final six yards for the score. Jake Posey ran in the two-point conversion to put the Tigers up, 15-8, with 6:40 left in the game.
A couple penalties on Mountain Home kept Columbia's next drive alive, and they went 69 yards in 12 plays, Bryant Post taking it the final 10-yards for the score. Taylor Olsen's kick tied the game at 15-15, with 2:04 left.
Mountain Home went three-and-out on their next possession, but so did Columbia.
Mountain Home got the ball back on their own 40 with 37 seconds left. Jake Posey ran to the Wildcat 36 for a first down with 27.2 seconds left. Posey ran it again to the 13, and was hit out of bounds, and the penalty moved the ball to the Columbia 8. Two more running plays put the ball on the four, and the Tigers called their final time out with 1.2 seconds left. John Deal then booted a 21-yard field goal as time ran out, and the Tigers won, 18-15.
The Tigers held the SIC 4A's top offense to just 59 yards rushing on 32 rushing attempts. Bryant Post was leading the conference in rushing, averaging close to 154 yards per game. He managed only 64 yards on 15 carries. Matt Kinn was averaging about 88 yards rushing per game, and the Tigers stopped him, as he had minus 11 yards on 13 carries. Kinn came in averaging 99 yards passing. He passed for 162, but 83 of it came on two big plays.
Kinn and Post couldn't get anything going because they had no one to read, and it worked out well for us."
Tallon Pauley rushed for 112 yards on 21 carries. Jake Posey had 99 yards on 14 rushes. Matt Ward rushed for 31 yards and a touchdown, Chris Knudson had eight yards, and Nick Barrie, seven.
Jake Posey completed 10 of 22 passes for 68 yards and a touchdown. He had two passes picked off. Tallon Pauley caught four passes for 33 yards, Nick Barrie had two for 14 yards, Matt Ward caught one pass for nine yards, Billy Derome had one for seven yards and a score, and Jesse Donez had one catch for five yards.
Matt Ward led the Tigers defensively with 12 tackles. Billy Derome was next with seven, Colby Lord had six. Chris Knudson had two sacks, Colby Lord and Cameron Spaulding each had one, and Jesse Sloderbeck and Nick Barrie had fumble recoveries.
The Tigers, now 2-1 overall, and 2-0 in league play, take on the Bishop Kelly Knights Friday night at Tiger Field. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.