It was the kind of play that football seasons — and legends — are made of.
Routt led Mendon Unity 32-26 and had the ball at its own 7-yard line with 4:03 left in the fourth quarter after Dax Baptist made a game-saving interception at the 4. A couple of first downs would clinch the win. But the Rockets were faced with fourth-and-12 from the 6.
A punt would have given Mendon a short field and plenty of time to score. Taking a safety was the obvious call — give the Mustangs two points, kick off and force them to go the length of the field. And that was Routt coach Barry Creviston’s call.
Routt quarterback Kohen Hoots took the snap and ran from one side of the end zone to the other to take some time off the clock, ready to step out of bounds.
But Hoots didn’t step out of bounds. No, Hoots shocked everyone, finally rolling to his left as he looked downfield. As the words “Don’t do that!” rang out from somewhere on the Routt sideline, Hoots threw the ball to Michael Wilson, who hauled it in for a first down. Routt retained possession and ran out the clock to secure a 32-26 victory that turned the Rockets’ season around.
After losing to Beardstown last Friday, Routt is suddenly 2-2 and back in the hunt for a playoff berth after beating a team that came close to beating Camp Point Central last week.
If Wilson hadn’t caught the pass, Mendon would have had the ball at the Routt 6, and the Rockets most likely would be looking at 1-3.
“Crevy, he — it was a really late decision,” Hoots said. “He said we’re going to run around until we run out of time so I can get out of bounds. But he said IF by any chance anybody was open, toss it, and we’ll get the first down. So that worked out very well.”
It was the kind of play that can make or break a season. “I just had to figure something out, and I did it,” Hoots said. “I have trust in all of my receivers.”
“We told him to run around, take some time off,” Creviston said. “And take a safety. And I specifically said, don’t take off running unless you think you’re gonna go. And then he started taking off, and the guy popped up on him and then Michael was just open. I’d like to say it was a good play, but it was actually kind of lucky.
“I’m happy it worked out, because if it doesn’t, they have a short field, and we’re in trouble,” the coach said. “Sometimes you’ve got to put your chips up on the table. And, win or lose, we’re going to be behind our guys.”
Wilson had a good game and a huge fourth quarter. It was Wilson who recovered a Routt fumble at the 6 before Hoots’ fourth-down throw. And Wilson was in on a tackle with Eli Pine on fourth-and-two at the Mendon 28 that set up the touchdown that put Routt ahead to stay.
“It feels great, you know?” said Hoots, who completed 10-of-21 passes for 162 yards and no interceptions. “It’s good to find our whole team working as one. We’re finally clicking on all cylinders like we’ve been preaching about. So, it’s nice.”
After stopping the Rockets on their first possession of the game, stuffing two plays from the 1-yard line, Mendon built a 12-0 lead, scoring touchdowns in the first and second quarters.
But Routt came back as Hoots and Baptist hooked up for several scintillating pass plays. Baptist almost literally ran circles around Mendon’s defensive backs as he worked to get open. Hoots hit him on a crossing route for a 17-yard TD pass with 3:30 left in the second quarter. Hoots completed a 23-yard scoring strike to Baptist on a fourth-and-10 play to tie the score at 12-12 with just 17 seconds left in the first half. Baptist finished with four catches for 95 yards.
“He plays phenomenal,” Hoots said. “Every time I need him, he’s there.”
The game swung back and forth in the second half. Mendon went ahead 18-12, then Routt took its first lead on an 18-yard touchdown pass from Hoots to Ethan Walker. Nolan Killion ran in the two-point conversion on a nice misdirection play to put Routt on top 20-18 with 5:09 left in the third quarter.
Mendon answered with a touchdown to go back in front, 26-20. But Routt tied the score at 26-26 on its next possession on a three-yard run by Charlie Alan for his first varsity touchdown. That score was set up by a 62-yard run by Alex Coop, who led the Rockets with 167 yards rushing on 19 carries.
Early in the fourth quarter, the Mustangs went for it on fourth-and-two from their own 28 and didn’t make it. Routt took over on downs at the 27. Seven plays later, Hoots scored on a one-yard plunge to put the Rockets on top to stay, at 32-26.
Mendon drove to the Routt 26 on its next possession, but Baptist intercepted a pass at the 4 and dragged tacklers a few yards to set the Rockets up at the 7 with 4:03 left in the game. Hoots’ memorable play on the safety that wasn’t a safety helped seal the win.
“It was just a battle of will, basically — who wanted it more at the end,” Creviston said. “And I’m happy our team came out on top.”
Suddenly, the gap between the teams at the top and at the bottom of the WIVC-North doesn’t seem as great as it did even a week ago.
“Anything can happen,” Creviston said. “I’m not saying we’re top dogs by any means, but we’re a team that’s going to fight for four quarters. That’s what we talk about all the time.”
It was a win the Rockets had to have, and they got it.
“It’s huge. It’s huge,” Hoots said. “It really shifts the whole standings, everything. Everybody’s looking out for us now.”
"Give" - Google News
September 20, 2021 at 04:08AM
https://ift.tt/3hPVToS
Late-game heroics give Routt much-needed win over Mendon - Jacksonville Journal-Courier
"Give" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2YqGX80
https://ift.tt/2YquBwx
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Late-game heroics give Routt much-needed win over Mendon - Jacksonville Journal-Courier"
Post a Comment