Nocona
It was a game the Nocona Indians needed to win after coming off a triple overtime heartbreak against Henrietta the previous week.
It took two overtimes, but the Indians won at Callisburg 17-14 in a defensive struggle to earn their first win in district and keep their playoff aspirations alive.
The field conditions limited both team’s offenses as the game went along as both teams scored touchdowns on their opening possessions and had no luck for most of the rest of the game. It was a 7-7 tie from the first quarter all the way until the fourth quarter.
The conditions were not the only problem. Penalties and turnovers also led to the offensive struggles that Keck knows they need to clean up.
The Indians took the lead in the fourth quarter 14-7 and had the ball on the Wildcat’s 30-yard with the clock winding down. Unfortunately, they were too far for a field goal and could not get a first down that might have put Callisburg away.
With time running out, the Wildcats connected on a long pass all the way down to Nocona’s 15-yard line. A few plays later their fullback ran in from short yardage to tie the score at 14-14 and send the game into overtime.
It looked good for the Indians in the first overtime session. Nocona’s defense stopped Callisburg and gave their offense a chance to win the game if they could score in any way.
An 11-yard run on their first play put them in at least reasonable field goal range with at least three more plays get closer. Unfortunately, the Indians fumbled on their next play and the Wildcats recovered.
This sent the game into a second overtime. This time Nocona was able to get close enough for a challenging 35-yard field goal attempt, which they nailed to go up 17-14. Callisburg needed to either kick their own field goal to send the game into a third overtime or score a touchdown to win the game. Luckily for the Indians, the Wildcats fumbled the ball and Nocona recovered the ball to end the game. In a sense of poetic justice, it was the exact way the Indians lost last week in triple overtime.
They play S&S Consolidated at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 26 on the road.

Saint Jo
Homecoming week did not end on a happy note for the Saint Jo Panthers as a back and forth opening district game against Savoy came down to whoever had the ball last.
The Cardinals did and they scored on the famous hook-and-ladder play as time ran out to win 50-45.
Despite the final score coming through the air, both teams turned to their ground games offensively as soft ground from heavy rains all day made passing the ball more difficult than usual. Also because both teams had so much success with it.
For Saint Jo, Preston Lyons was a one-man human highlight tape. The senior scored seven touchdowns on the ground while running for 319 yards. He also threw a touchdown pass to Blake Anderson.
One of those touchdowns looked like it would be enough to secure the Panthers their first district win and keep their undefeated season alive as he scored with less than a minute to go. Unfortunately for Saint Jo, Savoy pulled off the win by completing the ultimate gimmick play as time expired.
The Panthers hope to shake off this setback and earn their first district win at Bryson. They are scheduled to kickoff at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 19.

To read the full story, pick up a copy of the mid-week edition of the Bowie News.