For the Pulaski County Cougar football team, movement is life. The offensive scheme the Cougars have put in play depends on slowly but steadily moving the ball down the field in mostly short 3-5 yards chunks. That didn’t happen Saturday in Roanoke, as the Cougars dropped their season record to 2-2 with a 2-12 loss to the Cave Spring Knights.
Both teams had a tough time moving the ball at the start of the game. Multiple punts were exchanged as the defensive units for each team held the other in check. After two quarters of play, the teams went to the locker room with no points on the scoreboard.
“We knew Cave Spring had some pretty good players,” Cougar Head Coach Cam Akers said. “Coach Leftwich is rebuilding their program and their kids seem to be buying into it. He’s taking them in the right direction.”
Cave Spring broke the ice near the start of the third quarter when quarterback Landon Altizer found Owen Sweeney open down the home sideline. After the catch, Sweeney was able to elude the Cougar defender to earn the 44-yard touchdown catch. With 9:04 remaining in the third quarter, the Knights lined up to attempt the point after kick, but Cougar senior Evan Alger broke through the line and blocked the kick attempt, leaving the Knights up 6-0.
The Cougars were down but not out. After another Pulaski County punt keep into Cave Spring territory, the Cougar defense pushed the Knights back even further to force a punt attempt. The ball was snapped high, going over the punter’s head. As he ran back into the endzone to recover the ball, several Cougars introduced themselves. As the punter struggled, the ball was pitched or knocked out of the back of the endzone for a safety, moving the score to 6-2 in favor of the Knights.
The Cave Spring offense struck again in the fourth quarter. Altizer connected with Sweeney for a 20-yard touchdown pass with 6:46 remaining in the game. The Knights attempted the PAT, which was again blocked by Alger, to leave the score at 12-2 for the Knights.
The Cougars continued to have trouble moving the ball on the ground. The Knights eventually ran out the clock to earn the 12-2 victory.
“We made some mistakes tonight and our kids know that,” Coach Akers said. “Nobody likes to lose, but I’ve told our guys to put this one behind us and start getting ready for next week. We’ll break the film down and go through it with the players, but we don’t have time to sit back and pout.”
Cave Spring finished the game with nine first downs while holding Pulaski County to just three. The Cougars ran the ball 26 times for just 30 yards. The Knights ran 38 times for 76 yards. The Cougars completed seven of 12 pass attempts with one interception for 105 yards. The Knights completed 10 of 15 passes for 146 yards. Pulaski County earned 135 yards of total offense. The Knights earned 222 yards.
Christopher Gallimore led the Cougar rushing attack with 14 times for 17 yards. Trevor Burton ran six times for just seven yards. Tanner Mace ran twice for seven yards. Mace also caught two passes for 50 yards. Davis Neel caught three for 18 yards. Marcus Reed caught one for 34 yards.
“We saw a few good things, but we just didn’t perform well enough,” Coach Akers said. “We’re going to get back to work and start getting ready for next week. Our kids know we can’t take any team for granted right now. We’re going to continue to focus on doing things the right way and getting better every day. We’ve got some great kids out there. We believe in them and they’ve kept a great attitude. We’re going to get there.”
The Cougars will host Hidden Valley this coming Friday. The Titans are now 2-3 on the season. They started the season with a blowout loss to Cave Spring. The won against William Byrd and Northside, but lost to Glenvar and Franklin County.