Cougars survive Clovers' furious comeback, get first win 24-21

North Putnam senior fullback Grant Bryan sheds a tackle from Johnny Smith after leaving a pair of Clovers in his wake on a carry in the first quarter on Friday. Bryan finished with 14 carries for 104 yards. (Banner Graphic/GRANT WIEMAN)

CLOVERDALE -- When Jordan Sarr's 26-yard field goal sailed through the uprights, putting North Putnam up 17-6 with 9:06 remaining Friday night, it looked like the night was over.

As it turned out, things were just getting started.

In a wild finish that saw three touchdowns in 92 seconds, the Cougars (1-8, 1-4 WCC) held off Cloverdale (1-8, 0-5 WCC) for a 24-21 victory.

The craziness started when North Putnam senior Beau Green intercepted Clover quarterback Mark Osmialowski, returning it 35 yards into Cloverdale territory.

Five plays later, Cougar senior Tyler Land scampered 16 yards for his second touchdown of the night and a 24-6 lead, and things really looked over.

Needing some fast scoring with only 4:36 on the clock, the Clovers found it.

"When it's 24-6, the only way we get back in that game is if we score quickly," Cloverdale coach Jarrod Duff said. "And we scored on the kickoff return."

Freddy Fislar took the kickoff 80 yards in 11 seconds, brining life to his teammates and the Clover crowd.

Osmialowski found Max Secrest for the two-point conversion, making it a 10-point game at 24-14.

"And then we make a play and recover the onside kick," Duff said.

The ensuing onside kick saw two Cougars run into each other, allowing Ethan Boyd to recover the ball and put the Clovers back in business.

"And then, Mark Osmialowski makes a heck of a play scrambling. Cody Stout makes a great catch," Duff said.

On the fourth play of the drive, the senior signal caller looked like he might take a sack, but eluded the defense to loft the ball over two Cougar defenders and find diving classmate Stout for a 22-yard touchdown.

Senior Andrew Howard's two-point run got the Clovers within three with 3:04 on the clock, but it was as close as the Clovers got.

North Putnam covered the ensuing onside before picking up a pair of first downs and kneeling twice inside the Clover 10.

In the end, the Sarr field goal loomed large in this contest -- three points that turned out to be the difference in the game.

"Jordan Sarr did a great job," Cougars coach Greg Barrett said. "I've been telling him the last couple of weeks we've been wanting to use him and we just haven't had that right time to use him. That's a huge play by him and that's the play of the game, hands down. He did a great job."

Barrett expressed his pride at how his team, winless before Friday, handled tough situations that arose on Friday night.

"I'm proud of them for handling that adversity we had there because we haven't done it all year," Barrett said. "Cloverdale's a good team. They're a lot better than they've ever been. They're well coached -- Coach Duff has done a great job with those guys. We respect them for that."

The adversity bookended the game for the Cougars, as they weathered not only the Clovers' late charge, but about the worst opening series of the evening imaginable.

Cloverdale junior Freddy Fislar returns an interception early in the first quarter against North Putnam on Friday. Fislar had a kick return touchdown in the fourth quarter to keep the Clovers in the game. (Banner Graphic/GRANT WIEMAN)

Senior quarterback Gabe McFadden was thrown for two losses totaling 15 yards in the first two plays. On the third, he threw an interception that Fislar returned to the Cougar 11-yard lane.

Howard capped the three-play Clover drive with a five-yard score. After a failed conversion, the Clovers led 6-0 with 8:56 to play in the first.

The Cougars had an answer, however. A 20-yard return and a 30-yard rush by Green set them up first-and-10 at the Cloverdale 30.

They then turned to Land, who carried the ball on four of the next five plays, the last of which went for 12 yards and a score.

Sarr's kick made it 7-6 with 5:36 to go in the first.

The team's traded punts for the remainder of the first before the turnover bug bit them both to open the second quarter.

On the second play of the period, Troy Davis intercepted a McFadden pass and returned it to the Cougar 41-yard line.

The Clovers gave the charity right back, though. Looking for a big play, Duff called a halfback pass by Howard. Instead, the ball found Coy Flynn, who managed a five-yard return to his own 20-yard line.

Senior Garrett Plessinger closed out the first-half scoring for the Cougars, rushing 36-yards for a touchdown with 3:42 remaining in the second. Sarr's kick made it 14-6 at the break.

The third quarter was uneventful by this game's standards, featuring no turnovers and no points. However, it did feature both offenses beginning to find the footing that would lead to the strong finish -- North Putnam's ground attack and Cloverdale's passing.

The Cougars were led by three strong rushing performances from the senior running backs. Nate Bryan had 14 carries for 104 yards, followed by Plessinger's nine carries for 98 yards and a score.

Land wasn't far behind with 17 rushes for 88 yards and two touchdowns.

Through the air, McFadden finished 1-for-6 for six yards and a pair of interceptions.

Barrett called it a sloppy win, but one his team would take, just the same.

"Tonight's a win. We're going to take the win and we're excited about it," Barrett said. "We've been battling all year trying to figure out how to win, and tonight we did. That's a plus, so we're excited about that tonight."

Howard led the Clovers on the ground with 18 carries for 39 yards an a touchdown.

Through the air, Osmialowski was 7-for-13 for 76 yards, one score and one pick.

It was his team's defense that Duff was talking about after the game, though.

"Other than the Turkey Run game, our defense has not stepped up and played, and tonight we just played fantastic," Duff said. "We're two or three big plays, really, away from just shutting them down offensively. So we're definitely proud of that."

More than anything from a scheme standpoint, Duff was happy about the fight in his team.

"As a man," Duff began, "whether you're talking about football or talking about life, you have two choices. You can handle it like a man and keep plugging away, keep fighting to do things the right way. Or you can act like a little boy and quit.

"These guys proved tonight that they're men. We didn't quit."

Both teams will open sectional play on Friday, Oct. 25.

The Clovers host Cascade (5-4, 2-3 WCC) at 7 p.m. Friday. The Cadets won the regular season matchup 48-19.

The Cougars visit traditional powerhouse Lafayette Central Catholic (8-1) at 7 p.m. Friday.

At Cloverdale
North Putnam.......7 7 0 10 -- 24
Cloverdale............6 0 0 15 -- 21