By Gary Gorman
It is November, which means one thing in Lyons! It’s time for the State football playoffs, and it all started last Saturday (November 5), when the Lyons Lions hosted the Peyton Panthers in the first round of play.
The big question in the stands was, “Why is Levi Campbell wearing the number seven jersey?” Campbell, who has been playing guard all year, was moved to running back because Anthony Triffet is out for the remainder of the season due to a knee injury. But it does not matter what number they put on Campbell’s back, he will get the job done. The senior lineman (offensive and defensive) churned out 45 yards rushing, and tacked on another 52 receiving yards out of the backfield in his first game as running back.
The game started slowly, with neither team being able to get much going on the offensive side of the ball. The first quarter ended the way it started, in a 0 to 0 tie. In the second quarter the Lions had a nice sustained drive, and moved the ball down to the 10-yard line before things bogged down. Senior tight end/kicker/defensive back, Forrest Donnell, came in and booted a 30-yard field goal, right through the middle of the uprights, to get the Lions off to a 3 to 0 lead.
The stubborn Lions defense continued to shut down the Panthers on their next drive and forced them to punt. Lyons started with the ball on their own 20-yard line, and carved up the Peyton defense with three pretty passes by quarterback Jordan Melani. This advanced the Lions down to the Panthers’ 10-yard line, but again the drive stalled and Donnell came in to kick a field goal. This time however, the kick was blocked and the Panthers recovered the ball on the 15-yard line. With time running out in the first half, the Lion defense stuffed Peyton efforts again, sending the teams into the locker room with the Lions still clinging to a 3 to 0 edge.
It looked like more of same, a defensive slog, in the second half when an end around reverse, on third and long, from Campbell to Donnell caught everyone by surprise! From the Panthers 45 yard line Donnell scampered around and through would be tacklers, and raced down the left sideline before being knocked out of bounds at the Panthers 12-yard line. The rejuvenated Lions pounded the ball to the 2-yard line for a first and goal. QB Melani played his blocks perfectly on a keeper, and strolled into the end zone. Donnell’s kick put the Lions up 10 to 0.
After the standard Donnell kickoff into the end zone, the Panthers started on their own 20-yard line. On third and long, the Panther quarterback rolled left and tried to force a pass into a crowd of Lion defenders. Someone got a hand on the ball, and James Hinker made an incredible, off balanced, one-handed grab for the Lions interception (At moments like this, you wish high school games had a “Mega-Tron” TV with instant replay!). The Lions took over on the Panther 23-yard line, and two plays later Melani rolled to his left and streaked for the corner of the end zone. I guess the Panthers did not watch the Lions past game films because a Panther defender squared up for a standoff with Melani on about the 2-yard line. Melani “pancaked” the lad, leaving him flat on his back to check out the clouds drifting across the blue sky! Donnell added the extra point and the Lions now held a comfortable 17 to 0 lead over the Panthers.
The hungry Lions defense stifled the Peyton drive, when Billy Housley and JC Kalvig dropped the Panther running back in the backfield for a big loss. On the ensuing punt, Jayse Long returned the short Panther kick to their own 45-yard line and the Lions when to work. With good field position, and a nice lead, Melani exploded up the middle on a fourth and four to the 25-yard line. This moved the chains and kept the drive alive. On the very next play, Melani handed the ball off to Campbell who rumbled his way into the left corner of the end zone. With the Donnell extra point, the Lions held a commanding 24 to 0 advantage.
The desperate Panthers started going to the air, and several nice passes got them all the way down to the Lions 2-yard line. From there, Panther quarterback Cole Elis bulled into the end zone on a keeper up the middle. Electing to go for two points, Elis then lofted a nice rainbow to the corner of the end zone, and the Panthers where now trailing the 8 to 24. To no one’s surprise, except apparently the return team, the Panthers tried the onside kick, which squibbed its way through a number of Lions, and was recovered by Peyton on the Lions 34-yard line.
With the defense still reeling, Elis, on the next play, found a receiver wide open in the corner of the end zone, and with around eight minutes left in the game the Panthers had some momentum, and had cut the Lions lead to 24 to 14, when the two point conversion failed. The next attempted onside kick by the Panthers when out of bounds at the Lions 45, and two plays later Lyons QB Melani swung the pendulum back the other way when he raced the ball 53 yards, all the way down to the Panthers’ 1-yard line. Jayse Long got the call and got the job done when he punched it in to put the home team up 31-14. The clock wound down, and the victory means the Lions will take on their arch-rival Akron this Saturday, November 12, at home at John “Jett” Johnson Field in Lyons at 1 p.m.
Come out and cheer the boys on!
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