The Corrigan-Camden Bulldogs lost 45-28 at home against the Kirbyville Wildcats on Friday.
From the start, it was an aerial attack from Kirbyville's offense, led by senior quarterback T.J. Allen that took a while for Corrigan's secondary to find an answer.
“We knew all week that Allen likes to throw it deep. If he just has a second and a half, he just lets it go and trusts his receivers can outrun people,” said Bulldog head coach Brett Ratliff. “I thought we adjusted well in the second half, but you cannot get punched in the mouth like that early.”
Corrigan's offense also took some time to get started and take advantage of scoring chances to help fight back in the second half.
“We ran it out of the spread more in the second half and counter punched well against them, but we took too long to get going,” Ratliff explained. “Also, we cannot give up red zone opportunities like we did tonight.”
Kirbyville started with decent field position and quickly struck first, as Allen threw a 60-yard bomb to Wildcat junior receiver Cooper Murphy for the opening touchdown.
This gave the Wildcats an early 7-0 with the extra kick.
A defensive pass interference call against Kirbyville set the Bulldogs near the red zone on their first possession. Corrigan's offense caught another break on a personal foul, which kept the drive alive near the 10-yard line. Bulldog senior back Derrick Reggie later cashed in, taking a handoff inside seven yards for a rushing touchdown to tie the game.
However, the Wildcats quickly responded again, with Allen connecting on a 49-yard touchdown pass to junior receiver Mason Dickerson to regain the lead 14-7 still early in the game.
It looked like the Bulldogs converted on a fourth-and-short sneak push, but received an unfavorable spot, turning the ball over on downs.
Wildcat senior receiver Elijah Johnson caught a short pass and broke a tackle for a huge gain close to the goal line. This set up Murphy to run in for a short touchdown to extend the lead 21-7 late in the first quarter.
Things got worse for the Bulldogs, as they could not recover the following onside kick, and Kirbyville fell on the ball to steal another possession.
Later, on a first-and-goal, Allen took it in himself, breaking a tackle across the goal line for a short touchdown
This further extended the lead 28-7 going into the second quarter.
Corrigan's defense did slow Kirbyville early in the second, bringing strong pressure to bring down Allen and force a punt.
Another personal foul against the Wildcat defense kept Corrigan's next possession alive, but the Bulldogs struggled near the red zone and turned the ball over on downs.
Kirbyville marched down the field and Johnson caught a tipped pass in the end zone for a 16-yard touchdown to make it 35-7 at halftime.
The Wildcat offense kept a steady pace to start the third quarter. Later, on fourth down, Dickerson connected on a 30-yard field goal to extend the lead 38-7 midway through the third quarter.
Bulldog senior back Derrick Reagie exploded on a long kickoff return to put Corrigan deep into Wildcat territory. Senior quarterback William Ratliff ran for a huge gain inside the red zone, followed by Reagie pushing through for a 10-yard touchdown to help cut the deficit at 38-14.
On the next Bulldog drive, Ratliff faked a handoff and had nothing but room to sprint 61 yards for a touchdown to make it 38-21 late in the third.
However, Kirbyville's offense responded again, with Murphy catching a 51-yard touchdown to extend the lead.
Ratliff answered back on a 40-yard keeper and made it 45-28 going into the fourth quarter.
The Bulldogs got a pass interference call to help their next possession. Murphy nearly took it all the way for a touchdown, but was tripped up inside the Wildcat 20. A highly contested pass on the next play was intercepted by Kirbyville to seal the score late in the game.
The Bulldogs will travel for their next non-district match versus the Elkhart Elks, with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m.
