FOOTBALL: Sparta wins battle of unbeatens in Pinckneyville
Sparta hasn't made an appearance in the IHSA football playoffs in 23 years, but the Bulldogs took one step closer to accomplishing that feat on Friday night in Pinckneyville, winning a battle of 3-0 conference mates 27-11 over the Panthers.
That makes two years in a row Sparta has been able to knock off PCHS, after not doing so once between 2001 and 2013. That being said, there's quite a difference between those Sparta teams and the one that dominated the war in the trenches this past Friday.
"They're a really darn good football team," said Panthers head coach Todd Thomas. "If you can't get pressure on the quarterback, they're going to give a lot of people problems. If you let him stand back there and do that, he's going to pick you apart, and he can scramble. He was lights-out, very good. I thought their offensive line play was tremendous. Their pass protection was great. They whipped us up front on both sides of the ball."
The quarterback Thomas referred to was senior Drew Kordys, who threw for 238 yards and a touchdown on 20-for-31 passing and added 23 yards and another TD on the ground, helping the Bulldogs improve to 4-0.
Mere moments into the game, the Panthers had an opportunity to put one in the end zone after Caulden Lazenby returned the opening kickoff 87 yards down to the Bulldogs' 4-yard line. But as the did most of the night, Sparta's line made a stand, holding Pinckneyville to a Dylan Carns field goal.
"That kind of set the tone for the rest of the game," Thomas said. "We thought we could maybe reduce them down and take away a little of their athleticism, and we didn't get it done. When they play some wide ends like that, as athletic as they are coming off the edge, pass protection is tough. It was hard to throw the ball. They play man coverage, but when you can get that type of rush, the quarterback can't get his feet set, and you're going to have problems."
PCHS made that 3-0 lead hold up the entire first quarter. Sparta began their third possession of the night at their own 9-yard line with 21.6 seconds left in the opening period. Two plays into the second quarter, the Bulldogs were looking at a three-and-out with a fourth-and-four at their own 16-yard line.
Things changed in a flash. The Panthers were flagged for running into the kicker, a 5-yard penalty that resulted in a first down that kept the drive going. After 21 plays and over ten minutes of game clock had gone by, Sparta punched it on on Kordys' sweep for a 5-yard touchdown and a 7-3 lead.
"That was a big momentum changer," said Thomas. "I don't really agree with the call, not only did we tip it, we got bumped into the kicker, but you can't make excuses. Things like that happen, you've just got to recuperate and play. It was a big play."
The Bulldogs recovered a Panther fumble at the PCHS 41-yard line with 7:10 to go in the third quarter and took advantage of the short field in front of them with their second scoring drive. The Bulldogs converted a fourth-and-five to keep the possession going before Kordys found Alyze Nesbitt for an 11-yard TD reception to put Sparta up 14-3.
Lazenby struck again on special teams just seconds later, taking the ensuing kickoff to the house for six. PCHS added a two-point conversion when running back Dalton Peradotto threw to quarterback Clayton Houghland in the end zone on a deceptive reverse play, and the score was 14-11 with 5:18 left in the third period.
Sparta took their turn at the big play just over a minute later, though. The Bulldogs started on their own 20, picked up a first down on a deep pass from Kordys to Devin Brown at Pinckneyville's 38, then Will Price busted a 38-yard rushing touchdown to make it a two-score game again at 20-11 with 4:11 on the third quarter clock.
The Panthers didn't get inside the red zone the rest of the night, managing only five first downs in the entire game. No Pinckneyville player rushed for more than 14 yards on the night, and Houghland completed only five-of-fifteen throws for 75 yards, the bulk of that coming on a drive late in the fourth quarter with Sparta's defense playing softer coverage.
"I'm not going to fault our kids' effort," Thomas said. "I didn't think we executed well at times, but they're better than us. We were both 3-0, but they have a better football team than we do. They have 19 seniors, we're playing a couple freshmen. Again, we're not making excuses, but it is what it is - they're good."
Carns (1 catch, 32 yards), Lazenby (2-14), and Brian Kling (2-29) had receptions for the Panthers. Peradotto (3 carries, 14 yards), Lazenby (3-7) and Alex Howard (10-14) had positive rushing yardage.
Sparta's leading receivers included former Panther Gabe Yearian (6 catches, 76 yards) and tight end Ethan Gwin (7-69).
Pinckneyville (3-1) travels to Du Quoin (2-2) in week five. Sparta hosts Nashville in a matchup of 4-0 unbeatens.