2011 Football: Mattis interception and reception seal 13-8 Bulldog win

With Mid-Buchanan driving deep into Gallatin territory, Mattis stepped in front of a Dragon receiver to intercept a pass and return it to midfield to give the Bulldogs the chance to run out the clock and preserve a 13-8 victory.

"I thought we had a great chance to win the game when we scored late in the fourth quarter, but I knew our defense would need to come up big with a stop or force a Mid-Buchanan turnover," said GHS head coach Kevin Meyer. "Isaac had a great game, and did a great job of reading the quarterback on the final interception," he added.

The Bulldogs, who committed five turnovers, regained the lead with 3:59 remaining in the game on a Jordan Jeffers two-yard dive. The scoring play was set up by a big third down play. Quarterback Zack Lollar rolled to his right and found Mattis gliding down the Dragon sideline and hit him in stride for a 41-yard gain to the nine-yard line. Jeffers carried once for seven before plowing over for the winning score.

"I thought our kids played hard against a very good Mid Buchanan football team, who defeated Maysville 56-0 in their opener," Coach Meyer said. "We obviously need to clean up our miscues and missed assignments in all three phases of the game, but overall I was pleased," he added.

Gallatin’s game-winning drive was made possible by a Dragon miscue on fourth down. Punter/quarterback Dylan Bullimore fumbled the snap from center and went down under a swarm of Bulldog defenders at midfield.

Turnovers on four straight offensive possessions kept Gallatin’s offense off the field in the second half. A 7-0 lead evaporated with 7:41 showing on the third quarter clock. Dragon defender Michael Tupica scooped up a fumbled punt return and ran back 40 yards to pull his team within a point of the lead. Cooper Roberts ran in the two-point conversion attempt to put the Dogs in a one-point hole.

The Bulldogs put together an impressive drive after taking the game’s opening kickoff. Jeffers, Chad Ness and Devin Hall each chewed up big chunks of yardage on the ground behind a fired up offensive line. For the second straight week, Lollar connected with Ness for a long scoring pass, this time covering 50 yards. Logan Jeffers kicked the extra point.

The Bulldog defense held on fourth and five from Gallatin’s 12-yard line. Lollar went back to work through the air, making Dexter Daniel his preferred target on three nice receptions. Ness ripped off a 20-yard gainer to the Dragon seven but the drive stalled after another Lollar to Daniel fourth down pass was clipped short at the two-yard line.

Mid-Buchanan threatened late in the second quarter after a long run by Bullimore. Facing fourth and sixth, Bullimore rolled out but couldn’t find an open receiver in the end zone, only Bulldog defensive back Peter Steele, who popped him out of bounds at the two.

Lollar finished with 154 yards passing on 11 completions. Daniel had five catches for 63 yards, Ness two for 46 and Mattis two for 45. Jeffers led the Bulldogs on the ground with 64 yards on 20 carries.

Defensively, Daniel finished with 11 tackles. Hayden Bott returned to the lineup and registered eight tackles. Steele finished with seven.

The Bulldogs, now 1-1 on the season, travel to Princeton this Friday and must find a way to slow a Tiger running game that has produced 1,000 yards in offense while starting 2-0 in the Grand River Conference. Junior Brody Cridlebaugh has run for 312 yards on 27 carries thus far.

GRC Standings — Week 2

Sept. 2 Results

Gallatin 13, Mid Buchanan 8

Princeton 46, Maysville 0

East Buchanan 40, King City 27

Hamilton 46, Polo 19

Crest Ridge 47, Albany 18

North Platte 28, South Harrison 9

Sept. 9 Schedule

Gallatin at Princeton

Hamilton at Maysville

Albany at Braymer

Polo at Rock Port

South Harrison at King City