LAURINBURG —“Heartbreaking; we should have won this game, just didn’t get it done.”
Those were the words spoken by Scotland High School head football coach Richard Bailey after the Fighting Scots suffered a tough 25-20 season-opening loss to Asheboro Blue Comets on Thursday. While the season is still young, games like this can reveal a lot about a team. Here are two takeaways from the Scots’ defeat:
Don’t Get a Big Head: The Warning Came True
One of the biggest questions coming into the season: Were the Scots truly a battle-tested ball club? It seemed head coach Richard Bailey felt the same concern, as he echoed similar remarks in the pregame.
Scotland entered the game as heavy favorites, but being the favorite doesn’t reveal a team’s true heart. Asheboro showed just how badly they wanted this game from the second offensive play. The Blue Comets delivered a big hit on Scotland’s Nazire’ Campbell that set the tone early and resulted in a fumble. Asheboro carried that momentum into halftime, leading 10-7.
As the game moved into the second half, Scotland responded, taking a 14-10 lead. But the Blue Comets answered quickly, marching down the field and scoring a touchdown before converting a 2-point conversion to take an 18-14 advantage. Asheboro would then force a turnover on downs in Scotland territory and turn it into points, extending its lead to 25-14.
Mistakes Prove Costly
In football, turnovers and penalties can often be the difference between winning and losing. For the Scots, both proved costly, as they lost the turnover battle 1-0 and completely shot themselves in the foot with double-digit penalties. Offensively, when the Scots made an explosive play, it seemed to get called back. For head coach Richard Bailey, this was the theme of the night.
“Penalty after penalty and no rhythm offensively,” Bailey said. “Overthrows, dropped passes, near misses — when the right play call was made, we didn’t execute.”
During the fourth quarter, tempers flared as Scotland’s running back Michael McLean was tackled after the whistle, with no call made. Scots’ Samier Pate responded with a shove to a Blue Comets defender, and both players were tagged with unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.
“Our kids are frustrated, but we cannot respond as we did. Samier Pate is one of my favorite players on the team. Yes, I thought [Michael McLean] got a late hit, but we cannot respond in that manner,” Bailey said.
Other Notes
Michael McLean rushed for two touchdowns and a 2-point conversion.
Collin Hill threw his first touchdown to Jett Ganus late in the fourth quarter.
Jeremiah Nicholes was carted off after an apparent knee injury.