Battle of Wildcats ends with 25-22 come-from-behind decision
October 21, 2010
Chris Jackett
Reprinted with Permission of the Novi News
A pair of Wildcat football teams took the field Friday night and Plymouth prevailed 25-22 on a field goal with two seconds remaining.
Plymouth (6-2, 4-1 KLAA South) punched their playoff ticket with the dramatic come-from-behind victory, while host Novi (4-4, 4-1 Central) is left out of the playoff picture for the second-straight year.
Novi's Wildcats took an early 15-0 lead in the first quarter, scoring on both of their first two drives. Junior Derek Ince connected with senior Alex Willson for a 52-yard touchdown reception 4:07 into the contest. Senior Scotty Stanford connected for the point after attempt.
“Ince made some big key throws and we made key catches and had big blocks so he could make those throws,” Novi coach Todd Pennycuff said.
After a Plymouth fumble was recovered by Novi at Plymouth's 47, Novi junior Zach Masserant ran the ball six of the next seven plays and capped the drive with a five-yard run into the right side of the end zone. A flag on the extra point pushed Plymouth back to their 1-yard line, so Masserant punched the ball in for a two-point conversion and 15-0 lead with 3:39 left in the quarter.
Plymouth would bounce back, however. Ince had a pass picked off by Plymouth senior Philip Emminger at Plymouth's 37 with 29 seconds left in the quarter. After a few big gains, junior Shaun Austin connected with senior Brennen Beyer for a 12-yard touchdown reception and a kick by senior Kyle Brindza narrowed the deficit to 15-7 early in the second quarter.
Later in the quarter, Stanford had a punt blocked at his own 30 by Beyer. Plymouth junior Tyler Goble snatched up the ball and carried it 30 yards up the left sideline for a touchdown which, after Brindza knocked a kick through the uprights, put the score at 15-14 Novi.
Novi's Wildcats pushed the ball up to the Plymouth 25 following a 33-yard reception by junior Michael Jocz, but sophomore Lucas Buck fumbled and lost the ball on a rush attempt on the next play.
Neither team would score again before halftime, or in the third quarter, despite some big gains by Plymouth's Jerel Jenkins and Novi's Masserant, Ince and Willson.
“Our linebackers and secondary, Brian Bush and Brady Sheldon, played really well and contained (Beyer),” Pennycuff said.
With 6:55 left in the contest, Buck broke free on second down and carried the ball up the right side 43 yards to the Plymouth 5-yard line. Masserant ran the ball into the left side of the end zone untouched and Stanford added a point after to give Novi a 22-14 lead.
“I think they played with desperation and did a great job. They showed us some formations we weren't expecting,” Plymouth coach Mike Sawchuk said.
Plymouth responded with an 84-yard drive of their own, which featured a 34-yard run up the middle by Jenkins. Junior Donte Fox capped the drive with a five-yard run into the right side of the end zone and Austin connected with a diving Emminger for the two-point conversion to tie the contest at 22 with 2:57.
Novi's final drive only moved up 15 yards from their own 20, but it ate up most of the game clock.
On fourth and 16 at their own 35, Stanford intended to punt the ball with 11.3 seconds left in the game, but he was unable to recover a low snap, which Plymouth knocked away and covered up at Novi's 7-yard line with 0.2 seconds left.
Brindza easily booted the ball through for a field goal as time expired and Plymouth completed their 25-22 comeback.
“If we would've played like that the whole game, we would've dominated,” Sawchuk said. “I'm glad its over.”
Novi dominated the clock with possession for 30:01 of 48 minutes, and also outgained Plymouth 348-310 in total yardage.
Plymouth had a 149-110 pass yardage advantage however, behind 14-for-18 passing from Austin. Ince was 3-of-7 for Novi, but gained 49 yards on the ground. Buck and Masserant also gained 99 and 95 yards on the ground, respectively.
“Buck played real well. He's going to be a great one in the future or us,” Pennycuff said.
Jenkins led Plymouth's ground game with 140 yards on 21 attempts.
Junior Alex King was huge for Novi's defense, amassing 13 total tackles, eight more than any of his teammates. Goble had 10 for Plymouth and Fox added eight.