It pretty much all came down to one play. Make it and win, or not.
After a full 4 quarters of football Trinity and Wheatmore were all tied up at 8 and overtime was needed to decide the outcome. The Warriors put their 8 on the board in the first half. Capitalizing on an early Bulldog fumble on their own 11 yard line, Wheatmore was able to put the ball in the end zone on a 15 yard pass to WR Garrett Rains. The Bradley Barnette PAT attempt was wide right to keep the score 6-0. Wheatmore put another two on the board in the second quarter. Wheatmore moved the ball into Trinity terrirtory before a Bryan Robles pass over the middle was picked off. A penalty after the INT gave Trinity the ball on their own 10. A couple of plays later Trinity facing a 3rd and 12 from their own 8, Bulldog QB Aaron Cox was taken down in the end zone by Warrior Dalton Stevenson for the safety.
Trinity put their points on the board late in the 4th quarter. After a Warrior punt and an 11 yard punt return by Bulldog Colin Erickson, put Trinity on their own 44. After a 12 play drive mostly consisting of runs by Colin Erickson and Colin Stout, Trinity put a TD on the board on a 2 yard Erickson run up the middle. Erickson also took the two point conversion in to tie it up with a few minutes in regulation. Wheatmore took the Bulldog kickoff and managed to work their way down to the Bulldog 29. A 46 yard FG attempt was mishandled then blocked by the Bulldogs with :27 left in the game. The Bulldogs couldn't score quick, so OT was needed.
Wheatmore got the first opportunity. 4 plays to go 10 yards and score. It took every one of them but a 1 yard, 4th and 1, Brayton Hardin run put the Warriors up 14-8. Wheatmore opted for the PAT to go up 15-8. The ball was reset on the 10 yard line for the Bulldog offense. Two Colin Stout five yard runs up the middle, put Trinity within one..with a decision to make. Instead of going for the tie, they chose to go for the win. They had the momentum, they had run the ball well their last two drives. Aaron Cox took the snap, faked the handoff to Colin Stout then rolled out to the left side... he pitched the ball out to Colin Erickson..he was met in the backfield by a Warrior defender. Erickson broke that tackle then was caught from behind by Warriors Jordan Hall and Dalton Stevenson, then met from the front my Taylor Minton and stopped a yard short. Warriors win.
Great game by both teams. There were many errors, and occasional sloppy play but the game was great. Trinity had a confidence at the end of the game that they didn't seem to have at the beginning. Hopefully, the outcome does nothing to diminish that. They played like Bulldogs.
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