YORK – It has been an emotional week for Nation Ford coach Michael Allen. One of the toughest he’s had in his 40 years of coaching, he said.
A week full of long nights, long practices, even a bout of illness that hit Allen and several members of the team.
That week finally came to an end on Saturday afternoon, with Nation Ford scraping out a nervy 14-12 road win over non-region opponent York Comprehensive High School in a game that started Friday night and was postponed overnight due to lightning strikes late in the first quarter.
Nation Ford quarterback Carson Sanford threw two touchdowns to receiver Lucas Barz in the win, and the Falcons’ pass defense came up clutch on a York 2-point conversion attempt with one minute left to play that would have pushed the game to overtime.
“It’s about time for something good to happen,” Allen said. “It’s been tough, man. Late practices, late nights, not a lot of sleep. I’m real proud of our kids.”
With the first win of the year, Class 5A Nation Ford improves to 1-1 on the season, while Class 4A York drops to 0-2.
Both teams scored on their first offensive drives of the first quarter. Nation Ford’s kick returner caught the kickoff inside his own 20, made two players miss, and dashed down the near sideline before getting tackled at the York 27.
Five plays later, Sanford threw a 25-yard dot to Barz in the back of the end zone.
York responded in kind. Starting on their own 43, Cougars running back Ziggy Byers tore off a pair of strong runs before quarterback Tayshon Freeman used an 18-yard quarterback sneak to push the Cougars into Nation Ford’s red zone.
On second and 10 at the Nation Ford 11, Freeman tossed a slant to Johnathan Tobias, who broke a couple tackles at the goal line before pushing his way in to score. The York kicker’s point-after attempt was blocked at the line.
Nation Ford was stuffed on its next drive, and punted back to York with less than three minutes left in the first quarter.
The game was postponed soon after. Once play resumed on Saturday morning, Nation Ford’s offense kept chugging downfield.
The Falcons soon took advantage of a high York snap, which led to a fumble. Nation Ford took over on its own 47 with 11:14 left in the second quarter. Sanford found Jayden Scott for a 27-yard reception over the middle. After reaching the York red zone, Sanford spotted Barz on the three, and the receiver was able to push his way into the Cougars’ end zone to push the lead to 14-6.
Nation Ford took over the ball on York’s 17 after a second straight York high snap. Kicker Austin Sarvis tried a 27-yard field goal after, but his attempt nailed the right post.
Nation Ford’s longest drive of the half started with about five minutes remaining. The Falcons took over on their own five, with Sanford finding receiver Josh Ameo for a 26-yard catch. Sanford found Ameo in the corner of the end zone for what would have been a touchdown, but was called back due to offensive pass interference.
The flag pushed Nation Ford back to the York 30, and the Falcons eventually tried a 34-yard field goal. But Sarvis’ attempt was just short of the target, and the half ended soon after.
Both teams traded possessions and punts throughout a scoreless third quarter.
“I was glad we could limit the shots they like to take,” Allen said. “Taking away that first option and trying to disrupt the QB and put him on the ground. He’s good and he’s got a cannon.”
Nation Ford’s punt team recovered its own kick early in the fourth quarter, allowing the offense back on the field for a drive that started on its own 14.
The Falcons made it as close as the York five, but a false start penalty and a sack on Sanford pushed the team back, and Sarvis couldn’t connect from 40 yards away.
York took over on its own 30 with just under 10 minutes left to play. Freeman led his team on a mammoth 16-play, six-minute drive that drove down to the Nation Ford 1. But on fourth and goal at the one, the Falcons stopped Freeman just short of the goal line after a high snap.
Nation Ford wasn’t out of the woods yet. After punting the ball away with less than two minutes to play, Freeman again led the Cougars from the York 44 to the Nation Ford 30, where he then found a Cougars receiver in the middle of the red zone, and the receiver ran into the end zone to close the lead to just two.
But on the most important play of the game, the ensuing 2-point conversion, the Nation Ford cornerbacks held to their assignments and tipped the ball on a throw to the back of the end zone. York was unable to convert on an onside kick, and the Falcons saw out the final two snaps.
Allen said his coaches did a great job of communicating a specific defensive scheme, and his players excelled at executing it.
“Guys stayed committed to the play and what we’re doing,” he said. “We had a great defensive plan. We ran it on situational football, including two-point conversions. We disrupted the flow of their offense with what we wanted to do, and I’m happy about that.”
Both teams return to play 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 6. York will travel to Union County, while Nation Ford hosts River Bluff.
