By Micah Farmer For The Observer
VALLEY — The 1A Loachapoka Indians took on the 3A Beulah Bobcats on what was senior night for the Bobcats, who were hoping to protect their home field. However, the Indians would end up pulling out the victory by a score of 14-12 in a dominant display from their defense.
The Loachapoka offense was neutralized for most of the first half by a strong effort from Beulah’s defense, especially the linebacking duo of senior Bronson Dubose and sophomore Hunter Brown, who combined for over 20 tackles, including 5 for loss. Another impact player for the Bobcats was senior Tamarian “T-Man” Burgess, a sparkplug for the Bobcats on the defensive line. Burgess finished the night with eight tackles, two tackles for loss and two sacks on the night.
Beulah’s strong defense opened the scoring with 3:54 left in the first quarter when Burgess broke through the Loachapoka offensive line and drilled Indians’ junior QB Quinjavis Nelms in the end zone. Nelms tried to stay up, but the Brown rallied to help Burgess bring down Nelms for a safety.
The safety was set up by a high snap that sailed over the head of Nelms for a 17-yard loss, and this kind of unforced error was a common theme of the first half for both teams. As the first quarter reached its halfway point, a steady rain came down on the field that made it harder and harder for each team to hold onto the ball. The second quarter saw five fumbles (four by Loachapoka and one by Beulah), three of which were recovered for turnovers, the exceptions being a fumble by Nelms that bounced right back into his chest for a fairly stressless recovery and a dropped snap by Loachapoka punter, senior Xavier Allen.
This period of chaos was where Loachapoka finally struck, as Beulah QB Demarion Foreman lost the handle on the ball on a QB keeper. The ball was recovered by Loachapoka’s all-state defensive end Jamari Payne, who ran it all the way back for a 70-yard fumble return touchdown. The Indians would then go for 2 and convert it successfully, putting them up by a score of 8-2 with 10:57 left in the second quarter. As the second quarter wore on, the Bobcats could not seem to get anything going, despite how many times Loachapoka was intent on giving them the ball in plus territory.
Finally, with 2 minutes left in the quarter, Beulah got what it needed. The fumble by Allen set the Bobcats up at the Indians’ 10-yard line, a golden opportunity for their struggling offense. Though the Bobcats could not convert for six, they were able to at least get three thanks to a 27-yard field goal from kicker Reed Maloof, making the score 8-5 in favor of Loachapoka entering halftime.
The second half was mostly a stalemate between the two teams, with neither team crossing the 50 until under two minutes left when the Loachapoka offense finally got their offense going through the air. The 78-yard drive was capped off by a 20-yard touchdown pass from Nelms to senior tight end Chris Lipscomb on 4th and 15. The Indians once again went for two, but were unsuccessful, making the score 14-5 Loachapoka with just under a minute left in the third quarter.
Most of the 4th quarter was spent with the ball in possession of the Indians, who killed the clock by running the ball seemingly at will on the noticeably tired Beulah defense. The Indians got all the way to the Beulah nine-yard line, but penalties and yet another fumble pushed them back to the 22, where they tried to go for it on fourth and goal but were unsuccessful. Beulah then moved the ball downfield with surprising ease, scoring on a 10-yard rushing touchdown by junior QB Demarion Foreman to make it 14-12. However, Beulah would not get another chance at possession, and Loachapoka walked away with a gritty victory.
It was the Indians’ defense that gave them the control they needed to win, a fact that was not lost on head coach Fredrick Newton when asked if anyone stood out to him in the win. “Yeah,” he said, “The whole defense. Shout out to them, they did a great job. Our defensive coordinator has been doing a great job of keeping us in a good position. We need that.”
Loachapoka will look to carry its momentum into next week as it takes on Verbena at home, whereas Beulah will look to bounce back against Saks.