The Locker Room October 25, 2002

View From The Stands by Ardent Cougar

MOUNTAINEER FIELD-- It was cold, crowded in the miniature away stands, and last but not least it was raining.  Still, Pulaski County Cougar extremist fans, including yours truly, gathered and amassed in the cramped stands and chattered in preparation for what was sure to be a very muddy contest.  This was to be the last away game in the season for the Pulaski County High School Cougars, and the turnout of the home crowd was promising, seeing as how it almost matched the away crowd.

Although there was no marching band to pump up the crowd as usual, there was still a very decent reception to greet the Cougars as they came out.  As everyone settled down into their seats again, the coin was flipped at mid-field.  The Mountaineers won and chose to receive, much to the Cougar's delight as they almost certainly would've deferred had they won the toss.

The kickoff from all-star kicker John Hedge was a beauty, flying into the arms of the receiver at approximately the fourteen yardline.  Right about now, an active member of the cougarfootball.net forums named Dave (Cougardave) held up three fingers and bent them into claws, making scratching motions at the receiver and chanting "Chickenfoot, chickenfoot, chickenfoot!"  This is an old voodoo curse that some like to joke around with during the kickoffs and punts to the other team.  It supposedly makes the victim of the curse stumble, fall, hesitate, or mess up in some other way.  Ironically enough, the receiver slipped in the already-slimy mud and 
went down at the hands of about three Cougars.  So, it was first and ten from the Alleghany fourteen yardline to commence the contest.

The Mountaineers first tried a pass, but were covered by Defensive Back John Harmon and failed to complete.  With that in mind, they then tried a carry, running straight into Linebacker Ernie Hodge.  The down was third and a long seven from the fifteen.  The Quarterback, only known to this writer as Haynes, alternated with another pass, this one a long bomb sure to nab a first down if connected.  However, it was batted at the very last second by Derrick Burks with a nasty, wet "SPLAT" that rang through the air.  This left the Mountaineers a choice:  either give up the ball and punt, or show their pride and courage for their school and their fans by going for it.

They punted.  Perhaps the rain detained the ball a bit, as it went short and was almost missed by Brandon Anderson, who ran it back up to the Mountaineer thirty-eight.  From there, Anderson took the ball again only to go down for no gain at the hands of Mountaineer Josh Carter.  Derrick Burks picked up three yards after that, reaching the thirty-five before Allegheny's Justin Allen nailed him.  This time it was third down for the Cougars.  Long Bomb? Nope.  Only a thirty-five yard touchdown by an already-muddy Brandon Anderson and a John Hedge extra point to put Pulaski on the board 7-0 with a ripe 9:07 left in the opening quarter.

The kickoff sailed into the Mountaineer receiver's arms and he went down hard at the Alleghany twenty-two.  From there, Justin Allen got the handoff just as the Mountaineers were penalized three yards for holding.  A short pass by Haynes followed and was connected for a gain of four yards.  From the thirty, they snagged two yards before meeting Justin "Juice" Lewis for the first time.  They then threw another incomplete pass after that.  This left them with a fourth down on their own thirty yardline.  The punt went through the rather humid air and into the arms of Brandon Anderson at the forty-eight who slipped, landing on his knee for the world's first accidental fair catch.

From the Cougar forty-eight, Derrick Burks got the ball and was beaten down for no gain.  Anderson tried to redeem the lost opportunity with a gain of his own, reaching the Alleghany forty-seven for a gain of nine.  He then proceeded to the thirty-five for the first down after that.  Burks got two more from there, but lost one on the next play.  Brandon Anderson kept the hopes high though, gaining a righteous eight yards to claim the twenty-six yardline.  The down was now a tense fourth and one on the twenty-six. Anderson carried to the twenty for six more yards and the first down, earning a great pop from the Cougar fans.  Directly afterward, however, Pulaski was called for a false start on the twenty and was walked back five yards to the twenty-five.  It was now, obviously, first and fifteen.  Anderson managed to put three yards under PC's belt before going down.  Burks followed up with one yard of his own, and Anderson took it to the seventeen.  It was now fourth and seven, and PC went for the field goal but was called again, this time for delay of game.  After being pushed back another five yards, John Hedge went for the field goal from the thirty-eight yardline in the cold, rainy, muddy weather.  It had the distance, and actually went in for another three points to add to the board.  With that, it was 10-0 Cougars with a mere 28 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

The kickoff went to the sixteen yardline and stopped.  From there, Alleghany failed to get a yard but got two yards on the following play.  Then, as if for the sole purpose of adding insult to injury, the Mountaineers unleashed a very long run, escaping the Cougar offense until the carrier reached the Pulaski twenty-yardline where he slipped in the mud and went down hard on his face, leaving the Cougar fans laughing as the clock counted down to zero to close the quarter.

After a great first quarter, the second began on the twenty-yardline.  With a fresh drive courtesy of the previous first down, the Mountaineers felt ready and willing to dish it out and mix it up well in this quarter.

They started off by getting one yard before Ernie Hodge said hi and plastered them.  Next, Haynes let loose a huge pass to the endzone but slightly overthrew it and prevented the touchdown.  After another one-yarder, Durrell Burks covered their next pass attempt and busted it up.  Unfortunately for the Mountaineers that was the fourth down.  So, the Cougars got the ball and continued from their own nineteen.  Brandon Anderson christened the drive with a four-yarder.  After an anonymous five yard gain, Derrick Burks got the first down with a three yard gain to the thirty-one.  Another anonymous carrier nabbed seven yards.  This writer apologizes for all the "anonymousness," as the rain was constantly threatening to soak my notes.  In any event, Burks followed up with a humongous twenty-two yard run to the fifty yardline.  After a no-gainer by Derrick, Brandon Anderson stepped in to reach the Alleghany forty-nine.  After a Mountaineer timeout, the game resumed.  It was third and a long nine from the Alleghany forty-nine.  Anderson managed to take it to the forty-four for five yards, but it failed to re-fuel the drive and PC had to punt.

John Hedge's punt took a one-way flight straight down into the field, bouncing and rolling until it stopped at the Alleghany eleven where about six cougars touched it.  The Mountaineers unleashed Justin Allen again, and he got one yard for them.  Another gain got six yards before Justin Lewis tattooed them to the eighteen.  Allen was called into the fray again, and reached the twenty-one for the first down.  Haynes continued the effort with a quarterback keeper and went out-of-bounds at the twenty-four, gaining only three yards for his trouble.  It was second and long on the twenty-four, and Haynes launched an incomplete pass.  Next, he threw an even longer pass only to have to watch Defensive Back Steven Cobbs bat it down.  With the down fourth and still seven to go, the Mountaineers decided to punt again.

Also again, Dave, Jeff Wolfe, and I kept the unspoken tradition alive with the "Chickenfoot."  Sure enough, the punter fumbled the snap and the Cougars nabbed it at the Alleghany two-yardline to a huge ovation by the limited but spirited Cougar fans.

With the ultimate first down under way, Pulaski was smothered by the Alleghany defense which seemed to mysteriously step up a notch and failed to gain anything.  The following play confirmed the defense's newfound strength as they caused the Cougars to fumble and recovered it.

The Mountaineers then seemed to instantly morph back into their old lovable selves, getting only three yards before they were dunked in the mud like cookies by a very determined Justin Lewis.  Haynes ran a huge keeper from the five to reach the thirty-two yardline but Ernie Hodge met him there and closed the deal and the half.

At the end of halftime, everyone was asking two questions:  Why won't the rain stop, and where the heck are the Mountaineers?  There was talk of a forfeit, but soon enough the Mountaineers stepped out onto the field, receiving a penalty for delay of the second half.

The literal kickoff of the second half went into Brandon Anderson's arms and he rushed it to the forty-two yardline before landing.  Derrick Burks commenced the drive itself by running for two yards, adding up to thirty-seven yards for him in the game so far. This left him with a measly twenty-eight to go before reaching one-thousand yards for the season.  Anderson continued the drive but failed to gain.  A second try by Brandon completely spanked the defense with Anderson running nineteen yards to the Alleghany thirty-seven for an obvious first down.  Derrick Burks picked it up from there and stuffed seven more yards under his belt.  From there, another anonymous gain totaled two yards followed by an anonymous one-yard loss.  This put the Cougars right back on the thirty for the fourth down.

Luckily, Head Coach Joel Hicks knows when to go for it and when not to.  With a pitiful three yards to go, Anderson got the handoff, left the defense wondering whose side they were on, and romped on in for a thirty-yard touchdown.  After a successful John Hedge extra point, Jeff Wolfe, Dave, and yours truly took it upon ourselves to sing the fight song that the band plays after every touchdown.  Eventually the cheerleaders even joined in, doing their familiar motions and movements to the song.

The following kickoff was once again aided by the Chickenfoot that Jeff, Dave, and I did.  Oddly enough, the receiver backed up into the endzone and moved aside, watching the ball land in the mud with a splat right beside him for the touchback.  From their own twenty, their carrier fumbled and the Cougars managed to snag the ball for a PC recovery.  With a fresh new drive from Alleghany's twenty yardline, Derrick Burks highlighted the entire drive.  In this order, he nabbed one yard, five yards, three yards, four yards for a first down, and lastly, seven yards--from the seven--for yet another touchdown.  After another glorious extra point, Jeff and I (Dave had gone to the sidelines for a better view) sang the fight song again and also again, the cheerleaders joined in with 4:20 remaining in the third quarter.

John Hedge was yet again called out onto the field for the kickoff.  It sailed into the endzone for a touchback.  Justin Allen immediately climbed up to the twenty-nine yardline.  From their, Alleghany reached the thirty-seven for the first down before Brandon Anderson nailed him.  A two-yarder on the next play was flagged by the referee, but the penalty was waved off.  A three-yard loss followed, preceding an incomplete pass attempt.  This made the down fourth and eleven, forcing the Mountaineers to punt.

Brandon Anderson snagged the ball and reached the forty-six yardline.  Another anonymous gain gave the Cougars one yard.  Anderson then picked up and ran it a staggering distance to the fifteen yardline for an understatement of a first down.  Burks carried from there to the fourteen to end the quarter.

It was now down to the final quarter of the game.  It was second and nine from the Alleghany fourteen, Cougars' ball.  Brandon Anderson commenced the quarter by dashing around the line and running the rest of the fourteen yards for his third touchdown of the night.  After an extra point and another Jeff Wolfe/Pete Cougar/Cheerleader fight song, the kickoff was under way, the score standing at 31-0 with 11:15 left in the game.

The receiver for the Mountaineers caught the ball and decided to run it this time, reaching the twenty-one before he got the smackdown put on him by none other than John Hedge.  Allen tried to keep the remaining Alleghany fans from leaving like the rest by gaining six yards right off the bat before Andrew Hodges smacked him.  He then ran it to the thirty-seven for the first down and met Steven Cobbs the traditional way for his trouble.  Following the play, the Mountaineers were called for a foul that escapes this writer at the moment.  In any event, they had five yards taken from them.  It was first and fifteen from their own thirty-two yardline, and Haynes dropped back for the pass but slipped and slid on his back in the mud for a loss of fifteen yards.  A long pass failed to connect, and then another was attempted.  This second pass was completed but was short and the receiver went out-of-bounds at the twenty-seven yardline courtesy of Steven Cobbs and Brandon Anderson.  However, this failed to save the drive and with the down fourth and a long twenty, the Mountaineers were forced again to punt.

Anderson caught it and went down at the Pulaski forty-eight yardline.  Andrew Hodges picked it up and took it downtown for a decent five yards.  However, PC was flagged and lost those five yards.  With that in mind, John Harmon went straight for the twenty after getting the handoff.  After that, a fumble was barely snagged by the multi-talented Steven Cobbs.  After a two-yarder, Cobbs ran it himself to the fifteen for the first down.  Then the Cougars took a knee and ran out the clock to zero to end a typical Cougar game.  the score was 31-0, and if this writer is not mistaken (I probably am) Derrick Burks finished with exactly sixty yards, just five short of the one-thousand mark.

With that in mind, this writer would like to sign off now.  Good luck Cougars, and I hope everyone comes to see them play next week for Homecoming in Kenneth J. Dobson Stadium against the Northside Vikings.

View From The Stands by Ardent Cougar