The Guthrie BlueJays controlled the scoreboard for the majority of the game in their showdown with the Enid Plainsmen Friday night inside D. Bruce Selby Stadium, but a late Enid score put the final touches on a see saw second half.
Guthrie jumped out to a 15-0 first quarter lead and led at the half 22-7, but Enid finished a 10 play drive with a touchdown pass to finalize the score, 37-36, with just :31 seconds left in the game. At times, the Jays were their own worse enemy with penalties and personal fouls that gave Enid great field position in key moments of the game.
The Jays fall to 2-1 on the season while Enid improves to 2-1 as well. Guthrie opens district play with Deer Creek, at Jelsma Stadium, Friday. For post game comments by Rafe Watkins go to the home page of Guthrie Sports Page.
The Jays seemed to have lost some of their momentum in the first series of the second half when senior running back Alphonso Wilcots went down with an injury. The senior, who has rushed for over 100 yards in back-to-back weeks, finished with 12 carries for 59-yards before he was forced to leave. The injury has not been diagnosed at this time.
The Plainsmen, who ran 20 more offensive plays than the Jays, did not have their first lead until 1:51 left in the game when they scored on a 57-yard touchdown pass from Alex Patterson to Tanner Miller, in which, came on a third down and 27 play.
However, Guthrie responded 43 seconds later when Jays quarterback Bryan Dutton found Devonte McCulley over the middle, who then broke a tackle and sped by two Enid players for the 67-yard score, but left Enid with 2:05 to work with.
The game winning score came from Patterson to Jonathan Burton in the corner of the end zone came after a BlueJay defensive back slipped in the end zone. Guthrie got the ball back, but were just able to get to the 50 yard line to end the game.
Just last week Enid let go of a 17-0 first quarter lead to Midwest City to only see themselves rally from a 15-0 first quarter deficit against the Jays.
Dutton scored the first score on an 11-yard run and the Jays followed that with a 2-point conversion when Dutton found Luke Davis on the screen pass.
Guthrie quickly made it 15-0 when Enid lined up in a diamond formation with four receivers and Kentrell Brothers made a great read to try to jump the route, but it went through his hands, however, the ball was thrown behind the line of scrimmage and junior linebacker Landry Chappell picked it up and ran after Enid had thought it was incomplete pass as Chappell scored from 57-yards out.
Enid got on the board for the first time with Burton’s 7-yard run on the first play in the second quarter to pull Enid to within 15-7. Both teams would trade punts before Guthrie struck again.
Dutton on the eighth play of the drive hit McCulley for a 19-yard touchdown score to give Guthrie back their 15-point lead at 22-7 with :42 to play before the half. However, Guthrie executed a well-played onside kick and recovered the ball, but the Jays would miss a 30-yard field goal as they went into the locker room.
McCulley finished the night with 3-catches for 96-yards and two touchdown scores and was named the Farmers and Merchants Player of the Game.
Enid struck twice quickly in the third quarter with touchdown drives of 42 and 33 seconds to tie the game at 22-all thanks in part to two touchdown passes from Patterson and a 2-point conversion with 3:39 left in the third. Patterson was poised all evening with a good rush by the Jays and was able to scramble long enough to find open receivers especially in the second half.
On the Jays ensuing drive, Brothers was hit late on the kick return and with the penalty the Jays were set up at the Enid 45-yard line. Guthrie then went on an 8-play drive capped off by Derrick Kelley’s 5-yard run to recapture the lead at 29-22.
Neither team could get anything going in the first part of the fourth quarter, but Enid sliced the Jays lead down to four with a 43-yard field goal with 6:16 left on the clock.
The next possession for the Jays, who were needing to take time off the clock, could only hold on to the ball for 1:26 before having to punt the ball away as Enid scored two touchdowns in the next 2:17 to pull out the victory.
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