Anyone that watched the Morrison/Princeton football game last Saturday, August 30, 2014, would have to wonder a bit about the change that had taken place in one week, as they watched the same group of Mustangs scratch, and claw, and muster second efforts in this week’s loss to the Orion Chargers in triple overtime, 26-20.
Many of the Mustangs remember the humiliating loss at Orion, IL, last year when the Chargers blitzed the Mustangs 50-0, in the second game of last year’s schedule. Hopefully last year’s embarrassment fueled some of the Seniors, as they scored on the second possession on a 41-yard drive. It featured five carries by Andy Bird, and an 11-yard scramble by Mason Sitzmore, ending in a one-yard touchdown by Bird with 4:29 left in the opening period.
Following the Morrison score, the Chargers mounted a 15-play drive that started on their own 21-yard line. It carried into the second quarter and ended when Andy Bird and Triston Houzenga stopped Orion’s speedster, Jacob Edmunds, on a fourth and goal on the three-yard line. Each team used considerable clock with their next possessions without generating a scoring threat. The half ended with a Sitzmore knee on the Morrison 25-yard line and Morrison leading 6-0.
Opening drives of the second half saw Orion unable to gain a first down and punting to the Mustangs, who immediately returned the ball on a Sitzmore interception by Nick Walker on the Morrison 40-yard line. Drake Scholtz skirted right end for a 30-yard gain, and a Mustang penalty advanced the ball to the 4-yard line. Jacob Edmunds pushed it in to tie the contest at 6. Senior Mikey Dierikx showed a strong leg in adding the extra point, to gain Orion a one-point lead with 9:33 left in the third quarter.
Following the touchdown, Morrison went three and out, and Sitzmore punted. The punt was mishandled by Schultz on the 3-yard line, and Triston Houzenga fell on the loose ball on the 2-yard line. A Morrison penalty on the first snap moved the ball back to the 7-yard line, before Noah Blacklock lumbered into the end zone to regain the lead for Morrison 12-7. Needing the two-point conversion, Sitzmore connected with Justin Jensen to collect the two and expand the lead to 14-7, with 7:03 remaining in the third period. Each team followed with a three and out series, before Orion started a 22-play drive that ended the third quarter and continued into the fourth. They tied the game with a 4-yard run by Walker and a Dierikx extra point kick. Neither team could generate any offense as the clock ran out, and the mandatory overtime was imminent.
Overtime periods require a coin toss for first possession, and each team receives the ball on the 10-yard line with four downs given to attempt to score. The team with the most points after each receives the four downs is declared the winner. If the score remains tied after each team has had the opportunity to score, then another coin toss follows, and the downs are given to each team once more.
The first overtime saw Morrison stop Orion on fourth-and-four. Orion rejected Morrison by sacking Sitzmore for a 7-yard loss and forcing him to fail on two other pass attempts.
The second extra period excited the fans as Morrison’s Blacklock gained seven and Bird carried three additional yards to cross the end line for a 20-14 lead. Orion needed only one play as Austin Engstrom darted the ten yards over right guard and scored easily to tie the game at 20-20. As mentioned before, Orion’s kicker, Mickey Dierikx, had shown a strong leg on previous attempts, so the Mustang fans were very unsettled. As Dierikx waited, the snap from center went array, and he failed to even attempt the extra point. We were entering a third overtime with the score tied at 20.
Morrison earned first possession in the third overtime and started with a 2-yard gain by Bird and followed with three incomplete passes in the corner of the end zone. It was up to the defense to stop the Chargers gettiing another chance at scoring. Orion’s first play was stuffed for a 2-yard loss, before Engstrom advanced the ball to the 3-yard line. On third down, Walker bulled over center but was stopped with the ball resting on the one-half yard line. Just like a movie script, the teams lined up after a strategy timeout by Orion. The mass of sweat and determination engulfed the small area along the red end zone line. As the ball was snapped and the lines collided, quarterback Kyle Seys kept the ball and dove forward behind his center. The referees waited as the piles pushed against each other, and time stood still waiting for the call. The line judge on the Morrison sideline watched intently without making any play-ending signal. Eventually the opposite line judge raised his arms signaling a touchdown. That call ended the contest, with Orion the victor 26-20.
Orion outgained the Mustangs offensively as they accumulated 228 yards on the ground and 31 yards in the air, completing only three of ten attempts. The Mustangs amassed only 131 yards with Andy Bird carrying the ball 24 times for 54 yards and Mason Sitzmore connecting on five of 15 passes for 45 yards.
The Morrison Mustangs take the field again next week at the battle for the “Wooden Shoe” against Fulton High School at Fulton, IL.