Seminole had a chance to get a big win to open district play. An early turnover and a muddling offense led to a defensive struggle and a 10-3 loss.
The trouble started from the very first play from scrimmage.
Seminole had the formation it wanted. It had the matchup it wanted. University (Orange City) was not set. The Seminoles sped things up. And then went too fast. Or not fast enough. And then did not execute.
Rushing to take advantage of a four-on-two mismatch on the perimeter, Seminole quarterback Kaylan Wiggins quickly darted the ball to take advantage. No one on Seminole cared to block and Kendrick Hamilton recovered in time to pick the pass off, setting up an opening field goal for University.
This would be the theme throughout Seminole’s 10-3 loss to University at home as Seminole (2-1, 0-1 8A-2) failed to get on the same page and push through for that final bit to overtake University (4-0, 1-0 8A-2).
In the fourth quarter, trailing only 10-0 from a valiant defensive effort and University’s own penalty-induced mistakes, Seminole drove to the one-yard line. They knocked on the door three times but failed to get in. And then a personal foul penalty back them up to the 16, forcing them to kick the field goal instead.
After another three and out from University, Seminole started driving again. Wiggins had a 41-yard rush to get the Seminoles to about the 20-yard line. With four more chances to attack and tie the game, Seminole failed again.
Wiggins was forced out of the pocket on fourth down and was hit as he desperately tried to throw it to a receiver.
The defense could not hold out any longer. Lorenzo Lingard picked up University’s lone first down of the second half. That was enough to ice the game end Seminole’s frustrating evening.
Lingard, who has rushed for 261 yards through three games added 91 yards on 18 carries to his total, including a first-half touchdown. Other than him, University struggled offensively. The Titans two scoring drives were less than 50 yards — the field goal was set up by the first-quarter interception and the second scoring drive was helped by a 25-yard run from Lingard, one of the few times he was able to break away from Seminole’s front seven.
In total, Seminole held University to 106 yards from scrimmage — 62 in the first half and just 44 in the second half and only four first downs the entire game. Really it was the Seminoles who were in control of the game.
But they could not get their offense going much either.
They had just 20 yards in the first half. In the second half, Seminole amassed 153 yards but had only three points to show for it.
Wiggins rushed for 101 yards on 21 carries. He passed for 47 yards on 8-for-15 passes. D.J. Hampton had 39 yards on seven carries, but picked up to 10-yard runs on Seminole’s final drive into the red zone. The Seminoles just could not finish the deal.
With all the time the Seminoles were on the ball, they certainly could have and should have done more. It was the frustrating little plays — the botched block leading to a negative play, the pass to a receiver who had little room to work on in the flat, the quarterback keeping a read option he should have let go — that kept Seminole from winning the game.
In an ugly game, every play took on added importance and every negative play seemed to push the Seminoles further into the hole. They just could not solve the riddle despite all the opportunities ahead of them. Mistakes kept getting in the way like those mentioned above and six penalties for 45 yards — the kind of nagging penalties which just annoy a coach.
In a tough district like 8A-2, every one of these games is going to end up being important to snag one of those two playoff berths.
When the season is over, Seminole is going to hope they will not look back at the missed opportunities in this game.
