With hopes of redemption for last year's heartbreaking defeat in the heart of every Grizzly fan in attendance, it was an absolutely electric night at Mayo Thompson Stadium on Friday. Between the roaring F-35 flyover and the intense entrances from both teams, it was obvious to most people in attendance that we were about to witness something truly special.
And special it was. Northside began the game with the ball and after just four plays, Jayden Youngblood took off past the Southside defense for a 57-yard touchdown run to put up the first points of the contest. 7-0 Grizzlies.
Southside's opening drive was halted near the end zone after a crucial 4th-down stop by Northside. Northside's offense couldn't capitalize on the opportunity however, and were forced to punt.
Another Grizzlies fourth down stop later, and Northside finds themselves with the ball, 2nd and 4 at their own 44. Cam Massey catches a routine screen pass and takes it to the house, with the only threat to him being the flailing arms of several Southside DBs. 14-0 Northside.
Pressure has mounted on the Southside offensive after coming out empty on their first two drives. Two plays into their drive, a pass gets picked off by Lucas Caldarera and is taken back to the house! 21-0 Northside.
The Grizzly's defense through the opening moments of the game showed off immense intensity and spirit, and were decisive in stopping Southside from scoring on their first three drives. Despite momentum being clearly in Northside's hands, those three drives were extremely meticulous and grueling, which began to take effect on Southside's fourth drive which was capped off by an 52-yard touchdown carry from running back Jayden Webb.
After a quick Grizzly three and out, a gassed Northside defense was once again called on try and stop a desperate Maverick offense. After converting a 4th and 20, a wide open pass from Blake Forsgren to Wilson Key made the game 21-14.
Copy and paste that last paragraph and it's suddenly 21-20 at the end of the half.
Southside ended the first half with a staggering 18 first downs compared to Northside's 9. So while Northside's first half made for some excellent highlight footage with their big splash plays, this made for an impossible situation for their defense who could hardly get any rest in between these long Southside drives.
Penalties as well contributed to Southside's first down count as they were able to get out of several would-be key 3rd and shorts by drawing Northside offsides with hard counts.
Northside started their second half by trusting the ball in Can Massey's hands as he extended Northside's lead to 7 off a quick hitch route. A missed extra point however would mean that Southside would remain hot on their heels.
After stopping the Southside offense, an excellent punt pins Northside on their own one yard line. With no room to breathe, quarterback Drew Jackson's pass intended for Cam Massey is intercepted. One play later, we see the Forsgren-Key connection at work for their third touchdown of the game.
The Grizzly's next drive would be stopped cold after a 2nd down sack. Southside would march down the field with very little resistance to gain their first lead of the game.
Despite getting an interception and a muffed punt, Northside's offense could not seem to get out of neutral on either of the drives that followed. Southside would continue to effectively run out the clock and stifle any attempt at tying the game. Southside would walk away victorious 34-27.
Southside's ability to trust their game plan and take advantage of the weaknesses of Northside's approach played a huge part in their 2nd quarter comeback. There's that classic saying in sports that "there's plenty of game left" and that was reflected last night. While the scoreboard might've led them to panic and change what they were doing on offense, Southside remained steadfast in their long and methodical approach which effectively took advantage of the exhausted Northside defense.
Northside is left to consider the lessons learned from this momentous game as they face the juggernaut that is the Greenwood Bulldogs next week. It's an unfortunate loss, but the improvements that could be gained through the lessons taught can be crucial for the Grizzlies as they head forward in their season.
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