Offensive struggles plagued the Copper Basin Cougars Friday, November 6, as they fell to the Clay County Bulldogs 21-0 in the first round of the state playoffs. The Cougars hosted the Bulldogs and held their senior night ceremony as well.
Clay County won the toss and elected to kick as Sebastian Balilies brought the ball out to the Cougar’s own 34-yard line. Star wide-out Dawson Worthy led his team on the field at the quarterback position due to injuries to both Bryson Grabowski and Joe Boggs.
Worthy and Balilies began moving the ball on the ground, but the Bulldogs were able to stop the Cougars and force a punt.
The Cougar defense had high energy as they took the field and drove the Bulldogs backwards to make it fourth and a mile at the Bulldog’s 11-yard line.
Clay County punted back to Copper Basin as the Cougars took over at their own 35-yard line.
The Cougars were unable to move the sticks however as they punted back to the Bulldogs.
Clay County was unable to generate points, as Cade Foster and Timothy Fair had some explosive plays on defense that pushed the Bulldogs back. Clay County punted back to the Cougars, who set up and began to find a rhythm. Worthy completed a pass to Austin Collis to make it third and four at their own 16-yard line. The Bulldogs were able to halt the Cougars with an interception, however, as they set up at Copper Basin’s 21-yard line.
The Copper Basin defense stood its ground however, with help from big plays from Addison Hook, Boggs and Fair, to force a turnover on downs and give the ball back to the Cougars at their own 22-yard line. Worthy and Timothy Jabaley tried to get the ground game going for the Cougars, but were unable to move the chains as they punted back to the Bulldogs. Clay County set up shop at their own 47-yard line and began moving the chains. A few plays later, the Bulldogs were able to claim the lead as they scored on a 40-yard touchdown pass. After the extra point, the Bulldogs led 7-0 with 49.2 seconds to go in the second half, where the score remained until halftime.
The Bulldogs got the ball to start the third quarter and were able to chew clock and score on the opening possession on a one-yard touchdown pass. After the extra point, the Bulldogs led 14-0 with 7:49 to go in the third. The Cougars offense got the ball at their own 30-yard line, but were unable to convert as they punted back to the Bulldogs. Clay County was able to score once more on a two-yard touchdown run, and after the extra point, led 21-0 with 2:22 to go in the third. Dawson Worthy took a nasty hit on the Cougars offensive possession that ultimately took him out of the game for the rest of the evening as the Cougars went into the wildcat formation and direct snapped to running back Balilies the rest of the evening. Copper Basin was unable to score the remainder of the game as their season came to a close with the Bulldogs claiming a 21-0 lead.
Head coach Chad Grabowksi said after the game, "I am so proud of this team and the way they responded to the misfortunes of the year and continued to fight for everything! 2020 is truly a year to remember! Very sad to be seeing this group of seniors leaving the program, but I know they have helped lay the foundation and build the program into something they and the community can be proud of.”