Timberlake’s season ends
It wasn’t because of the inclement weather and it certainly wasn’t because of a lack of effort.
And, according to Timberlake football coach Roy Albertson, it wasn’t even due to the loss of a key player to injury in the game’s opening moments.
Nope, Albertson had a much simpler explanation for his team’s 35-28 overtime loss to McCall-Donnelly in a State 3A semifinal Saturday at Spirit Lake’s Van Tuinstra Memorial Field.
“We just got out-coached and out-played in the second half,” Albertson said.
McCall-Donnelly (10-1) rallied from a three touchdown deficit early in the third quarter and scored on its first possession in overtime to advance to next Thursday’s championship game against unbeaten Marsh Valley (10-0), a 31-12 winner over Declo.
The Vandals won the toss to open overtime and elected to take the ball first. On the first play, quarterback Clay Charles saw an opening on the left side and his 10-yard run gave McCall-Donnelly a 34-28 lead. Eric Hovdey’s extra-point kick put the pressure on Timberlake.
“We actually had a bubble screen called to (Parker) Patterson,” Charles said. “The end was open on the left side and I audibled out of it. We had great blocking and the end bit on the dive. I got to walk into the end zone.”
Timberlake’s overtime possession started with a 4-yard run by Matt Douglas. But Douglas was stopped for no gain on his next carry and quarterback Tim Brennan was sacked for a 10-yard loss by Hovdey.
Facing a fourth down from the 15, Brennan lofted a pass to 6-foot-6 tight end Jarett Thompson in the end zone. Vandals defensive back Derek Leonard, who was giving up 7 inches, timed his leap perfectly, snatching the ball from Thompson’s grasp and ending Timberlake’s season.
“I knew that guy was big and it would be a good match-up between us,” Leonard said. “They had (three receivers) to the other side and I actually thought they were going to that side. I just jumped up and was lucky to come down with it.”
The loss to the Vandals before about 800 fans on a rain slickened field ended Timberlake’s run one game short of a state title game.
The Tigers finished 8-3 in a season in which they claimed their first Intermountain League title and their first playoff win in school history (24-19 over Fruitland last week).
But they just could not hold on to the lead this time.
Both teams had opportunities to win it in the game’s final moments. Following the Vandals’ final score, Timberlake used most of the rest of the quarter marching to the McCall-Donnelly 12-yard line with just under a minute to go.
With a first down at the Vandal 12, Brennan dropped back and tried to hit Thompson just across the goal line.
The pass was picked off by Hovdey who returned it to the 23.
The Vandals needed just two plays – a 47-yard pass to Patterson and a 29-yard reception by Augusto Sussi – to get it to the Timberlake 1 where they had a first-and-goal with just seconds left.
But the Vandals muffed the handoff and Andrew Eastin fell on it for the Tigers, forcing the overtime.
“I’d be wrong if I said I knew we were gonna come back in this one,” Vandals coach Brian Charles said. “The message we’ve been teaching all year is not to give up. I think that gave us some positive energy at the end of the game.”
Brennan and running back Matt Douglas had huge games for Timberlake.
Douglas ran for 123 yards on 29 carries and caught five passes for 85 yards. He also scored two touchdowns. Brennan was 11 of 23 passing for 185 yards.
“We had a lot of chances today,” Albertson said. “You blow a 21-point lead – that just shouldn’t happen.”
While Timberlake shut down McCall-Donnelly’s strong running game, holding the Vandals to just 116 yards, quarterback Charles (the coach’s son) threw for a staggering 354 yards, completing 19 of 37 passes.