Bucks fall short in rainy matchup at Childress

The Buckaroos came very close to lighting up the “B” for the first time since the final game of last season, but fell just short of pulling off a strong non-district win, losing 21-14 at Childress. 

Kicking the ball off to the Bobcats to begin the game, the Bucks' defense came up big, forcing and recovering a fumble on the game’s opening drive. 

With the ball close to midfield, the defense gave the offense a chance to capitalize on an early chance. The Bucks moved the ball to the outskirts of the red zone, helped by a Joseph Juneau scramble to the 23-yard line. 

But then, on a 4th-and-7, an attempted pass to the end zone by Juneau was knocked down and the Bobcats took over on downs. 

The theme of the night was the Buckaroo defense holding tall and giving their all, and giving the offense the opportunities to succeed. After Childress took over at their own 20-yard line, the Bucks came up with the stop and forced a punt. 

On the ensuing Breckenridge drive, a big catch from Hudson Woodward downfield got the Bucks past midfield and another opportunity to find the endzone. However, soon after Woodward, in at quarterback, was intercepted by Luke Rodriguez at the 20-yard line with under five minutes to go in the opening quarter. 

The Bobcats took advantage of the turnover as they drove down the field and capped off the drive with a run up the middle for a touchdown. After kicking the extra point, Childress led 7-0. 

Following a touchback on the ensuing kickoff, the first quarter ran down. The Bucks were struggling to move the ball and were forced to punt within their own 30-yard line. 

The teams traded punts over the next several drives as there was not very much ball movement from either side for the entire second quarter.  

After punting the ball inside the 10-yard line, the Bucks’ defense held strong with the Bobcats attempting to score before half.
As time expired on a 4th-and-9 at the Bucks’ 39-yard line, Cameron David and Cooper Wimberley helped knock down a pass in the endzone to hold the score at 7-0. 

Starting the second half with the ball, the Bucks returned the kickoff to the 31-yard line. On a 4th-and-4, Wimberly kept the ball at quarterback and scrambled for the first down. Cruz would then pick up a big run following a screen pass, getting down to the Childress 20. 

A few plays later, Juneau found an open Ryan Waller, who split two defenders on his way to the endzone for a 21-yard touchdown, the first of the season for the Bucks. A successful extra point tied the game at 7. 

The Bobcats took the momentum right back on their ensuing drive, capped off by a long touchdown catch. The Bucks returned the ensuing kickoff to the 35-yard line and the quarter would end with Childress leading 14-7. 

The fourth quarter started with Juneau getting picked off near midfield and the Bucks’ defense was forced back onto the field. A holding penalty on the Childress offensive line moved the ball back and brought up a 3rd-and-21. A six-yard gain on third down would bring up a 4th-and-15 and the Bucks had a great opportunity to shift momentum. 

The biggest problem for the Bucks’ defense, which was for sure much improved from last week’s 44-0 loss, was the Childress offense splitting the middle of the field. Quarterback Jonah Reed did just that on the next play following a timeout. 

Reed launched a deep pass down the middle of the field, splitting the Bucks’ secondary and the receiver came down with the catch and went into the end zone. 

It was a backbreaking score for the Bucks, as they trailed 21-7 nearly halfway through the final quarter. Despite this, they didn’t lie down and die or hang their heads. They continued to fight and moved the ball downfield. 

Waller came down with a couple of big catches on the next drive and Erik Saucedo was also a huge factor. Waller came up with a catch down to the Bobcats’ 35-yard line, followed by Saucedo picking up another first down. 

Woodward threw back in the direction of Waller, who came down with a sliding catch in the red zone. From the six-yard line, Woodward threw it up for Saucedo in the end zone, who came down with the catch and the score. 

“[Waller] is a go-to guy. Came and answered the call. He’s gonna have to beat man covers. He's gonna have to beat double coverage,” Head Coach Casey Pearce said. “From here on out, this is on video. That's what happens whenever he gets put on tape. They're gonna find 13. We're gonna have to find ways to get him where we can get him open.”

Down 21-14 with just over four minutes remaining, Pearce opted to go for the onside kick with hopes of getting the ball right back. The ball took a very favorable bounce on the onside kick attempt, but the Bobcats ultimately fell on it. 

The Bucks’ defense would step up again, though, as Glen Thibodeuax tackled the ball carrier behind the line to gain on a fourth down. 

“We frenzied to the football tonight. That's the way defense is supposed to play. We tackled better, we squeezed space better. Coverage, it’s gonna happen. You've got to flush it, keep playing, you can't get frustrated or down; you just got to keep playing,” Pearce said. “Proud of those dudes making adjustments, all the movement, the motion. It didn't faze them. We didn't lose leverage. We just didn't make a couple of plays there down the middle of the field, but they're gonna keep fighting. They're gonna show up.”

Getting the ball with two minutes to go in the game at midfield, the Bucks struggled to get space in the open field. A screen pass to Gunnar Pearce went nowhere, as the Bobcat defenders swarmed him for a tackle for loss. 

Childress kneeled three times as the clock ran out on the Bucks.  
Pearce spoke of the three quarterbacks as the Bucks continued with the three-quarterback rotation. 

“Hudson [Woodward], Joe [Juneau] and Coop [Wimberly] fought their rear ends off – proud of them. They’re a better football team because those dudes compete the way they do, and they support one another…They're tough cats.”

Next week, the Bucks are back home as they host the Cisco Loboes (1-1) at Buckaroo Stadium. Cisco is coming off a 39-6 win over San Angelo Texas Leadership Charter Academy. Last year, the Bucks fell to the Loboes, 30-20, on the road.