COLONEL CRAWFORD 24, MOHAWK 21
By Kyle Holsinger
SYCAMORE — Midway through the fourth quarter, Colonel Crawford senior quarterback Peyton Baker kept it up the middle making a cut to the left to outmaneuver Mohawk defenders on his way to a 23-yard go-ahead touchdown in a close one at Warrior Field on Friday night. The Eagles prevailed in Northern 10 Conference action, 24-21.
“We actually had ten guys on the field so I guess I just made something out of nothing there,” Colonel Crawford’s Baker said. “Our guys made the right blocks."
On the ensuing drive, the Warriors picked up 35 yards on a pass from QB Andon Clouse to sophomore Levi Tiell that got Mohawk down to Crawford’s 13-yard line.
Three straight runs by Clouse, the last one a scramble to avoid pressure left the Warriors’ with a fourth-and-seven situation at the Eagles 10. Clouse threw to sophomore tight end Rhett Leeth, who was tackled just a yard short of the first down marker—resulting in a turnover on downs with 3:55 left in the game.
From there, Colonel Crawford (4-0 overall, 1-0 N10) was able to run out the clock to walk away with the win.
On the opening drive of the game, the Eagles were able to hold Mohawk (3-1, 0-1) to a three-and-out. Colonel Crawford moved the ball 36 yards on an eight-play scoring drive. Eagles senior kicker Joseph Zizzo knocked down a 36-yard field goal to give his team a 3-0 edge with a little under five minutes off of the game clock.
The teams swapped punts before Mohawk’s Clouse hit senior receiver Brant Kirian for a 28-yard reception to get down to the CC 15. A facemark penalty on Colonel Crawford on the following play moved the pigskin down to the eight-yard line.
Three plays later, Clouse kept it up the middle from two-yards out for a touchdown. The Warriors’ Aden Patrizi made the point-after-touchdown to give Mohawk a 7-3 lead with 9:13 remaining in the first half.
The Eagles started their next drive at their own 13 on their next possession, picking up five first downs on their way inside the Warriors’ red zone. Colonel Crawford’s Zizzo missed a 30-yard field goal with 3:02 to go in the second quarter.
Mohawk was not able to capitalize on their final possession of the half—the score at the break was still 7-3 in favor of the Red & Black.
The Eagles moved the ball 43 yards on a third-and-11 when Baker scrambled left and passed right to running back Roen Thew. Two plays later, the Eagles’ other senior QB Brayden Holt threw a deep pass into the left side of the end zone for a 22-yard passing TD to receiver Parker Weithman. A Zizzo PAT gave Colonel Crawford a 10-7 advantage just a little over three minutes into the second half.
Mohawk’s next drive stayed alive when Clouse darted a pass to Tiell for 27-yards on third-and-nine. Two plays later, a reverse pass from senior Tristan Bright to Kirian was good for a 30-yard gain to get the Warriors down to the CC 9. Two keepers by Clouse on the next two plays was good enough to cross the goal line—giving Mohawk a 14-10 with 4:56 left in the third quarter.
That’s when Patrizi squibbed the kickoff only to have it returned 76 yards for a touchdown by Weithman. CC was back up, 17-14, with just 13 seconds ticked off the clock.
The Eagles held Mohawk to a three-and-out. A defensive pass interference call on the Warriors moved Colonel Crawford to midfield on the next drive.
Three plays later, the Eagles’ Baker was picked off by Clouse—who also plays inside linebacker on defense for Mohawk. There was a personal foul on Colonel Crawford on the interception, giving the Warriors the ball at their opponent’s 14-yard line.
The teams went into the final quarter: CC 17, Mohawk 14.
On fourth-and-one, from the Eagles’ 5-yard line, Clouse was able to picked up a couple yards on a keeper to give Mohawk a first-and-goal scenario.
Two plays later, the Warriors’ Clouse scored on a one-yard rush up the middle. It was 21-17 with 10:14 left in the contest.
On the next drive, Colonel Crawford was held to a three-and-out when the Warriors muffed the punt and an Eagle coverage man was able to fall on the ball at the Mohawk 42. The Gold & Black were still in business offensively.
Four plays later, Baker’s number was called for the go-ahead score.
“Special teams cost us tonight,” Mohawk coach Eric Daniel said. “We had all the momentum in the world, and we did not want to kick it to One [Weithman] for sure, but he’s a great player…it’s a huge momentum turn.
I’m really proud of our kids for responding,” Daniel continued. “We had huge swings of momentum throughout the entire game. These are the games that we want our kids in.”
