BROOKLYN — The difference between winning and losing a football game, some coaches will say, is a matter of inches.
For the North Pike Jaguars, a matter of seven seconds — and seven yards — ended their playoffs hopes Friday night in a 30-27 loss to the Forrest County Aggies in the second round of Class 4A state playoffs here.
North Pike ends its season at 8-5.
“This was a great football game,” Forrest County coach Larry Dolan said after the game.
“It was close,” Jaguars’ head coach Chris Smith said. “They (the Jaguars) started the game flat, but they played their guts out in the second half.”
North Pike’s final run to remain in the Class 4A playoff picture began when sophomore Jermon Jordan intercepted a Forrest County pass in the end zone for a touchback with 1:50 to go in the game.
The pick kept the margin at three and gave North Pike possession at its own 20-yard line.
Following an incomplete pass, Jaguars’ quarterback Revis Butler handed off to LeDerrick Turner, who sprinted for 31 yards to the Forrest County 49-yard line.
The Jags picked up 14 more on a Butler pass to La-Kendrick Marsalis at the Forrest County 35 with 1:28 remaining. Butler then passed to running back Jalen Adams for five more with 1:05 remaining.
After losing five yards on a sack at the Forrest County 38, Turner ran for a 25-yard gain to the Forrest County 13-yard line with 39 seconds remaining.
Butler gained six yards to the 7-yard line with 23 seconds remaining, then spiked the ball to stop the clock with 13 seconds left.
On the next play, Butler dropped back to pass, found no receivers open and attempted to run for the score but was stopped for no gain. Time ran out before the Jaguars could run another play.
“I guess he saw a seam in the line and thought he could run it in,” Smith said. “There are some things I can count on. When No. 10 (Butler) has the ball, I don’t worry. This time, it just didn’t work out.”
The Jaguars’ final drive was, in a way, a summary of the game that saw North Pike leading 20-15 at halftime, Forrest County coming back with two scores in the second half to lead by 10 and North Pike narrowing the Aggies’ lead to seven in the fourth quarter before making their final run.
Forrest County took a 7-0 lead with 6:09 left in the first quarter on a 10-yard scoring pass from quarterback Riley Brown to Isaiah Jackson.
The Aggies’ 63-yard drive was set up by Michael McGowan’s interception of a Butler pass at the Forrest County 37.
The drive also was aided by a series of off-tackle runs and sweeps, along with several North Pike penalties.
The Jaguars answered minutes later with a 53-yard drive capped by Butler’s 15-yard touchdown run that tied the game with 3:30 remaining in the opening quarter. Tyler Wilkinson added the PAT.
The drive featured runs by Revis, Turner and Adams as they weaved their way through and outran Aggie defenders.
“We knew they (North Pike) had speed,” Dolan said. “All the teams that we talked to told us how fast they were, but you really don’t get a good idea of that speed until you see it in person.”
The Jaguars took a 14-7 lead with 9:47 left in the second quarter, when Tra’Vez Taylor intercepted a Brown pass at the Jaguars’ 35 and raced 65 yards for touchdown. Tyler Wilkinson added the PAT.
North Pike then moved from its 16 to the Forrest County 8 after a Lamond McDowell interception, but failed to score, choosing to go for a touchdown instead of a field goal. Forrest County halted the Jaguars on fourth down and took over on downs.
“We had the right call to score, but we missed an assignment,” Smith said of the fourth-down play. “We saw something in their defense that made us feel we could score. They were in the same defense when we called the play, but we missed the assignment.”
After an Aggie punt, the Jaguars got the ball back on the Forrest County 46 with 1:58 left in the half.
Moments later, Turner scored standing up on a 3-yard run to cap a 54-yard scoring drive to make it 20-7 with 1:18 before intermission. The extra-point attempt failed.
After Forrest County’s Adarius Perkins returned the ensuing kickoff 45 yards to the Jaguars’ 36, the Aggies took four plays to cut the score to 20-13. The first of two Aggie two-point conversions cut the the score to 20-15 at halftime.
Forrest County opened the third quarter with a 60-yard drive capped by a 15-yard run by Markeyus Johnson. A second two-point conversion extended the Aggies’ lead to 23-20 with 7:29 left in the quarter.
Dolan said he went for the two-point conversions “because we saw something in their defense that made us think we could make them. We made the right calls.”
Forrest County got its final score with eight minutes to go in the game when Jackson caught a fourth-and-goal pass from Brown in the end zone to make it 30-20 following the PAT.
North Pike took the ensuing kickoff and moved 56 yards, capped by a 25-yard scoring run by Butler that cut the deficit to 30-27 with 7:25 to play. Wilkinson added the extra point.
Forrest County had one last drive, moving from the Aggies’ 45 to the Jaguars’ 8, before Turner’s interception killed the drive.
“I’m proud of these kids,” Smith said as he sat outside the fieldhouse where North Pike was getting ready to head home. “They’ve come a long way since the beginning of the season.”
Smith said he loses only six seniors this year, adding, “All of my skill players will be back.”
“They have a very good football team,” Dolan said. “They’re going to make some noise in 4A next year. I wouldn’t be surprised if they win it with the kids they’ve got coming back.”
