Pattonsburg and Albany were headed in opposite directions with Albany sporting a 6-1 record and Pattonsburg dropping a bunch of close games, losing several players, and coming into Friday’s game with a 1-6 record. They were down to their last 13 players. But in a shocking performance in Albany, it was Pattonsburg which looked like the team that was 6-1 Friday night, completely outplaying Albany and getting the 90-66 win.
It started with a social media post on Facebook that declared that the Panthers were bums and that Albany, after a tough 34-32 win over Stanberry the week before, would have no problem with the Panthers. That seemed like a safe prediction, since after their halftime loss to Worth County, Albany used that game as a wakeup call and were on a roll since then. But the post got back to the Panthers, who used that as motivation throughout that week’s practices.
What happened in the game totally defied expectations as the Panthers took an early lead, made it stand up, and made key defensive stands in the second half to turn back the Warriors when they needed to. Last year, games frequently consisted of Gage Iddings running for his life on every play with three enemy linemen chasing him. But against Albany, the line of Dillon Hartschen, Collin Mason, and Jace Estrada locked down the Warrior pass rush, only allowing one sack the entire game and giving Iddings badly needed time to throw or run with it. And Iddings made the most of his newfound daylight; he threw for “only” 389 yards, but got 204 more on the ground, finding running lanes whenever people were covered. Someone on the sidelines after the game guessed that Iddings had around 600 yards; when you add his passing yards and his rushing yards, they came close with 593 total yards.
The Albany TV announcers were among the few people not overlooking the Panthers, pointing out that they presented a unique challenge, forced Albany to do things differently than they normally do, and that it would be a task compounded without Kyle Emerson, who was ejected for two late hit penalties in the Stanberry game. Under MSHSAA rules, players or coaches ejected from a game have to sit out the next game automatically. Sure enough, after they won the toss, the Panthers overcame a botched reverse play as Wyatt Maize came up with a great catch for 27 yards to the Warrior 30. Maize, who had his bell rung in the St. Joseph Christian game, was back to full strength in the Albany game.
Pattonsburg stalled for one of the few times in the game, faced with fourth and six at the Albany 26. But Iddings converted it with an 11 yard run down to the 15. A delay penalty moved them back to the 20, but a 10 yard scramble and a facemask put it at the 5. Then, Wyatt Maize came out of nowhere to grab the Panthers’ first score of the game to make it 6-0. Pattonsburg had plenty of red zone struggles in the King City and Worth County games, but they made the most of their chances against Albany.
There was a wild scramble for the onsides kick, but the officials ruled that Pattonsburg had touched it before it traveled the necessary 10 yards and gave Albany the ball at the Panther 39. From there, Albany went to work. With Kyle Emerson out, Albany turned to Quentin Hurkman, and if there is a silver lining to such a game for the Warriors, they have found a new runningback to work with. Hurkman carried the Warriors against Stanberry after Emerson was tossed and picked up right where he left off against the Panthers, getting 237 yards. He alternated with Elliot Mercer, who picked up another 150 for the Warriors. On the first series for Albany against Pattonsburg, Hurkman got all five carries for 39 yards and a score, covering the final 20 yards with 7:26 left. He ran in the extra points to put Albany up 8-6.
Pattonsburg started off on their own 30, and Albany blew up a screen pass on the first play. One of the few misfires by Iddings happened on the next play when he overthrew a wide open Wyatt Maize. But the same drizzle that wreaked havoc on the passing games of both Worth County and King City was not a problem for Iddings the rest of the game. Camden Griffith slipped and fell after catching a short pass, but then converted a third and five for eight yards to the Warrior 36. With Albany coming on a blitz, Iddings aired it out to Gavin Humphrey. Humphrey, who had several drops against Worth County, came up big against Albany, beating the Warriors deep several times. He grabbed one for 28 to the Warrior eight, and Iddings scrambled into the end zone on the next play to make it 12-8.
Then, the havoc happened that allowed the Panthers to take control of the game. The ensuing onsides kick caromed off a Warrior player into the hands of Gage Iddings and the Panthers had a free possession at the 40. Pattonsburg aired it out to Landon Preston and he beat his man by several yards and a score and Camden Griffith caught the extra point pass to make it 20-8 with 4:57 left in the first quarter. The havoc would get worse on the next play.
Once again, an onsides kick caromed off a Warrior and once again, Iddings recovered, this time at the Panther 34. Albany blitzed and brought the heat and two Iddings passes went incomplete. But then Iddings threw a jump ball pass to Landon Preston for 24 yards and a first down at the 22 despite tight coverage. A botched reverse put them back at the 30, but then Iddings aired it out to Griffith for 25 yards to the five. Zane Rippy broke up one pass and Elliot Mercer nearly picked off another to set up third and goal. But then Iddings came under a heavy rush and scrambled for a touchdown to make it 26-8.
Albany covered the next onsides kick, but a fumble and a bad snap forced fourth and four at the Panther 34. But a short pass from Chase Cline to Trevor Akins kept the drive alive down to the 29. From there, Elliot Mercer picked up six to the 23, and then ran through the Panther defense like they weren’t even there to stop the bleeding for Albany. He ran in the extra points to cut it to 26-16 with 44 seconds left in the first quarter.
One of the few teams that is just as willing to do the onsides kick as Pattonsburg is Albany; back when the Warriors were still an 11 man team in 2009, current coach Doug Fountain ordered two back to back onsides kicks against Polo in a game in which both teams were struggling and desperate for a win. Albany converted both of them and went on to get their only win that year. Ever since then, it has been part of the Warriors’ arsenal. They wanted to keep the ball out of Wyatt Maize’s hands; he got several good runbacks in the Worth County game. Thankfully for the Panthers, they were ready for it and covered it at the 40. Wyatt Maize made a diving grab at the 15, and then Iddings aired it out to Griffith with 12 seconds left in the quarter. Gage Iddings came under a heavy rush, but one of the ends overran him and he scrambled for the extra points to make it 34-16.
The fireworks were not over for the first quarter as Albany got the ball back on their own 30. Hurkman came back in and took it to the house with one second left in the first quarter and broke tackle after tackle to add the extra points to make it 34-24.
Pattonsburg started on their own 39. Iddings scrambled to the Warrior 33, Maize caught a short pass to the 25, and then after an incomplete pass, Iddings broke tackle after tackle as he scrambled into the end zone with 10:34 left in the second quarter. Gavin Humphrey caught a screen pass and took it into the end zone to make it 42-24.
Elliot Mercer countered a few plays later, breaking a tackle and making it into the end zone from 31 yards out with 9:24 left in the second to make it 42-30. Pattonsburg only needed two plays to answer as they started on the Warrior 38. Landon Preston caught a screen pass to the 22, and then Gage Iddings saw a hole up the middle big enough to drive a truck through and took it to the house with 8:59 left. He ran in the extra points to make it 50-30.
Albany countered with a long clock killing drive, with both Hurkman and Mercer getting carries. They took over five minutes off the clock; finally, a keeper from Chase Cline with 3:41 left fooled everyone from seven yards out to cut the Warrior deficit to 50-36.
Pattonsburg started off at the Warrior 39 and ran into trouble as Iddings threw two incomplete passes. The second was nearly picked off by Kale Emerson. If Albany were to get a stop, they had a chance to get the momentum before half. Gage Iddings got a bad snap on the next play, but then weaved his way through defenders all the way to the house with 3:14 left to make it 56-36.
The Warriors followed the same script as they sought to keep it on the ground, take as much time off the clock as possible, and leave Iddings and the Panthers with as little time to work with as possible. They had fourth and seven at the 22, but Elliot Mercer converted a first down to the 13. Zane Rippy caught a pass to the two, and two plays later, Mercer was in the end zone and Chase Cline ran in the extra points to cut it to 56-44 with 13 seconds left in the half. Iddings got picked off on a long pass at the 39, but then Wyatt Maize picked off Cline’s desperation pass as time expired to preserve the Panther lead.
Since Pattonsburg had the ball to start the game, Albany had the ball to start the second half, giving them a free possession. They made the most of it as Quentin Hurkman broke free on a counter that covered 23 yards to the Panther 34. Cline took a keeper to the 11, and Hurkman shot through a big hole to the house to cut the Warrior deficit to 56-50.
Albany was threatening to follow King City’s lead by winning the extra point battle, chipping away, and making plays at the end of the game to get over the hump. They forced a third and nine at the Panther 37, but then Camden Griffith caught a short pass for 10 yards to get the Panthers a first down at the 33, beating the blitz. Griffith had been clamoring for more chances at the ball in the Worth County game and backed it up against Albany, turning into a workhorse when the Panthers needed to move the ball and take time off the clock. On the next play, Iddings got flushed from the pocket, scrambled down the left side, and then turned on the jets and raced down the right side to score to make it 62-50.
But things were going according to the Warriors’ plans as Hurkman once again carried the team on his shoulders. Pattonsburg started stiffening up on defense, but they could not get off the field. They had Albany behind the chains second and 11 at their own 37, only for Hurkman to pick up 12 and a first down at the 31. On third and seven at the 28, a keeper by Cline fooled everyone to the 18, and the Hurkman took it to the house on the next play. Cline ran in the extra points to cut it to 62-58, and sure enough, the extra point game was starting to swing in Albany’s favor.
Then, there was a heartstopping moment as Jace Palmer recovered the ensuing onsides kick at the Panther 31, and Albany had a golden opportunity to take the lead. But all of a sudden, Pattonsburg started to show the same kind of fire on defense that they did in their first victory. Hurkman nearly broke one on the first play, but Iddings made a shoestring tackle that saved a touchdown and limited him to one yard. Mercer came back in, but met Iddings and Landon Preston for no gain. Mercer nearly broke one, but a shoestring tackle by Gage Iddings stopped him after a four yard gain, setting up fourth and five at the 26. They went back to Hurkman, but Iddings made a one on one tackle and stopped him for two yards and Pattonsburg had held.
The play was the first defensive stop for either team the whole game besides the two desperation passes at the end of the first half. Iddings was all over the field all night for the Panthers; the difference between the Worth County and Albany games was that after the first series, Worth County was able to get Iddings blocked most of the time; Albany was not.
Pattonsburg wasted no time taking advantage of its stop as Wyatt Maize made a diving grab at the Warrior 28 despite perfect coverage and Gage Iddings scrambled the rest of the way to the house with 2:28 left in the third. But Iddings was sacked on the extra point try by Andrew Wiles, the only sack that the Warriors managed. The score was 68-58, and things were still going according to plan for the Warriors; they were still winning the extra point battle and chipping away.
Albany got behind the chains on its next series thanks to an illegal formation penalty and a false start penalty. They were faced with fourth and 16 at the Panther 37, and then Chase Cline came under a heavy rush from Jace Estrada, Collin Mason, and Alex Young. But then Cline pulled off the kind of play that Iddings makes all the time, somehow eluding the rush. Kale Emerson came free, broke Wyatt Maize’s tackle, and took it to the house with 14 seconds left in the third. Elliot Mercer ran in the extra points to make it 68-66, and the extra point game was swinging in Albany’s favor. Even if Pattonsburg were to score, if Albany were to stop the extra point try, they could tie with a touchdown and extra point. At that point, it would be a brand new ballgame.
Pattonsburg started at their own 39. Iddings picked up four, and then he aired it out to Landon Preston for 37 yards to the house. The Panthers tried some trickery as they lined up Jace Estrada behind center and tried to bulldoze him into the end zone. But the play fooled nobody as the Warriors stopped him short. They were down 74-66, and a touchdown and an extra point would tie it and create a brand new ballgame.
Hurkman carried the Warriors on his shoulders like he did against Stanberry, taking them on three carries from the Panther 37 to the five, where it was second and goal. But then Iddings and Preston met him at the 5 for no gain, and then a bad snap pinned the Warriors at the 9, where it was fourth and goal. Cline took it himself and nearly got in, but Gage Iddings was there for a touchdown saving tackle at the one foot line, and for the second time, Pattonsburg had held on downs.
The Panthers needed to move the chains and take time off the clock, and Camden Griffith was the man of the hour; he was a workhorse for the Panthers, catching three short passes from the 1 to the 21. On third and two, Gage Iddings picked up the necessary yardage for a first down and a costly 15 yard facemask penalty put the ball on the 40.
Griffith caught a five yard pass to the 35, and then for the second time, Gavin Humphrey beat the Warriors deep and Iddings aired it out to him with 6:28 left. This time, the Panthers finally converted an extra point try as Iddings ran it in to make it 84-66.
The Warriors began marching down the field again as they got the ball on their own 39. Elliot Mercer picked up seven to the 34, but on the next play, the ball popped into the air. Landon Preston caught it in the air and ran it back to the Warrior 30.
The Warriors tightened up on defense, forcing a fourth and eight at the 28, but then Gavin Humphrey was all alone for a 15 yard reception at the 13 to move the chains. Two runs by Iddings took it to the house with 3:24 left. A guard eligible pass from Iddings to Jace Estrada fooled everyone, including the officials, who huddled and discussed the play. But the flag was waved off and the Panthers were up three scores at 90-66.
Hurkman once again carried the Warriors on his shoulders, taking it from the Warrior 36 to the Panther 20. But then Camden Griffith broke up a pass, Iddings met Hurkman at the 19, and then Landon Preston came on a blitz and sacked Cline at the 26 to set up fourth and 16. Albany tried to set up a pick play to spring one of their receivers loose into the end zone, but Pattonsburg covered it perfectly and they were able to kneel out the clock.
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