JOHNSTOWN — The task of trying to beat a team that has not lost on the season is a daunting task, yet a week ago the Clearfield Bison found a way to give Bald Eagle their first blemish on the season. Trying to do the same thing in successive weeks is an uphill battle, especially when the team is athletic, powerful, and has skilled players in the right spots. Clearfield faced that task when they traveled to Johnstown to face the Richland Rams Friday night.
What initially looked to be a runaway victory took a much different feel late in the game. The Bison defense put together a four-turnover performance that would swing momentum to their hands on multiple occasions. Yet, in this instance, it came down to not making enough plays when it mattered, as the Rams remained unblemished on the season, handing Clearfield a 35-28 loss that left a stinging feeling to the team clad in white.
“It’s frustrating. I mean, Richland has a good team, and great players. They had a strong scheme going tonight. We just have to learn from this, and get better,” Bison head coach Miles Caragein said afterwards.
A game that was all about turnovers and possession started exactly that way when the Bison forced Richland quarterback Dominick Shank to make an errant throw on his first attempt, landing in the hands of the Bison’s Will Domico. Two plays after the turnover, Clearfield turned it into points when Brady Collins navigated a 20-yard scamper into the end zone to put Clearfield on the board. A returning Warren Diethrick drilled the extra point put the Bison up 7-0 not even two minutes into the game.
But, in a game with splash plays, the Rams had their own on the next Bison drive. After forcing a 4th and 10 at the Bison 29, the special teams effort made the first momentum-shifting play for the home squad. Nick Boyle broke through the front line of Clearfield, blocking the punt from Carter Chamberlain, and having the quick mindset to scoop up the loose ball just outside the goal line. The scoop-and-score from the Rams, along with the ensuing extra point, tied things up in the first quarter, and stayed that way for nearly an entire quarter.
Both teams were trying to gain field position all night long, with neither finding the most success either on the ground nor in the air. Even with a fumble from star Ram running back Evan McCracken, the second turnover on the night, Clearfield could not turn it into points like it did earlier.
Still, the Rams stuck to the ground game, and eventually McCracken capped off a 10-play drive with a three-yard plunge past the goal line to put the Rams on top. The 14-7 score would remain until Shank connected with Austin Yarnick just before halftime on his only touchdown pass of the game, giving Richland a 21-7 lead heading into the break.
The third quarter for Clearfield could be summed up simply as good moments overshadowed by lackluster performance. In the quarter, Clearfield only managed two plays over 10 yards, gaining just two first downs. Meanwhile, the defense was struggling to corral McCracken, who continued wearing out the Bison front on a night where he carried the ball 29 times for over 150 yards.
Caragein spoke about the struggles coming out of the locker room stating, “Some things simply didn’t go our way. It was frustrating, but the kids kept fighting. Maybe I didn’t call a couple of great plays, I’m not sure. But, I’m going to evaluate those calls, just keep working with these guys, and get better.
Richland got on the board four seconds into the fourth quarter with Shank calling his own number for a rushing score to make it 28-7, and the Bison were reeling from the struggles. What they needed was a big play to get things back in their favor, and Carter Freeland took that to heart on the next Ram possession.
The first play from scrimmage at the Bison 44 following a turnover on downs changed the entire attitude of the Bison sideline. Shank looked to his left, then tossed right. Freeland played the zone coverage to the point where he was just waiting. He watched the ball leave the hand of Shank, ran right to position and nabbed the interception. However, he was not done, as he was in full stride almost immediately, powering down the Bison sideline to give Clearfield a pick-six to put them right back in the game.
That seemed to ignite everything as the Bison defense forced a three-and-out, and caught a lucky break when McCracken took the snap to punt, however the ball would go low on the ground. He picked it up, but his right knee was on the turf. The official called the ball down, suddenly giving Clearfield a downhill start to their next possession.
Domico then went right back to Freeland, who caught a ball across the middle of the field in the red zone, pulling in a 15-yard touchdown reception that immediately brought Clearfield back to within one score. The sideline, the stands, and even the coaches were invigorated with the back-to-back touchdowns from Freeland, and Caragein did not lose sight of that.
“He did a great job. We try to do some things with him, and they had a great corner on him all night. It was a good battle between those two,” he said. “He just needs to keep working because he does make the big plays. They will come, but he also is understanding that when he you are a great receiver, they are going to guard you as such.
“They will have double coverages, or have their best back against you, and it can be frustrating at times, but I felt he did great in fighting through that.”
As quick as the momentum came, it evaporated. Clearfield watched on a 2nd and 6 from the Ram 32 as McCracken broke free on a direct snap sweep to the left, as he charged 68 yards to the end zone for the biggest play of the night. The extra point made it a 35-21 game with just over five minutes remaining, and Clearfield had two time outs to work with. Knowing the game wasn’t over, Domico decided to show that he was capable of leading the charge. He answered back on the next drive, as he passed key balls to Freeland and Cayden Bell to put his offense in the red zone. He then connected with Collins, who would drag, and fight the final five yards on a 17-yard reception to the end zone.
The score brought the Bison back to within one score, and immediately afterwards the defense made a stand when the front line stripped McCracken of the ball on the first play after the change of possession. The fourth turnover on the night, unfortunately, did not lead to any points. It also led to a miscue on fourth down as Domico was flushed from the pocket, but in his effort to get rid of the ball to save yardage, the pass failed to make it back to the line.
The intentional grounding led to penalty yards, and a turnover on downs.
The Bison defense tried to make one final stand late in the quarter, as the Rams pushed inside the red zone, and were faced with 4th and 4 with a chance to ice the game after Clearfield called a late timeout. Richland trusted their star and McCracken delivered, getting just enough yardage to move the chains, icing the game after a rally that almost brought the Bison all the way back.
Caragein could see his team was down, but made it clear that despite the third quarter struggles, seeing them come back the way they did was a big positive, and when asked if the term “resilient” best described his team, he had no hesitation.
“Yes! They just didn’t give up. A few times, they easily could’ve put their heads down, but they kept working as a team, came back and almost had a chance to win. That sums up this team perfectly,” he said.
Clearfield (6-2) will finish off the pre-determined part of their regular season next Friday when they make the trip to Martinsburg to face the Central Dragons. It was Central that ended the Bison season a year ago in the playoffs, 35-6, in Hollidaysburg, which ultimately was the final game of the tenure of former Bison head coach, Tim Janocko. It will be the third consecutive week that the Bison will face an unbeaten opponent as the Dragons are 8-0 coming off of a 28-14 road victory over Penns Valley.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Clearfield 7 0 0 21 – 28
Richland 7 14 0 14 – 35
BOX SCORE
1st Quarter
- BISON: Collins 20-yard run (Diethrick kick), 10:24
- RAMS: Boyle 3-yard blocked punt recovery and return (Ritko kick), 3:59
2nd Quarter
- RAMS: Mccracken 3-yard run (Ritko kick), 3:30
- RAMS: Shank 15-yard pass to Yarnick (Ritko kick), 0:24
3rd Quarter
- No scoring
4th Quarter
- RAMS: Shank 4-yard run (Ritko kick), 11:56
- BISON: Freeland 66-yard interception return (Diethrick kick), 9:24
- BISON: Domico 15-yard pass to Freeland (Diethrick kick), 6:05
- RAMS: Mccracken 68-yard run (Ritko kick), 5:01
- BISON: Domico 17-yard pass to Collins (Diethrick kick), 3:31
GAME STATISTICS
Clearfield/Richland
- First Downs: 11/12
- Rush Yards: 79/197
- Pass Yards: 183/114
- Penalties-Yards: 9-87/6-60
- Total Yards: 262/311
- Turnovers: 0/4
- Time of Possession: 24:10/23:50
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
- Clearfield: Domico-11 carries, 31 yards; Chamberlain-8 carries, 20 yards; Collins-6 carries, 23 yards, TD; Freeland-1 carry, 5 yards.
- Richland: Mccracken-29 carries, 155 yards, 2 TD; Shank-10 carries, 48 yards, TD; Team-1 carry, (-5) yards.
Passing
- Clearfield: Domico-12 for 32, 183 yards, 2 TD.
- Richland: Shank-10 for 14, 114 yards, TD, 2 INT.
Receiving
- Clearfield: Freeland-7 catches, 100 yards, TD; Samsel-2 catches, 41 yards Bell-1 catch, 27 yards; Collins-1 catch, 17 yards, TD; Ryan-1 catch, 9 yards.
- Richland: Yarnick-5 catches, 51 yards, TD; Mugerwa-2 catches, 47 yards; Mccracken-2 catches, 16 yards; Christian-1 catch, 0 yards.
BISON SCOREBOARD:
Date Opponent Score Record
08/25 TYRONE 29 – 21 1 – 0
09/01 @ Forest Hills 13 – 22 1 – 1
09/08 PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA 44 – 7 2 – 1
09/15 @ Bellefonte 26 – 7 3 – 1
09/22 HUNTINGDON 44 – 20 4 – 1
09/29 PENNS VALLEY 35 – 7 5 – 1
10/06 @ Bald Eagle Area 13 – 7 6 – 1
10/13 @ Richland 28 – 35 6 – 2
10/20 @ Central
10/27 TBD