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Bison edge Cougars, 21-15
ROACHDALE -- After 3-7 and 1-9 seasons, the North Putnam Cougars are on pace to get back to their winning ways. They ended the football season with a 4-6 record Friday night, while losing to the Benton Central Bison 21-15.
"We have a lot to look forward to," Cougar coach Greg Barrett said. "We just have to do what we're supposed to do during the offseason. We have to keep men in character and keep working toward the common goal. I think we got a group of guys here who are athletic. They have bought into the program."
North Putnam hosted the Bison (2-8, 0-6 Hoosier) and they discovered something they had yet to face in the year.
Benton Central was a pass-first team and freshman standout Koltin Tucker threw the pigskin 29 times for a grand total of 223 yards. The second play of their first offensive possession, after forcing the Cougars to a three and out, he threw the ball 56 yards for a touchdown to Mason Cooley.
"We knew they were going to try and throw the ball on us," Barrett said. "They had a couple other guys in there due to injury and they did a really good job. Their quarterback did a really nice job."
The freshman showed ups and downs at times, having some accuracy problems, but when he was poised, he split defenders and put the ball right into his receiver's hands. Because of the bullets, he threw two passes of 37 yards and one of 18 yards.
Benton Central consumed the first three scores of the game. Kenneth Munson got in on the action midway through the second quarter on a third and goal.
Munson, at fullback, rolled out to the right of Tucker in the wide open for an easy three-yard pass into the end zone with 8:29 remaining in the first half.
Tucker scored the final touchdown of the contest with 9:35 left in the third. He kept the ball himself after being shut down on the previous play for a one-yard run.
Down 21-0 is a tough task to overcome, but with a confident home crowd behind the Cougars, they were up for a challenge.
Benton Central acquired the ball again, but Tucker threw one of his three interceptions to senior Daniel Huffman with 5:31 remaining in the third and the Cougars came through for the spectators. They put their first score on the board with 2:20 remaining in the quarter off a Mike Hook one-yard carry.
Huffman shoved the extra point through and with plenty of time left, the Cougars were back within striking distant.
North Putnam consists of 15 seniors and not one wanted to go home. The team as a whole has overcome adversity and fought all year. Most notably, two weeks ago at home against Seeger, they were down 7-6 with just a few minutes left before scoring the go-ahead touchdown to win 14-7. They were also down 13-7 against North Daviess before doing the same late in the game earlier this year.
"With this senior leadership, we have overcome adversity all year long," Barrett said. "We got guys playing in different spots and they didn't complain if they got moved. They didn't complain if they didn't get to play or touch the ball. It was all about the team. I'm proud of these guys and their efforts. I think this is a group that's going to look back in a couple of years and realize they started this. They got us back to playing Cougar football."
The willingness to never give up lies in the Cougars' hearts and they knew they had the potential.
"We've had a lot of good success around here," Barrett said. "That's what's great about the Cougar football family. Kids keep coming back to support us."
North Putnam intercepted Tucker for the final time of the night and capitalized once again. Senior running back Jake Riggen ran the ball one yard for the score with 8:29 remaining.
Senior Tucker Lowe had the interception and returned it nearly 80 yards before being demolished by Tucker at the Bison one-yard line.
The Bison, who had no success running the ball all night with only 18 yards previous, rushed the ball for 46 yards in four plays. The priority was to run the clock out.
It came down to needing one first down, but four penalties on five plays resulted in a punting situation.
One of the plays that got called back was a 50-yard pass to inside the Cougar's 15-yard line.
Junior Brad Hodges fielded the punt before returning the ball 17 yards to his own 45. The Cougars had 2:08 left to score and their first two plays left the sideline encouraged and the Bison biting their nails.
Freshman quarterback Hayden Rudes had passes of seven and 11 yards.
Being sacked is the last thing any team could afford at this point in the game, and freshman David Arthur may have gotten the biggest one of his life for Benton Central. He dropped Rudes for a 15-yard loss.
Fourth down and forever and a life or death situation stared a prowling Cougar team in the eyes.
North Putnam had to place the ball inside the 25-yard line of Benton Central, but a pass that fell short of Huffman sealed the game.
Tucker and the Bison controlled the ball on downs and kneeled the ball twice to finalize the game.
This senior class is the start of a new era for Cougar football. They led the younger guys on the team and many of those young guys got to see extra experience at the varsity level.
North Putnam fans might remember those players such as Nate Bryan, Kolten Everts and Hank Spencer. They also would note they participated on the varsity side at young ages. The story is clear with only two regular season losses between them during their four-year stints.
Now spectators see freshman Ethan Christy on the field, Rudes and sophomores such as Corbin Judy. The same scenario is playing over again and these young talents have all the potential their elders did.
"Unfortunately, you can't see the future," Barrett said. "But we do have a good class coming up. This is a reshaping class for us. I think we got a good understanding of what we need to do and where we need to be. We think the future's bright around here. They do good things in the community, they do good things in the classrooms and that's what football is around here.
"At a school like this you have so many kids play other sports," Barrett said. "The main thing is you have to stay in the weight room. You have to get bigger, faster and stronger. That's all you can do and ask for."
At North Putnam
Sectional 35
Benton Central 7 7 7 0--21
North Putnam 0 0 7 8--15
Scoring
First
9:19: Cooley 56-yd pass from Tucker. Moyars' kick good. 7-0 BC
Second
8:29: Munson 3-yd pass from Tucker. Moyars' kick good. 14-0 BC
Third
9:35: Tucker 1-yd run. Moyars' Kick good. 21-0 BC
2:20: Hook 1-yd run. Huffman Kick good. 21-7 BC
Fourth
8:29: Riggen 1-yd run. Haste catch good. 21-15 BC