Wildcats Play Scotlandville for District Lead Tonight

31-28 OT Victory Brings Central Back from the Dead

by Woody Jenkins

DENHAM SPRINGS — Much to the surprise of the pundits, Central High School’s rookie football team roared back into contention for the District 4-5A championship after winning an amazing 31-28 overtime victory over Denham Springs last Friday in Yellow Jacket Town.

The Central Wildcats have won three straight District Championships but were given little chance of repeating because of the team’s lack of experience.  Coach Doug Dotson has started five sophomores on offense since Game One.

Now Zachary, Denham Springs, Scotlandville, and Central are in a four-way tie for first place in District 4-5A.  All are 2-1 in district play.  Central could earn at least a share of the District Championship with a victory over Scotlandville this Friday.  Central will meet the Hornets at 7 p.m. at the new Leadership Institute Field at 5763 Hooper Rd.  There is plenty of parking in the rear of the stadium.

Last Friday’s game at Denham Springs was a near perfect night for high school football — cool and clear.  Attendance was excellent on both sides of the field.

If anyone was expecting the underdog Wildcats to roll over, they were in for a surprise.  Instead, Central burst out to an early lead.

RB Gary Triplet provided fireworks, scoring on a 33-yard run and an 80-yard punt return.  Central took a 14-0 lead, only to see Denham come back and surge ahead 21-14.  Central then scored twice, taking a 28-21 lead with 7:35 left in the game.  Not to be out done, the Yellow Jackets scored with 4:14 left on the clock, and the score was tied 28-28.

In the overtime, each team is given the ball at the 10-yard line and has four plays to score.  The team that goes second has a distinct advantage, because it knows whether it must score three or seven points.

At the beginning of the overtime period, Central lost the coin flip and had to go on offense first.  The Wildcats stalled and had to settle for a clutch field goal from sophomore kicker Jonathan Thibodeaux.

Thibodeaux hadn’t kicked a field goal all year, and it was a tough position to be in, but he sailed the ball through the uprights.  Central led 31-28, but all Denham had to do was score a TD on four attempts from the 10.

Coach Dru Nettles’ Yellow Jackets had been running well against the Wildcats all night.  So when they were down to 4th down at the three yard line, Coach Nettles had an important decision to make — go for three points and then go first in the second overtime or try to run the ball for a TD.

For Coach Nettles, it was an easy choice.  The Yellow Jackets had missed an extra point earlier in the game.  Central is well known for its ability to block field goals.  And finally, the second overtime would put the Yellow Jackets at an enormous disadvantage.

Denham Springs went for the TD on a play that had been working all night.  But this time, Central’s Logan Metcalf rushed in and stopped the runner cold.

The game was over, and the Wildcats had won 31-28!  The Central side of the stadium went wild!  The Central band was rocking, and players, spirit groups, and fans joined in the celebration.

WAFB-TV named Logan Metcalfe its Player of the Week.  Metcalfe had many accomplishments in the game, including key tackles, an interception, breaking up a pass in the end zone, and the big stop on 4th down in overtime.

Jonathan Thibodeaux kicked the game-winning field goal, and was another big hero of the game.  Just two days before, he kicked the game-winning field goal in Central’s JV game against Denham Springs.

Besides Gary Triplet’s explosive runs, the Central offense looked strong and versatile.  Senior RB Zack Evans pounded away at the Yellow Jackets and had a run of 66 yards and a TD of 2 yards.

Junior QB Brett Courville once again proved himself to be one of the state’s top quarterbacks.  He demonstrated toughness and solid decision-making ability.

“Courville is so tough, he could just as easily start at linebacker,” Coach Dotson said.  Dotson liked the QB’s 96-yard drive.  “It took us out of the hole.”  The QB passed to Devon Gales for a 23-yard TD.  Gales had a 48-yard kickoff return.

On defense, Dotson noted the play of Thomas Eddlemon, Zach Hetrick, and Joey Jarreau, as well at Metcalf.

Jesus Acosta earned Dotson’s praise with his fumble recovery.

If the Wildcats beat Scotlandville, Dotson said it will be one of his sweetest years in football.

But Scotlandville (7-1) will have plenty to say about that.  “They are a very good, talented team,” Dotson said.  “I’ve coached against Coach Ken Hilton on many occasions.  He is a great coach and a true competitor.”  Scotlandville’s best win of the season was against Zachary, which beat Central.

If Central wins its remaining games against Scotlandville and Live Oak, it will share the district title and have a chance for the state playoffs.  Their current power rating is 37th in the state.  They must be at least 32nd to make the playoffs.

The 31-28 overtime victory over Denham Springs last Friday made things a lot better at the Dotson household this week.

Michelle Dotson said her husband is a little hard to live with for quite awhile after a loss.

At Denham Springs, she was one of the first to greet the triumphant coach after the victory.  He smiled at her, rushed over, said “I love you!” and gave her a big kiss.

Dotson is hoping that, with his now veteran team, the losses will be few and far between.