Bulldogs drop playoff game to powerhouse Big Horn

The up and down season of the young and rebuilding Lovell Bulldogs football team ended with a loss Friday, but head coach Nicc Crosby said he is proud of his players for how they fought this season and overcame obstacles.

The Bulldogs fell to Big Horn 52-7 Friday in Big Horn, ending their season with a 4-5 record but 5-5 if zero week win over Buffalo was to be counted.

Big Horn jumped out to a quick 14-0 lead, kicked a field goal to make it 17-0 and led 24-0 at halftime, though a Lovell field goal attempt banged off the upright in the final seconds of the half. Two blocked punts led to short fields and a pair of touchdowns early in the third quarter, and the Rams went on to lead 52-0 before the Bulldogs scored a late touchdown.

“That’s an awfully talented team, a well-coached team, and I feel like after their first couple of scores in the first half, we started competing,” Crosby said. “We’re able to hold them to a field goal the next time, move the ball a little bit on offense. I feel like we started making it harder for them to move the ball and forced that turnover right before half. Then second half just was what Big Horn has done to people over the season. Just smother people defensively. We couldn’t move the ball.”

Big Horn scored early on a 41-yard touchdown pass from Tucker Wulff to Rio Hernandez, then after a Lovell three-and-out added a three-yard run by Cruz Hernandez.

The Bulldogs stiffened on defense on the next Ram possession and forced a field goal attempt from 31 yards out. The kick banged off the upright but went through – 17-0 Big Horn after one.

Big Horn took a 24-0 lead on a 24-yard screen pass to Cruz Hernandez but failed to score on the next two series of the half. Lovell sophomore Kannon Owens intercepted a Wulff pass at the Big Horn 43 with 18 seconds left in the half and returned the pick to the Big Horn 30, with a five-yard penalty tacked on. A Kyson Crosby pass to Owens for 10 yards set up a 32-yard field goal by Rylan Oaks, which banged off the upright and fell to the outside, leaving Big Horn up 24-0 at halftime.

“Kannon did a good job with that interception,” Crosby said. “We managed the clock well and gave ourselves an opportunity to get some points on the board before halftime. The field goal just didn’t quite go in -- great snap, great hold, great protection. So, yeah, lots of credit to our guys there.”

Second half

Big Horn forced Lovell three and out to start the second half, and Joaquin Scheeler’s punt was partially blocked, leaving Big Horn with a short field at the Bulldog 36. Cruz Hernandez gained 25 yards and then 11 yards for the score. The next Lovell punt was completely blocked and returned to the Lovell 9, setting up a four-yard touchdown run by Cruz Hernandez. Big Horn led 38-0.

An interception by Crosby at the goal line after a deflection by Nathan Cornia ended the next Big Horn drive, but after the Bulldogs went three and out, Big Horn returned the punt to the Lovell 1, and Cruz scored on the next play. Big Horn led 45-0, starting the running mercy clock.

“We just were not able to flip the field, and between either big punt returns or punt blocks, we just gave up field position. It turned into quick points for them.”

A Crosby pass on the first series of the fourth quarter was batted and intercepted for a 38-yard pick six, boosting the Big Horn lead to 52-0.

Lovell then drove 69 yards to score, first moving the ball on the ground, then through the air. Crosby hit Hunter Krei for a 15-yard gain and Owens for nine. Crosby ran for seven and hit fullback Porter Blau on a shovel pass for seven. Scheeler ran for five, then scored on a nine-yard carry to close out his high school career.

Crosby said the Big Horn blitz game on defense was difficult to overcome.

“It’s difficult, what they do to people,” he said. “You’ve got to have ways to neutralize the pressure that they have and make them pay for their blitzes. And we weren’t able to do that, so makes for a long day. We had some passes here and there that we were able to complete. It’s just that most of it has to be done really fast because they’re bringing guys.

“It’s hard to pick up the blitzes. They’re gambling, and a lot of times they win those gambles, and they have good enough DBs to tackle in space if you do complete those passes.”

Crosby completed 15 of 23 passes for 102 yards. Owens caught six passes for 47 yards, Wilson Hendershot three for 24 yards, Gage Fink three for six yards, Blau two for 10 and Krei one for 15. Scheeler rushed for 34 yards on 15 carries, Crosby 23 yards on 13 carries and Blau 11 yards on three carries.

Crosby finished with 10 defensive points, Jett Hessenthaler 8½ points, Scheeler 8, Owens 6, Cornia 5½, Travis Asay 5 and Grant Hill 4½.

Looking ahead

Crosby said he appreciates how hard his team played this year after losing great talent to graduation after last season.

“Coming into the season, we knew we had a lot of spots to fill, and I think we had people step up and do a really, really good job under the circumstances,” he said. “I think we have the most competitive conference in Wyoming football. A play or two here or there and we have a number two or a number three seed, and I think Big Horn’s the only team on that side of the state that we’re not as good as. And I think the scores reflect that.

“But I’m really proud of our senior group. I think there were lots of opportunities to pack it in and give up, and they didn’t. They just kept going and found a way to make it to the playoffs. And even this last game against one of the most talented teams in the state they showed that they’re willing to go out and work hard and compete.”

The Bulldogs will lose nine players to graduation: Hendershot, Scheeler, Cutler Wilkerson, Cornia, Blau, Robert Capers, Hessenthaler, Tazz McArthur and Asay.

As for the younger players, Crosby urges them to work hard in the offseason.

“To the underclassmen, my message is pretty simple,” he said, “that we hung in there in most of our games this year, but the top tier teams that we played didn’t get that way by doing nothing in the offseason, showing up on August 15 and seeing how things go.

“We’ve got a lot of players who compete in multiple sports and put in a lot of time in the weight room in order to improve and be competitive. We need to put (the weight room) to good use. The more guys we have who are more committed, the better the results are going to be on the field in the fall.”