VERNON - If the Canadian Wildcats
thought their trip to the Class 2A
Division I semifinals was difficult,
Boyd had something else in store for
them. Simply put - the Yellowjackets cut
Canadian off at every corner.
The Wildcats lost a chance for the
Division I title game for a second year
in a row, this time falling to Boyd 34-8
Saturday in front of 2,000 at Lions
Stadium.
Seemingly unable to find any sort of
offensive momentum against the
Yellowjackets, Canadian could only watch
as Boyd fought its way to a spot in the
Division I title game opposite Mart.
The Wildcats ended their season at 12-2
for a second consecutive season.
"They were just too fast," Wildcats
coach David Flowers said. "We just can't
hang with these teams. We've got good
speed, but we're just not fast."
That certainly showed in the first half
as the Yellowjackets continually found
open receivers or running lanes for
momentum gains. For the game Boyd gained
479 total yards, using an effective mix
of both the run and the pass.
The Yellowjackets defense, on the other
hand, contained Canadian's backfield of
Eric Hall and George Peyton by not
letting them get outside. The two
combined for only 30 yards in the game
as the Wildcats' running game was
effectively shut down.
Boyd was able to take a 20-0 lead at the
half thanks largely to the passing of
quarterback Kaleb Tierce. The
Yellowjackets senior threw for 149 of
his 253 yards in the first half,
including a 21-yard touchdown pass to
Tommy Clutter that gave Boyd an early
7-0 lead.
Touchdowns runs by Clutter and Ronald
Norris extended the lead, while the
Yellowjackets defense held Canadian to
only three first downs for the entire
first half.
"We had some pretty good play-calling,
and their defense just couldn't line up
right," Boyd junior Justin Culpepper
said.
After a scoreless third quarter, the
Yellowjackets were able to benefit from
several more big plays. Tierce hit
Brandon Audrey on a 65-yard scoring
pass, while Clutter's 62-yard run helped
set up another Boyd touchdown that gave
the Yellowjackets a 34-0 lead with 3:03
left.
The Wildcats were able to find some
success through the passing game in the
second half, but it was too little, too
late, Quarterback Derrick Maupin passed
for 148 yards, but it wasn't enough to
help the Wildcats overcome the almost
insurmountable deficit.
"They were able to stop our pass real
well," receiver Nathan Reyes said. "We
were able to get it going a little bit
in the second half, but not enough to
come back. We were just playing for
pride at the end."
Peyton added a 2-yard scoring run with
1:43 remaining to finally pout Canadian
on the scoreboard,
Even though the Wildcats were stopped
short of getting to the state title
game, Flowers was Happy with the way his
team was able to overcome obstacles to
give themselves a chance.
"It was a big question mark at the end
of the season. But they exceeded every
expectation we ever dreamed of," Flowers
said.
