Pine Tree 52, Gilmer 40
By Joe Dodd
LONGVIEW — Gilmer spent much of Thursday night’s season opener proving it could overcome a bad start. What the Buckeyes could not overcome were four turnovers.
Gilmer rallied from a 21-point deficit to pull within four points in the third quarter and within five midway through the fourth, but Pine Tree answered both challenges and held off the Buckeyes 52-40 at Pirate Stadium.
The loss dropped Gilmer to 0-1 and ended the Buckeyes’ four-game winning streak at Pirate Stadium. Pine Tree improved to 1-0.
For Gilmer coach Alan Metzel, the biggest difference was straightforward.
“We don’t turn the ball over four times, we win,” Metzel said. “It’s simple as that.”
It was a particularly costly problem because Gilmer moved the football effectively when it kept possession. The Buckeyes finished with 401 yards on 57 offensive plays, rushing for 282 yards while averaging 7.6 yards per carry. But four of Gilmer’s 11 possessions ended with interceptions, including one returned for a Pine Tree touchdown.
Metzel cautioned against putting all four interceptions on senior quarterback Zade Taylor, saying his film review showed breakdowns elsewhere on some of the plays. He said Pine Tree’s defense was primarily responsible for one interception in the red zone, when a linebacker read Gilmer’s passing concept and made the play.
Metzel came away from his film review pleased with much of Taylor’s performance and particularly with the senior quarterback’s response to adversity.
“He actually played very well,” Metzel said.
Metzel also praised Taylor’s leadership and maturity, including his willingness to accept responsibility when a mistake was his without blaming teammates when it wasn’t.
“You’re gonna make mistakes, especially at quarterback,” Metzel said.
While Taylor and the Buckeyes battled through those mistakes, Pine Tree quarterback Colton Croft was nearly flawless in the first half. Croft completed nine of 10 passes, including two for touchdowns, as the Pirates built a 38-27 halftime lead.
Croft was sharp from the start. Facing third-and-8 on Pine Tree’s opening possession, he connected with Rashaad Wofford for a 64-yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead with 10:20 remaining in the first quarter.
Gilmer answered in only three offensive plays. Freshman Kaden Canady returned the kickoff 41 yards to the Pine Tree 34, Kipton Neighbors ran for 19 yards, and Taylor found Canady for 12 before Tayveon Horne scored from three yards out to tie the game at 7 with 9:40 remaining.
It would be the only time Gilmer pulled even. The Buckeyes never led.
The Buckeyes then came up with the game’s first takeaway when Croft completed an 18-yard pass to Bosston Johnson, who fumbled, with Aiden Thomas recovering for Gilmer at the Buckeyes’ 31.
Gilmer couldn’t capitalize, however, and Pine Tree regained the lead when Croft found Bosston Johnson for a 27-yard touchdown with 5:25 left in the first quarter.
Then came one of the wildest sequences of the night.
With Gilmer driving near midfield, Pine Tree’s Darron Pair intercepted Taylor and returned the ball 54 yards for a touchdown, stretching the Pirates’ lead to 21-7 with 2:53 left in the quarter.
Fifteen seconds later, Gilmer answered without running an offensive play.
Jerzyri Johnson took the ensuing kickoff back 97 yards for a touchdown, cutting the margin to 21-14.
Special teams had been a major point of emphasis for Gilmer throughout the offseason, and Metzel came away believing the work showed.
“The special teams were what kept us in the game,” Metzel said.
Johnson’s touchdown was only part of it. Gilmer finished with 198 yards on seven kickoff returns, and Canady added 49 yards on two punt returns. Horne had 46 kickoff-return yards, while Canady’s 41-yard return helped set up Gilmer’s opening touchdown.
Pine Tree answered Johnson’s touchdown with another scoring drive. Ja’Karius Timmons scored from three yards out on the final play of the first quarter to give the Pirates a 28-14 advantage.
Gilmer appeared ready to cut into the lead early in the second quarter, moving from its own 32 into the Pine Tree red zone. But Taylor was intercepted at the Pine Tree 8, and the Pirates drove the other way before Croft scored on a three-yard keeper on fourth-and-1.
With 4:46 remaining before halftime, Gilmer trailed 35-14.
The Buckeyes never folded.
Taylor needed only two offensive plays to begin the comeback, breaking loose for a 60-yard touchdown run that made it 35-21 with 3:50 remaining.
After Pine Tree added a 29-yard field goal for a 38-21 lead, Gilmer took over at its own 36 with 1:37 remaining and put together one of its best possessions of the game.
Taylor completed passes to Amare Garrett and Neighbors, then scrambled 14 yards to the Pine Tree 2 before scoring from there with 5.2 seconds left in the half.
Instead of taking a 17-point deficit into the locker room, Gilmer trailed 38-27.
Metzel was particularly pleased with the Buckeyes’ execution on the possession despite having no timeouts available, praising their clock management and ability to get out of bounds when necessary.
More importantly, he saw no sign on the sideline that his team believed the game was over.
“Guys never flinched,” Metzel said.
Gilmer carried that momentum into the second half.
The Buckeyes received the kickoff and drove 75 yards in 10 plays, keeping the ball almost entirely on the ground. Neighbors converted a third-and-1, Taylor broke a 28-yard run and Horne eventually powered in from 15 yards on third-and-5.
With 8:19 left in the third quarter, Gilmer had turned a 35-14 deficit into a 38-34 game.
Pine Tree responded immediately.
Jakaiden Johnson broke a 40-yard run during the ensuing possession and, after a Timmons touchdown was erased by holding, Croft connected with Johnson for a 12-yard touchdown to push the Pirates’ lead back to 45-34 with 5:52 left in the third.
Gilmer drove to the Pine Tree 33 on its next possession but turned the ball over on downs. The Buckeyes got another opportunity after forcing a punt, but Bosston Johnson intercepted Taylor at the Pine Tree 22 on the first play of the fourth quarter.
The defense responded by forcing another Pine Tree punt, and Canady’s 39-yard return gave Gilmer the ball at the Pirates’ 24 with 9:23 remaining.
This time Gilmer simply handed the game to Horne.
The junior ran for 11 yards. Then six. Then seven.
Three carries, 24 yards, touchdown.
Gilmer was within 45-40 with 8:27 remaining.
“Tayveon is a battering ram,” Metzel said, praising not only Horne’s running but his blocking and the way his physical style became increasingly effective as the game progressed.
Horne finished with 96 yards and three touchdowns on 16 carries. Taylor led Gilmer with 126 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries, including the 60-yarder. Neighbors added 36 yards on four attempts as the Buckeyes rushed 37 times for 282 yards.
But Gilmer needed one more defensive stop to give its offense an opportunity to take its first lead of the night.
It never came.
Pine Tree kept the ball on the ground for the remainder of its decisive possession. The Pirates converted a fourth-and-1 on Croft’s six-yard keeper, Gilmer was assessed a facemask penalty later in the drive, and Timmons finally scored from two yards out on third-and-3 with 2:32 remaining.
The touchdown restored Pine Tree’s two-score lead at 52-40.
Metzel said the problem on film wasn’t a complicated Pine Tree scheme as much as Gilmer failing to consistently maintain its defensive gap responsibilities.
“We didn’t get the stops that we needed to at critical joints,” Metzel said.
Gilmer’s last chance ended when Wofford intercepted Taylor at the Pine Tree 37 with 1:34 remaining. Pine Tree then ran out the clock.
Taylor finished 10-of-20 passing for 119 yards to go with his 126 rushing yards. Neighbors led Gilmer’s receivers with four catches for 71 yards, Canady caught four for 35 and Garrett had two for 13.
Gilmer’s defense was led by sophomore Jud Dorsett with 11 tackles, including seven solo stops. Austin Blakeley and DeMarkus King each recorded nine tackles, Jaylon Parker had eight and Ryan Blume seven.
The loss was unusual by Gilmer standards in another respect. The Buckeyes entered the season 249-15 since 2000 when scoring at least 30 points. Thursday’s loss dropped that record to 249-16.
It also gave Pine Tree its second victory over the Buckeyes in the past three seasons and a 19-18-1 lead over Gilmer in the all-time series.
For Gilmer, the opener provided plenty to correct — 52 points allowed and missed opportunities to get off the field — but also evidence that a 21-point deficit did not cause the Buckeyes to unravel.
They came back once.
Then they came back again.
They just couldn’t finish it.
