COLUMBUS — The first-ever meeting between the Cavaliers and Falcons nearly ended in the third quarter. After a tackle behind the line, a Caledonia player and Columbus player kept going after the whistle, and a near brawl ensued.
It wasn’t quite a benches-clearing fight, and that is thanks in part to the quick action taken by Columbus coaches and Columbus Police officers who sprang into action to separate a growing crowd of players.
The biggest blow landed on a Falcons assistant coach who was left with a bloody nose after getting between the two teams, and the work to separate the two teams before things devolved into an all-out brawl allowed what had become a very exciting football game to continue.
For Columbus, it was a boiling point of frustration after a frustrating start to the game, and Falcons head coach Barrin Simpson remarked that it reflected the same issues that cost his team on the field; a lack of discipline.
“It’s too much of that,” Simpson said bluntly. “We have too much of having to get stuff under control. That comes from changing a culture from undisciplined to disciplined, and it’s a process, but man, it gets frustrating.”
“We ain’t about that,” Caledonia head coach Michael Kelly said. “It’s an aggressive game, tempers will flare, but I’m disappointed in our guys, and we’ve got to learn to get away from that. We’ll learn, but at the end of the day you’ve got to reset and refocus. That’s what we said, ‘Focus on the next play.’ We’re not about that, we’re going to play between the whistles.”
In the aftermath, both sets of coaches decided to continue, and urged calm from their players. The Cavaliers, who led 28-14 at that point, came back out and finished the job with three straight defensive stops and a fourth rushing touchdown of the day from senior Cole Garner. It was a gritty way to pick up their first win of the season, and land the first win of a new local rivalry.
“I’m extremely proud of our guys,” Kelly said. “They could have folded this thing in three or four weeks ago. I’m just proud, a hard-fought win tonight against a very athletic football team over there. It got a little sloppy in the third quarter, but we found a way, and that’s what matters.”
The Falcons thought they were off to a flying start as Derek Waller returned the opening kickoff 80 yards for a touchdown, only for a holding flag to be thrown at midfield.
The opening drive featured three fumbles by the Falcons. Two came on snaps, but were quickly retrieved. The fourth came on a punt as the snap was too high for the punter to control, falling back to the 24-yard line.
The Falcons’ defense held strong, forcing a turnover on downs, and the offense again began a drive. They reached the red zone, only to be turned back on their own fourth-down attempt in search of six points.
Caledonia was the first team to regroup on offense, mounting back-to-back touchdown drives to close out the first half with a 14-0 lead, and kept pace with the Falcons offense as Garner ran rampant.
“We catch some flak in our community for our offense, running the flex bone,” Kelly said. “It ain’t fancy, it’s not modern, but by George, it’s effective. Any night you’ve got to stop our quarterback, our fullback and slots… it gives our kids an opportunity to be successful, it gives (Garner) a chance to be successful, and that’s my job. Give these young men a chance to be successful.”
Garner finished the night with more than 100 yards on the ground and four scores, propelling the team to victory by running right through the Falcons’ defense over and over again.
As Kelly pointed out, it can be thankless running the ball the way they do, but Garner has proven himself throughout his time as a Cavalier in one of the most thankless roles in football, the fullback.
“It can be a detrimental role,” Garner said. He acknowledged the tough nature of the position, but he also took tremendous pride in the work he did. He also gave thanks to his offensive line and the rest of the offense for feeding him and opening things up for a big night.
“If the fullback has a bad night it can open stuff up, but they have to stop you to stop the triple option. It opens everything up if they can’t stop the fullback.”
“Cole can run that football,” Kelly said. “He’s done it here for a lot of years, and I’m extremely proud of that kid. He may not look flashy, but he’s got great ball sense… proud of him and those big boys up front.”
For the Cavaliers, it’s potentially the start of a new season. A few injured players made their return and the team played complementary football.
For the Falcons, also 1-5, it was more of the same. The team showed tremendous promise with chunk plays and big special-teams returns, but penalties and small errors added up to stall the offense.
“The glaring thing is we get to a point where we’re completely undisciplined,” Simpson said. “That’s the glaring issue. We have to be disciplined throughout the game, and I told the guys it’s a game of discipline, structure and making plays. We didn’t make enough plays, and they made more than we did. It’s a very disappointing loss, and I can’t even really put it into words.”
The former Mississippi State and professional linebacker lamented the poor tackling in the second half, especially knowing the type of rushing attack they’d be facing. For them, it’s back to the drawing board as they face another local rival in New Hope next week.
“I’d love this type of game, I’d be chomping at the bit as a linebacker for this kind of game,” Simpson said. “We didn’t play assignment football well enough. First half we did, second half we fell off. You’ve got to continue to execute and make plays over and over, and we didn’t.”
Caledonia 34, Columbus 14
Caledonia 0 14 14 6 – 34
Columbus 0 0 14 0 – 14
2nd Qtr
Cal – Cole Garner 5 run, (Finn Stubbendorf kick), clock 7:03
Cal – Tyler Long 1 run, (Stubbendorf kick), clock 0:20
3rd Qtr
C’bus – Dkyren Henderson pass 10 to Michael Brewer, (kick no good) clock 7:22
Cal — Garner run 18, (Stubbendorf kick), clock 5:37
C’bus — Henderson run 3, (Henderson 2-pt run) clock 3:27
Cal — Garner run 17, (Stubbendorf kick), clock 1:49
4th Qtr
Cal — Garner run 9, (kick blocked), clock 8:39
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 34 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 34 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
