Halliburton's account of LC-M's win over BC

[Small fry]

LC-M growls past BC, 28-7

By Tom Halliburton
  Eric Peevey knew the surveys about a blocked punt but acquiring such prosperity can often become difficult to accomplish.
  Once Little Cypress-Mauriceville's Austin Clophus stormed through Bridge City's line and rejected a punt late in Friday night's third quarter, the rest of the Battlin' Bears road to victory became much easier. The play provided the necessary impetus for LC-M to defeat the Cardinals, 28-7.
  LC-M's green jerseys rejoiced in their stadium's light rain by 10 o'clock because the Bears (7-2 and 4-1) moved within one game of seizing the No. 1 spot from District 9-4A in the 4A Division I state playoffs.
  Filled with emotion and unsportsmanlike penalties, this hard-fought verdict seemed as if it might go down to the final play. The teams were tied 7-7 until the last half-minute of the third quarter.   That's when Redbirds' punter Drake Mills retreated to punt and senior defensive lineman Clophus did what he never realized that he did. Mills knocked the ball backwards and teammate Isaiah   Watzlavik scooped it up and rambled the final few steps to the end zone for a momentum-changing touchdown.
  "I didn't even know I blocked it," Clophus said. "I didn't even know I did it. I came over the middle and jumped over the second dude and I guess I blocked it."
  LC-M took total command after that with two explosive plays by senior quarterback Jakson Struwe which produced a pair of insurance fourth-quarter touchdowns. Struwe floated a perfect 62-yard swing pass to Brody Perry for a 21-7 lead with 7:37 to play. The LC-M field general reversed his field and dashed 55 yards on the night's final score with 4:49 left.
  Peevey knew the importance of the blocked punt though. The veteran Bears coach had done his research.
  "There was a survey of NFL and college games where 86 percent of the time if a team blocked punt, it was likely to win," he said. "We try to block one every week."
  Easier said than done, but the Bears defense had accomplished more than just a blocked punt. Defensive coordinator John Davis saw his unit limit Bridge City (4-6 and 3-3) to 12 second-half rushing yards. Brycen Chargios, Fowler Mills, Ezequiel Leon and Watzlavik took control of BC's offensive line after halftime. LC-M limited BC's elusive running back Josh Luna to 39 yards on 19 carries. The speedy Luna's longest gain was only seven yards.
  "We made a few adjustments at halftime and tried to keep the middle of the field occupied," Peevey said. "We wanted to be able to keep Luna under 100 yards."
Chargois claimed the adjustments prevented Luna from finding much running room after BC owned a 7-0 halftime lead.
  "We recognized what they were trying to do," Chargois said. "We started having our ends crash down on their pulling guards and that freed up our linebackers."
Cardinals coach Josh Smalley also dwelled heavily on the blocked punt in his post-game remarks.
  "They blocked a punt on us for the second year in a row," BC's boss said. "Momentum is kind of a funny thing. Once you lose, sometimes it's hard to get it back."
Smalley's quarterback Hudson Hoffman threw for 202 yards, including a 25-yard second-quarter scoring pass to Ayden Wiley. Struwe threw for only 155 yards but ran for 111 more. Now for the more costly stat. LC-M picked off two of BC's passed while BC picked off none.
  Struwe's 55-yard scoring run never meant to go to the right side of the formation. It started out to the left and the senior passer freelanced the rest with his vision and his legs.
  "They outnumbered us on the play side so I had to make something happen to the other side," Struwe said. "Our offensive line really stepped up in the second half."
The night was not a total loss for Bridge City though. By virtue of Vidor's win over Livingston, the Cardinals still clinched a 4A Division I state playoff spot. BC has a bye next week. Meanwhile, the Bears can clinch at least a share of the district title if they can win at Lumberton.
  Tom Halliburton is a senior sports correspondent for the Beaumont Enterprise