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Roller-Coaster Affair Goes Nature Coast's Way

Pasco Loses A Tough One 18-17

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By EDDIE DANIELS | The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 4, 2008

DADE CITY - If you sat inside W.F. Edwards Stadium on Friday night and were just a fan of the sport of football, what unfolded in four quarters was intriguing.

If you were rooting for either the visiting Nature Coast squad or the host Pasco squad, it was a roller coaster of jumbled emotions.

Nature Coast (4-0) earned the victory, 18-17, thanks to a 2-point conversion. It was that membrane thin advantage, which told the story of what took place.

"I think we played well," Pasco coach Tom McHugh said. "We did what we had to. We adjusted to what they were doing and we fought back. It was a good game. They were a good team, we're a good team. I think they know it and we know it."

The Sharks jumped out early, building a 10-0 advantage on their first two possessions in the first quarter. Running back Tevin Drake scored from a yard out and kicker Danny Cologne tacked on a 28-yard field goal seven minutes later.

That 10-point advantage appeared substantial considering the pressure the Sharks' defensive line applied to Pirates QB D.J. Clower. Additionally, the Nature Coast running game controlled the pace of the first portion of the contest.

Sharks running back Antwan Story had 100 yards on 11 carries, while Drake ended the night with 28 carries for 112 yards and two scores.

Pasco (4-1) didn't cut into that deficit until late in the second quarter when Clower hit Hakeeme Ishmar on a 14-yard touchdown pass.
That scoring drive was set up by a blocked punt by Pirates linebacker Dominique Wilson at the 5:17 mark of the second quarter.

The Pasco defense clued in to what the Nature Coast offense was doing and held them to minus-15 yards on the Sharks' ensuing drive. Once the Pirates got the ball back, they capped a four-play drive with a 53-yard Brennan Allen field goal. That knotted the game at 10 with 1:09 left in the half.

Making that kick more impressive was the fact it likely would have been good from at least 60 yards.

"I think momentum switched sides," Nature Coast coach Jamie Joyner said. "We had the mojo early in the game and everything was going right for us and then they block a punt and all of a sudden, they're excited on their sidelines and we got our heads down a little bit. They're a great football team and they played like it tonight."

Pasco took its only lead in the fourth quarter when running back Jamall Haynes, who ended the night with 63 yards on 16 carries, scored on a 2-yard run with 10:41 remaining. Pasco went ahead 17-10.

Nature Coast's offense sputtered in the second half with just two possessions in the third quarter. Both were fairly short drives, taking up little time and little yardage.

When they needed it, the offense stepped up, answering the challenge on a seven-play drive, which ended with Drake scoring from 4 yards out and converting the 2-point run for the 18-17 lead.

The gutsiness of that 2-point conversion was almost lost on the first play of Pasco's ensuing drive. Josh Johnson blazed up the home sideline, taking the handoff at the Pasco 31 and racing to the Sharks 16. He then fumbled the ball, which Nature Coast recovered.

Considering Allen's strong leg, had Johnson held on to the ball, that was all the yardage needed for Pasco to knock in a game-winning field goal.

"We've been in a couple of close ones and this time we came out on the wrong side of it," McHugh said. "Three weeks in a row. If you look at it, we've won one by one, won one by two and lost one by one. [Nature Coast is] a good team, so what are you gonna do?"

Reporter Eddie Daniels can be reached at (813) 948-4214 or edaniels@tampatrib.com.

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