Eagles falter in the fourth quarter

MONTEZUMA — East Union wrapped up its most successful football campaign since 2016 with a 6-3 record, falling in round one of the postseason to 7-2 Montezuma Friday.

What began as offensive strike after offensive strike slowed down near the end of the first half, the defenses settling in to force punts and turnovers. In the end, the Braves were able to outlast the Eagles, taking the victory 46-28.

Despite the 18-point margin, the Eagles were in it for most of the game, even taking a 4-point lead in the third quarter. Heading into the final 12 minutes, East Union trailed by only 4.

The fourth quarter is when the Braves piled it on, scoring 14 while shutting out the Eagles.

“We were competitive for the first three quarters,” senior receiver Paul McNeill said. “We had a couple turnovers that kind of sealed the deal.”

Scoring frenzy

The first six drives of the game ended in touchdowns as each team marched down the field in an offensive onslaught.

Montezuma scored on two rushing touchdowns — running back Broox Stockman and quarterback Brady Boulton — and a 25-yard touchdown pass to Dane Strong. All three scores were followed with successful 2-point tries.

The Eagles seemed to struggle in their opening possession, losing 1 yard on first down and gaining 3 on second, setting up third-and-8. The Braves jumped offsides on a successful hard count by quarterback Braxdyn Tucker, setting up a much more manageable third-and-3.

East Union eventually found a first-and-goal at the 10 but a 2-yard run and two incompletions set up fourth-and-goal.

Tucker scrambled, looking for an opening. He found that in McNeill for an 8-yard TD. The two connected again on the Eagles’ second drive, this time for a 7-yard score on first-and-goal. Both scores were followed with unsuccessful 2-point tries.

McNeill said playing with Tucker, just a sophomore, has been pretty great.

“He’s becoming more and more confident after every game and it’s showing,” McNeill said. “He’s able to handle the pressure in the pocket and make good throws.”

Tucker finished the game 19-of-26 for 195 yards, two TDs and two interceptions. He also had 76 yards on the ground.

In his last game as an Eagle, McNeill logged eight catches for 82 yards and two TDs.

The Eagles’ third score came on their third possession, taking only six snaps as they capitalized on two big plays. On first-and-10 from their own 29, freshman Bryce Pettit took the ball 19 yards down the sideline, hurdling over fallen players to get into Braves territory.

Tucker picked up 7 yards with his feet followed by a 28-yard pass down the sidelines to freshman tight end Coltyn Kelley, setting up first-and-goal at the 3. Tucker ended up punching it in from the 1 on second down. This time, the Eagles were able to make the 2-point try, running back Wyatt Kelley taking it in. This put the score at 24-20, the Braves leading.

McNeill said the first half felt a lot like playing catch up. “It was hard because we really had to get the offense going to make the defense feel comfortable,” he said.

Defensive stand

Strong defensive play by the Eagles on the next drive forced a Braves three-and-out and the first punt of the game after more than 18 minutes of game play. Montezuma’s following drive was also a three-and-out after a tackle for loss and a sack by the Eagle defense set up a fourth-and-14.

During that time, the Eagles looked to be continuing their offensive success, but costly turnovers left them with no additional points on the board.

On their drive after Montezuma’s first punt, East Union made it down to the Braves’ 19-yard line, but Tucker threw an interception in the end zone to Boulton.

The next Eagle drive made it to the Montezuma 21 before Tucker fumbled the ball with a recovery by the defense.

With less than 30 seconds left in the half, the Eagle defense was able to keep Montezuma out of the end zone one last time.

Leading the East Union defense was McNeill with 7.5 total tackles including six solo and one tackle for loss. Morgan Cooley and Coltyn Kelley each had two tackles for loss and a sack.

The Eagles came out with the ball in the second half, utilizing the run on eight of nine plays, freshman Caden Clear running in a 6-yard score. The conversion was complete from Tucker to Clear, giving East Union their first and only lead of the game, 28-24.

The defense forced another three-and-out, and the momentum looked to be in the Eagles’ favor.

From here on, the Braves flipped the script, scoring 22 unanswered points.

Montezuma forced the Eagles to punt on their next drive after a sack set up fourth-and-12. While the Braves scored three more times, the Eagles suffered a three-and-out, an interception on the first play of a drive and a turnover on downs.

Seniors

Six players wore their East Union jerseys for the final time Friday — McNeill, Cooley, Jase Pettit, Noah Driskill, Brock Jones and Elijah Mulkey.

McNeill said the coaching made a huge difference this year.

“We’ve been developing all of our players for the past three or four years,” he said. “It just all came together this year.”

They led a 6-2 regular season campaign with losses only to Wayne and district-winner Bedford. The Eagles finished 5-1 in district play, placing second.

The seniors were able to go out in their first playoff game of their careers.

“The atmosphere was amazing,” McNeill said. “The crowd really showed up. It was a great experience to have.”

Montezuma travels to 9-0 Audubon Friday for the second round of playoffs.