3A football: Falcon finds a way to pull off stunning victory

FALCON • Nothing about it was pretty. Nothing about it was flashy. But the Falcons looked up at the scoreboard after 48 minutes Saturday and saw that they indeed had won 12-7.

Conifer, the 11th seed in Class 3A, dominated No. 6 Falcon in almost every statistical category in the first-round playoff game.

However, when quarterback Joey Caron found Joe Vela for a 25-yard touchdown with 109 seconds left, the Falcons had completed a most unusual comeback.

“We decided on that last drive, we just needed to go for the end zone,” Caron said. “Our defense gave us a chance with good field position, and we had to score or go home.”

On a cold, foggy and wet afternoon at Falcon Stadium, it didn’t look good for the home team. Trailing 7-0 at halftime, the Falcons (10-1) needed something to jump-start their lifeless offense.

With Conifer (7-4) attempting a 32-yard field goal that would have made the score 10-0 as the third quarter ran down, the spark ignited.

Falcon blocked the kick, and Chris Rucker scooped up the ball and returned it 75 yards for a touchdown. The extra-point try failed, and the Lobos led 7-6 heading into the fourth quarter.

“Our offensive line did not play well today, and they apologized for their performance to the team after the game,” Falcon coach Jason Catron said. “But, hey, a win’s a win, and I’m proud of our defense.”

The Falcons didn’t look like the team that had won nine of 10 games this season. Star running back Aaron Blevins was held to an astonishing 9 yards on 16 carries, and the offense mustered only 76 yards and three first downs.

“We give credit to Conifer,” said Caron, whose team meets unbeaten No. 3 Mountain View next weekend. “They are a hell of a team with a great defense.”

The loss was numbing for the Lobos, who seemed to be in control until the waning moments. In the end, they saw Falcon snatch a playoff win from them for the second time in three years.

“We outplayed them, we outcoached them and we beat them,” Conifer coach Larry Fitzmaurice said. “Penalties hurt us and that blocked field goal just changed the momentum.”