FRANKFORT – Evart’s football season ended a little sooner than the Wildcats wanted it to, falling 30-0 at undefeated Frankfort in the opening round of the playoffs on Friday.
Going in, the Wildcats hoped to establish the ground game and the line of scrimmage, but that hope turned against them, as Frankfort (10-0) rode the talents of running back Griffin Kelly and quarterback Tige Stockdale to touchdowns on its first three drives of the game.
“Frankfort is an outstanding football team,” said Evart coach Pat Craven. “We thought we could match up well with their speed off the edge, but they are just a well-coached team that made few mistakes.”
Evart’s opening drive after Frankfort scored to start the game started with hope. The Wildcats mixed in a few passes with their runs to drive well into Frankfort territory before facing a fourth and 11 on the Frankfort 33. Craven elected to try try a field goal. The kick came up short, symbolizing that and other promising drives throughout the game.
“The problem is you can’t take losses on first down,” Craven said. “We were behind the sticks too often with penalties or negative plays on first down. We just can’t do that. We’re not a second and 15 offense.”
After Frankfort’s early possessions, the Wildcats were able to find some success on defense, turning the Panthers over on downs on their final two possessions of the first half and then stopping the Panthers twice more in fourth quarter after giving up the game’s final touchdown midway through the third quarter.
Even with the tough ending to a 6-4 season, Craven was happy.
“Our seniors have done an outstanding job,” Craven said. “They were very coachable and a great group to be around.”
