The quest for the Oberlin Tiger football team to return to the, at least, the state semi-finals began against cross-parish Oakdale. However, the quest took a bit of a detour following a come from behind 26-20 Warrior win.
“Hats off to (Oakdale), said Oberlin head coach Durell Peloquin. “They did a real good job. We had three turnovers, and they capitalized on all three turnovers.”
The Warriors jumped out the gate hot and enjoyed a 20-7 lead at half time.
“We knew (Oberlin) was going to be stacked in the box because we want to run the ball,” Oakdale head coach Destin Dieterich said. “That’s what we’re good at because we’re good up front. We want to pound the ball in there.”
Even though one of his team’s strengths is the ground game, Oakdale scored its three first half touchdowns through the air.
After both teams went three-and-out to begin the night, Oakdale converted a pair of first downs on its second possession. On 2nd-and-6 from the Tiger 30-yard line, Dutton Dieterich connected with Dallas Daniels for a pitch and catch that resulted in a touchdown. After the point after attempt was true, the Warriors led 7-0 with 4:07 remaining in the first quarter.
Seth Longino recovered the onside kick attempt by the Warriors to give Oakdale the football at the Tiger 47-yard line. Later in the drive, on 3rd-and-two from the 18-yard line, Dieterich again found Daniels for a touchdown completion. The extra point try was again good to put the Warriors ahead 14-0 with 54.4 seconds remaining on the first quarter clock.
The ensuing Oberlin drive resulted in Oakdale recovering a fumble on the Warrior 37-yard line. The Warriors then drove down field to the Tiger 26-yard line where they found themselves facing a 4th-and-2 situation. At that point, Dieterich found Caleb Jones for another passing touchdown. The extra point try was missed, and the Warriors led 20-0 at the 7:17 mark of the second quarter.
Oberlin found some momentum on its next possession, which was highlighted by a 21-yard run by Dominique Eaves. However, the momentum was short lived as Longino recoverd a Tiger fumble on the Warrior 9-yard line.
Oakdale was forced to punt following the turnover, and Oberlin regained possession on the Warrior 31-yard line. The Tiger drive was aided by a pass interference penalty in Oakdale setting up 1st-and-goal from the Warrior 6-yard line. Two plays later, Malachi Semien ran for a touchdown from 5 yards out. The point after was good, and Oberlin trailed 20-7 going into intermission.
Coming out of halftime, the Tigers turned the ball over on downs to begin the third quarter and forced a Warrior punt.
On 3rd-and-8 from the Tiger 23-yard line, Jack Chaisson found Noah Carter for a 65-yard completion. A facemask penalty on the Warriors later set the Tigers up on the 4-yard line. From there, Eaves took the football into the end zone. The point after was good, and Oberlin trailed 20-14 at the 4:04 mark of the third quarter.
Oakdale then mounted another drive into Tiger territory, but the drive ended with a Desean Deville interception. On 3rd-and-10, following the change in possession, Aiden Reed ran 39 yards to set up a 1st-and-goal from the Warrior 8-yard line. On the next play, Semien ran for his second touchdown of the night. After the point after try, the Tigers went up 21-20 with 11:41 remaining in the game.
Coach Peloquin said, “We regrouped at halftime. We made some adjustments, and we gave ourselves a chance to win. In the end, we came up short.”
“We got a little tired on protection in the second half and didn’t feel as comfortable pulling the trigger,” said Coach Dieterich.
Unlike Oakdale teams in the past, these 2020 Warriors regrouped and mounted a comeback effort. “When they got down,” Coach Dieterich said, “the old mentality started coming back, but we made a couple plays. That lifted our spirits, so we started believing again.”
The comeback drive began on the Oakdale 14-yard line and was spurred on by the ticket of Cedric Allison and Jamall Warnell. Allison punched the football into the end zone on a 4-yard run to give his team the lead for good.
The Tigers will take their 0-1 record into Gueydan Thursday night to begin district play. “It’s all for the marbles to start the district season in pursuit of a district title,” said Coach Peloquin.
