Pats’ comeback falls short against Purple

Jacob Marrocco
Posted 10/6/15

The Pilgrim football team scored 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter on a rain-soaked Friday night, but it just barely wasn’t enough to complete a fierce rally against Classical, falling …

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Pats’ comeback falls short against Purple

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The Pilgrim football team scored 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter on a rain-soaked Friday night, but it just barely wasn’t enough to complete a fierce rally against Classical, falling 19-14.

Senior captain and running back Owen Kelly gashed the Classical (3-0) defense for a rushing touchdown shortly before fellow captain and linebacker Darren Grant returned a fumble for a score to give Pilgrim life midway through the final quarter.

The Pats (1-1) had the ball with five minutes to go down five points after a punt to their own 16-yard line. Pilgrim was stymied by the Purple defense for a total loss of one yard on the drive and the ensuing punt set up Classical in Pats territory.

“That’s what Pilgrim football is,” Pilgrim coach Bill King said. “They’re tough kids that never quit and we’re really proud of that fact. Being down three scores and then having the ball back with five minutes to go with a chance to tie it or take the lead, that says a lot about the heart these kids have.”

The Purple were able to eek out a close first down on fourth-and-2 during their next drive to seal the win.

The final score was almost too close for comfort for the Purple, who looked like they would coast to victory after a costly Pilgrim mistake early in the fourth.

Pilgrim quarterback David McMullen was back on a punt return for the Pats after a fourth-and-8 at the 50 forced Classical to give the ball away. The punt sailed into Pilgrim territory where it fell at the 35 and was apparently touched up by Classical. However, the referee never blew the whistle, so McMullen picked the ball up and ran it back to the 50 to set Pilgrim up with strong field position.

However, it quickly unraveled.

On the first play from scrimmage, McMullen slipped and fumbled under pressure and senior defensive tackle Samuel Badejo picked up the ball and ran it 30 yards for a touchdown. The extra point was good and the Purple took a commanding 19-0 lead with just more than 11 minutes to go.

“I think it affected both teams,” King said about the weather and field conditions. “It was real slick in the running game, and then with the rain and the wind today, the passing [was] definitely hurt a little bit. They made a couple more plays than we did today and that was the difference.”

Finally, though, the Pilgrim offense was able to find some of its signature explosiveness.

After starting at Pilgrim’s 30-yard line, McMullen took a keeper 20 yards to midfield. Three plays later, Kelly found a hole up the middle and bolted past the Classical defense into the end zone for the Pats’ first touchdown. He also took the direct snap on the 2-point conversion and dashed past a confused Purple defensive front, cutting the deficit to 11.

“We made a few adjustments [at halftime],” King said. “We made a change on the offensive line. We schemed up a couple of things. It was really about more wanting it more than anything. Our kids, because they don’t quit, I think they end up wearing kids down in the third or fourth quarter. We pride ourselves on being in better shape than them and I think we wore them down a little bit.”

Pilgrim’s grit shined through a couple of Classical possessions later, when backup quarterback Aaron Tutu had difficulty holding on to the football. Tutu took a keeper up to the Pilgrim 45-yard line but was lost in a sea of purple and black jerseys as the pile pushed forward

Emerging from that sea was Grant, who had stripped the football and had nothing but wet grass ahead of him as he took it 55 yards to the end zone. The 2-point conversion was stopped, but Pilgrim was behind 19-14 and the rally would stop there.

It was fitting for Grant to score as he was integral in setting up Breast Cancer Awareness Night for the game as part of his senior project. Prior to the game, those affected by breast cancer in some way ran through a pink banner with the Pats as they came onto the field.

“He’s our defensive leader,” King said of Grant. “He makes a lot of big plays for us and that’s what senior captains do, they make big plays in big spots and he did. He brought us right back in the game with that [recovery touchdown] and that was huge for us.”

The Purple put up the only points of the first half on Tutu’s 3-yard keeper early in the second quarter. The extra point went wide right, but Classical retained a 6-0 advantage.

Both offenses struggled out of the gate, but Pilgrim’s troubles resulted in three shutout quarters. The Pats had two drives in the opening quarter, but neither of them advanced past their own 35-yard line.

“I think it was a few things,” King said about the slow offensive start. “The conditions, we were having a hard time blocking the perimeter. We gotta get better at that going into next week, and we just had a hard time. They blitzed almost every single play so we had to make some adjustments and we were able to help out [more] in the second half.”

Pilgrim was forced to punt on its first two drives of the second quarter as well, and the second one was partially blocked to set up the Purple at Pilgrim’s 20. Fortunately for the Pats, Tutu’s pass to wide receiver Jehlani Galloway in the end zone slipped off his fingers and into the hands of Kelly, who fell in the end zone for a touchback.

The Pats had the ball with 1:28 to go in the half, but another three-and-out resulted in them letting the clock run out to prevent further damage.

Pilgrim looked to open the second half with flair, and nearly did so. On the fourth play from scrimmage, Kelly found a seam and exploded past the Purple defense for a 65-yard touchdown to seemingly tie the game. However, a holding call back in Pilgrim territory negated the score and halted momentum. Pilgrim would be forced to punt three plays later.

Despite another Tutu touchdown late in the third quarter to put the Purple ahead 13-0, Pilgrim’s defense, spearheaded by Grant, kept it close all night. Senior captain and linebacker Peter Johnston contributed key tackles late in the game, while senior captain and defensive end Garet Sylvestre was in on stops as well. Senior defensive back Devon Maxwell also had some punishing hits on the quarterback and in the secondary.

The Pats now embark on a three-game road trip starting Saturday morning at 10 a.m. against winless Ponaganset.

“They’re a completely different team than Classical,” King said. “They’re more of a big, stronger, power-run team, as opposed to a quick, spread offense. I think defensively we’ll just keep coming after teams, being aggressive, because it seems to work for us. Then offensively we just gotta get better at the point of attack.”

Pilgrim will then travel to Narragansett (1-2) on Oct. 16 before taking on Hope (1-1) the following Saturday. The Pats’ next home game will be Oct. 30 against Middletown (0-2).

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