DAVID BARBER

davidb@vanzandtnews.com

After a struggling start, especially on defense, the Van Vandals caught fire in the second half on both sides of the line of scrimmage to pull away at the end and outlast the upset-minded Spring Hill Panthers, 38-16, Oct. 11 in their District 7-4A, Division 2, opener at Van’s Memorial Stadium.

Coach Jared Moffatt’s Vandals are 5-1 overall but more importantly, they are 1-0 in district play heading into a critical district matchup against the defending Class 4A, Division 2, state champion Gilmer Buckeyes (4-2, 1-0) in a 7 p.m. kickoff Friday, Oct. 18 in Gilmer. 

The Buckeyes blanked the Pittsburg Pirates, 49-0, in their district opener Oct. 11 in Pittsburg.

Against Spring Hill, the Vandals held a close 17-13 advantage before outscoring the Panthers, 21-3, in the second half to escape with a 22-point victory.

The Vandals finished with 20 first downs and 307 yards of total offense including 147 yards rushing and 160 yards passing.

Spring Hill registered 18 first downs and 334 yards of total offense including 331 yards rushing (196 yards rushing in the first half) as the Panthers completed only one out of four pass attempts for three yards.

Running back Austin Moffatt led the Vandal running attack with 128 yards rushing on 19 carries and three touchdowns.

Twin brother and quarterback Jaxon Moffatt completed 12 out of 20 passes for 160 yards, two TD’s, and no interceptions.

Wide receiver Caden Rowe caught six passes for 114 yards including a 57-yard TD reception in addition to punting 59 yards on his only kicking effort of the game.

Kicker Aiden Moore converted all five of his extra point attempts and a 22-yard field goal. Moore has now converted 28 out of 29 extra points. His only miss was blocked at Pine Tree Sept. 6.

Defensively, the Vandals were led by defensive end Maeson Ray with 14 total tackles including four tackles for losses, two QB sacks, and two QB pressures.

Vandal defensive tackle Da’Quavion Williams (‘Q’) had 11 total tackles and defensive back Cade Christensen finished with 10 total tackles.

“Maeson Ray has been playing really well and he plays with great effort,” emphasized Vandal Head Football Coach Jared Moffatt. “He and Foster Rust (defensive lineman) never stay blocked. Maeson was chasing people down. He played with such relentless mentality. This is his first year starting on varsity. He made a bunch of big plays for us. Cade made a bunch of tackles. ‘Q’ made some big plays for us as well. We have a collection of high school football players that play hard.

“The way the first three quarters of the game went is what we were afraid of when you play a team like Spring Hill,” pointed out Jared Moffatt. “We didn’t do a great job defensively in the first half and that was pretty obvious. We had to make some changes. They ran the ball effectively and shortened the game. We had only four possessions offensively in the first half and scored on the first three before we got stopped before halftime. That was real disappointing. 

“They come back out in the third quarter and kick a field goal,” continued Jared Moffatt. “At that point, we were just happy to hold them to a field goal. It was 17-16 halfway through the third quarter but fortunately, we were able to score and make some stops after that. We did play a lot better defensively in the second half holding them to three points. We made some plays offensively in the second half. I am happy that we won our first district game and that our kids found a way to grind it out and come out with a win Friday night.”

Following a 30-yard return of the opening kickoff by Williams, the Vandals moved from the Panther 49 to as deep as the Spring Hill 5-yard line in eight plays including a 12-yard pass reception from Jaxon Moffatt to Rowe and a face mask penalty against Spring Hill.

Facing fourth down and goal at the Panther 5-yard line, the Vandals decided to go for the field goal which was drilled by Moore from 22 yards away to give Van an early 3-0 advantage with 6:57 remaining in the first quarter.

Spring Hill took the lead following its first offensive series as they moved 74 yards on 10 consecutive running plays with RB Coleman Stout (16 carries, 104 yards) ending the march with a 3-yard TD run. Brady Meyer added the extra point giving the Panthers a 7-3 lead with 2:11 to play in the first quarter. Running gains of 17 yards by RB Trevor Allen (15 carries, 95 yards) and 14 and 10 yards by Stout were key plays in the opening scoring march for Spring Hill. 

The Vandals responded with a short 39-yard scoring drive on seven straight running plays with Austin Moffatt ending the march with a 3-yard TD run. Moore added the extra point giving the Vandals a 10-7 lead with 10:52 to play in the second quarter.

Spring Hill rallied with another long time-consuming drive on the ground as the Panthers advanced 77 yards on 12 consecutive running plays as they overcame two offensive penalties (holding and pass interference).

Panther QB Travis Allen (16 carries, 69 yards) ended the drive with a 14-yard TD run giving Spring Hill a 13-10 lead with 5:11 to play before halftime. The extra point attempt was blocked. Key plays in Spring Hill’s go-ahead scoring drive included running gains of 20, 12, and 12 yards by Travis Allen and 20 yards by Stout.

The Vandals came right back as they moved 60 yards in three plays with Jaxon Moffatt connecting with Rowe on a 57-yard TD pass play on third down and seven. Moore added the extra point as Van led 17-13 with 4:13 remaining in the second quarter.

Spring Hill threatened to take the lead once again on its next offensive possession as the Panthers moved from their own 31 to the Vandal 22 on six consecutive running plays including an 18-yard run by Stout and a face mask penalty against Van but on fourth down and 11, the scoring threat ended as a fumble by Stoudt was recovered by Vandal linebacker Landon Smith at the Van 20 with 1:39 still to play before intermission.

On the strength of four consecutive 10-yard pass completions by Jaxon Moffatt, three to Rowe and one to Austin Moffatt, the Vandals moved as deep as the Panther 32 but on fourth down and two at the Spring Hill 32, Jaxon Moffatt’s pass to Rowe was incomplete with 27 seconds remaining allowing the Panthers to run out the first half clock.

Spring Hill received the third quarter and continued running the ball effectively on their first offensive series of the second half as they advanced from their own 29 to the Vandal 9-yard line on 11 straight running plays including gains of 11,16, and 12 yards by Jaxon Copeland nine carries, 62 yards).

Facing fourth down and goal at the Vandal 9-yard line, Meyer was sent in to attempt a 26-yard FG which was successful cutting Van’s lead to 17-16 with 6:30 remaining in the third quarter.

The Vandals responded with a 60-yard scoring march in nine plays with Jaxon Moffatt connecting with WR Asher Hawkins on a 9-yard TD pass play to end the march. Moore added the extra point extending Van’s advantage to 24-16 with 2:03 remaining in the third quarter. Key plays in the Vandal scoring drive included pass completions from Jaxon Moffatt covering 15 yards to Rowe and 12 yards to WR Easton Hinch (on fourth down and nine) and a defensive pass interference penalty against the Panthers.

“Easton Hinch made a huge fourth down catch for us on that drive,” recalled Jared Moffatt. “It was a great catch. Our offense has played consistently good and I feel like we are on the verge of playing great. There is a big difference between playing consistently good and playing consistently great.”

Following an exchange of punts, the first for both teams in the game, including a 59-yard effort by Rowe, the Panthers were forced into another punting situation on their next possession as the Vandals took over possession at their own 40.

Van’s offense began to put the game out of reach for the Panthers as they advanced 60 yards in five plays with Austin Moffatt racing 39 yards for a TD to end the march. Moore added the extra point giving the Vandals some breathing room as they led, 31-16, with 6:23 to play in the fourth quarter. Austin Moffatt also had a 13-yard run in the scoring drive for Van.

Spring Hill attempted to go for a first down on fourth down and seven at its own 33 on their next offensive possession but the Vandal defense swarmed Travis Allen and tackled him for a six-yard loss giving Van excellent field position at the Panther 27.

Austin Moffatt, on his third consecutive carry, got on the scoreboard again with a 3-yard TD run. Moore added the extra point giving the Vandals a 38-16 lead with 3:35 remaining in the game. Austin Moffatt opened the short scoring drive with a 17-yard run.

The final offensive series for Spring Hill saw the Panthers move from their own 29 to the Vandal on seven consecutive running plays including a 36-yard run by Trevor Allen but an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against Spring Hill stalled the drive as time ran out.

The Vandals scored 38 points against the Panthers despite only running 46 offensive plays (20 passing and 26 running).

“I thought offensively, we played well with limited snaps,” said Jared Moffatt. “Outside of the one possession before halftime and one terrible possession we had in the third quarter, I thought we did some really good things offensively. I see areas that we need to get better in. I don’t think we have yet played a complete football game in all three phases for four quarters. That gives me hope moving forward.”

Jared Moffatt praised the work of his team’s kicking game against Spring Hill. “Two weeks in a row, Caden Rowe has had some booming punts,” said Jared Moffatt. “Overall, I thought our special teams overall was our best performance so far this season. Aiden Moore did a great job kicking off along with his extra points and field goal. Our kick coverage was really good. Jackson Reed was snapping, and Connor Ammons was holding on extra points and the field goal. They did a great job as well. The field goal at the beginning of the game was big for us. If all three phases are playing well, we can be a tough team to beat.”

The Vandal head coach also recognized the efforts of sophomore linebacker Carter Admire who filled in for Wyatt Dale, who was nursing a shoulder injury; the offensive line, Austin Moffatt, Jaxon Moffatt, Rowe, and Hawkins.