By Stephen Smoot
Pendleton County faced a potentially disastrous early season gauntlet as it eyes an even deeper run into the state football playoffs this season. Opening against Class AAA Keyser, powerful rival East Hardy, and always tough Class AA Petersburg could have easily put the Wildcats behind a zero and three record to start the year.
Resilience, toughness, and “finding a way” to victory earned the Wildcats big wins early while Petersburg simply rolled over the first two teams it faced this season.
Friday night brought together one of the best and most exciting teams in West Virginia Class A against a team wearing that very same description for Class AA. Once again, Pendleton County played up to test its mettle and earn points for the playoffs.
The game had a festival atmosphere. Prior to the start, last year’s girls’ teams were honored for winning the Class A Champions Cup for having the most accumulated success in girls’ competition. Justin Hemsley provided a live performance of his music for the crowd’s enjoyment.
Petersburg immediately cut into the enjoyment of the crowd, at least on the home side, when they fielded the opening kickoff and returned it 90 yards for a score. A handful of seconds into the contest and the Vikings had a 6-0 lead. They could not capitalize on the extra point opportunity.
That set one part of the tone of the first half. The second came in the Wildcats’ first possession when a Viking defensive back laid a legal, but devastating hit on Travis Owens as he came on a crossing route.
All night long, the Viking defensive backs showed both coverage ability and the knack for making hard and precise hits to break up pass plays. This slowed down the Wildcat passing attack, especially in the first half.
Petersburg got the ball back on their own 29 after the Wildcats could not move the ball. After 15 plays and nine minutes, their capable quarterback Payton Matheny orchestrated a patient drive to the endzone that put them up 12-0 after the failed conversion.
The Vikings brought speed to Franklin and used it most effectively in outracing the Wildcats to the corners and picking up yards on the edges. Their backs also accelerated well through creases to pick up chunks of yards. Matheny’s elusiveness and precision passing also challenged the Wildcat defense.
With 2:30 left in the first, up 12-0, Petersburg looked as if they had pulled off a back-breaking play. They ran off of a fake punt for a first down on fourth and 11 from their own 45. Though they extended the drive to the 20-yard line, the Wildcat defense shut the door on them on fourth and six at the 20. Owens broke up the pass to get his team the ball back. They came up with nothing after 10 plays run by Petersburg inside the Wildcat 30.
This would serve as a dominant theme almost until the close of the first half.
Early in the second quarter Matheny left the game and did not return. Petersburg still had a capable quarterback as a backup who moved the offense efficiently at times, but the second team player lacked the electricity of Matheny.
Pendleton County put together their first drive of any length starting at the 9:02 mark in the second quarter. From their own 21, the Wildcat passing game came to life. On third and long, Colton Roberson hit Owens for a first down, taking them out to their own 44. Roberson then eluded a would-be tackler and ground out an 11-yard run to keep the drive going.
The drive went as far as the Viking 34, but there a holding call stalled the drive and forced a punt with 6:09 left in the first half.
On second and seven from their own 38, the Viking running back hit a crease and exploded up field. Owens tracked him down to prevent the touchdown at the Wildcat 18. Two plays later, Petersburg scored an apparent touchdown on the ground, but was flagged for holding. Once again, Owens ably defended a fourth down pass to force the ball back to Pendleton County.
Petersburg’s defense stood tall and forced a four plays and out, getting the punt near midfield. The exhausted and tested defense this time gave way with a little under 20 seconds left, giving up a touchdown. Petersburg cruised into the half with a 20-0 commanding advantage.
From the visiting team’s point of view, this appeared to have gone the route of the past few seasons in which Petersburg has gouged Pendleton County. The Wildcats showed their typical tenacity, but the Vikings appeared to have an answer to every question posed by the Pendleton County offense.
Halftime, however, is for adjustments and regrouping. Average teams look at the scoreboard in such a game and fold. Great teams accept the challenge, and the Wildcats did just that for the next 24 minutes of play.
Pendleton County took the opening kickoff at the 35. Britton Lough pulled in a pass at the Wildcat 44 for a solid gain of nine yards. Roberson then ran through a crease created by the right side of his line and pushed to the Viking 48. Two plays later on second and short, Roberson fired a pass to Chase Owens at the Petersburg 35.
Next, Roberson challenged a defense that had stayed with his fleet footed receivers thus far, but not on this play. He arced the ball to the right corner of the endzone in a spot where Travis Owens could run under, gracefully haul in the pass, and put his team on the scoreboard. The kick by the ever-reliable Kamron Redman made the score 20-7.
As in the first half, Petersburg had the answer. In this case, they answered with a diligent 11-play drive that covered 74 yards in a little under five minutes. Once again, they failed the conversion, but extended the lead back out to 19.
A Viking personal foul on the conversion attempt helped to set the Wildcat drive up. Petersburg tried something between a short and an onside kick, but Chase Owens gobbled up the ball in stride and charged downfield, taking the ball just inside the Viking 40.
Another Petersburg personal foul, combined with minor penalties on both teams on subsequent plays, put Pendleton County at the Viking 30. Roberson completed a pass to Chase Owens for 12 yards, but on the next play, Viking defenders tracked down the elusive Roberson for a sack. Driven back to the opposing team’s 33, the Wildcats benefited from yet another personal foul that kept a drive alive.
Roberson ran the ball to the 10, then later converted a fourth and two to get first down at the two. He ran the ball in and Redman’s kick cut the lead to 26-14.
As the fourth quarter opened, the Vikings had the ball just shy of midfield. Methodically, they took the ball to the Wildcat 26, but turned the ball over on downs. A pass to the endzone on fourth and two went errant and Pendleton County got the ball with 8:30 on the clock.
From his own 26, Roberson lofted a pass to a leaping Travis Owens. He took a huge hit, but made a huge play with a clean catch at the Petersburg 45. Two plays later, covered in man to man, Travis Owens outfought the defender to pull in the pass at the Petersburg nine. Facing fourth and goal at the Viking eight, Roberson hit a receiver in the hands at the goal line, but a perfectly timed huge hit by the defensive back killed the play and the drive with 5:38 left.
This time, the Viking offense struggled against the fired-up Wildcat defense and could only advance three yards prior to punting. Roberson continued to pick on a defensive backfield that had plagued his efforts only an hour before, finding Corbin Dove at the Viking 12. A flag on the next play gave the Wildcats half the distance and a first and goal at the six. On third and goal, Petersburg seemed to stop Roberson short, but had grabbed the face mask.
Roberson ran the ball in at 2:21. Redman’s kick helped his tea to close to 26-21.
Petersburg cleanly fielded the onside kick, but could not move the ball far enough to run out the clock. Roberson got the ball back with 45 seconds left and a suddenly red-hot passing game.
The Vikings gave up short to midrange passes on the right sideline and Roberson tried to take advantage to move his team up the field. He got his squad from the 14 to midfield, but there the Petersburg defender got the receiver down before he could get out of bounds and time ticked away.
While the game will go down as a loss, Pendleton County gained much. Roberson grew as a quarterback, figuring out how to find receivers in the stingy Viking defense. Pendleton County took Petersburg’s best punches in the first half, then gave as good as they got in the second.
Most importantly, not beaten by the scoreboard or recent history, the Wildcats surged and nearly took home an improbable win against one of the best squads in Class AA. Next week, the Wildcats have a week to heal up before hosting Tygarts Valley on Sept. 26.
