“We were abysmal on offense. We are abysmal.”
Southwest Guilford enjoyed one shining moment during Friday night’s Piedmont Triad 4A opener. On the first overtime possession, Tanner Butler banged home a 27-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead – the first Cowboy points in eight quarters.
The sun set on the Cowboys’ victory hopes, though, when Northwest Guilford scored a touchdown on its third play in overtime. Southwest’s defensive players were crushed to lose 6-3 despite playing so well.
Northwest’s wing-T offense managed 82 yards rushing on 42 carries – less than 2 yards per attempt – and 120 yards through the air on 11 of 18 passing. Forty-eight of those yards came on one blown coverage that would later prove inconsequential.
Why? Because in addition to limiting the Vikings’ attack, opportunistic Southwest even stole the ball back for its offense. Jason Nazal ended that fourth-quarter drive by forcing a fumble that he pounced on at the 12. Northwest’s next drive ended with Xavier Lewis grabbing a fumble 36 yards from the end zone.
Each turnover, however, led to punts. Southwest kicked it away eight times in all and gained just eight first downs. Airyn Willis had four runs between 10 and 20 yards, but needed 24 carries to finish with a team-high 86 yards.
Thanks to sacks, Southwest actually had just 87 yards as a team despite Willis’ 86. The passing game netted 91 yards on a 7-for-23 night, and 36 of those yards came on a trick play and lucky bounce just before halftime.
The sputtering offense has led to a three-game skid after Southwest’s promising 3-0 start, and the rest of the PTC schedule appears ominous for an offense seeking a spark. Friday’s game against unbeaten Ragsdale – already with a pair of PTC shutouts – may worry Cowboys fans, but Schwarzer said his team will continue to work out the kinks.
“We’ve got five games left and we can go in there and compete and win them all,” the coach said. “I believe that and I think anybody’s who’s watched us play knows that.”
shanf@hpe.com | 888-3526
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