Northside Survives Late Surge by Cordova
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The Northside Rams (6-1, 4-1) needed two missed extra points in the second half to down the Cordova Blue Devils (2-5, 1-4) 20-19.
"They don't take plays off. We work those special teams every day," Northside head coach Robbie Jones said after the game.
The Rams dominated time of possession. They held the ball for over 30 minutes in the 48 minute game. The team did not pass the ball until there was 7:18 to go in the game.
Cordova's offense was the first to get going. The Blue Devils struck first on a three-play, 68-yard drive. Quarterback Cody Headrick found Kaden Williams for a 36-yard touchdown to put Cordova up 7-0 early in the game.
The Rams answered with a methodical march. A 14-play drive that took nine minutes and went 70 yards was capped by a Braden Green touchdown run to make the score 7-6.
The Northside quarterback finished the game with 140 rushing yards on 26 carries. He was 0-2 passing.
Northside continued to dominate the line of scrimmage in the first half. The team's next possession was a 10-play, 69-yard touchdown drive that was again finished by a 1-yard Green touchdown run.
The Rams constant pressure on the ground wore the Cordova defense down. Finally, Northside broke through for a big play. Running back Luke Jones got away for a 47-yard touchdown run to punctuate a first half performance that saw Jones rush for over 100 yards. The extra point made it a 20-7 game with 2:45 to go in the half.
Cordova had one final first half drive. The Blue Devils were trying to make it a one-score game going into the locker room, but Headrick was picked off by Jayden Roberts in the end zone to end the half.
The game appeared to be headed for more of the same in the second half. Northside got the ball first and was working on another lengthy drive that took up half of the third quarter. Cordova's defense got a stop on 4th and inches with Northside on the Blue Devil's 10-yard line.
This was the momentum swinging play. Cordova followed with a 16-play, 90 yard touchdown drive to pull within one score. It was Headrick rushing in from 1-yard out this time to make the score 20-13 following a missed extra point from Jameson Robertson.
Headrick would finish the game 8-15 with 179 passing yards. He rushed for 27 yards on eight carries.
"He's [Headrick] one of the better quarterbacks around. He did phenomenal," Cordova head coach Shane Smothers said.
Cordova's defense picked up another defensive stop with the Rams in plus territory. The Blue Devils took over with 7:00 left down by 7. Wide Receiver Jalen Armistad put on a beautiful double move to get open for a 33-yard touchdown reception with 2:40 remaining. Northside's defense again got pressure on the extra point, causing Robertson to miss wide left.
The Blue Devil's outscored Northside 12-0 in the second half, but fell one point shy of ruining Northside's homecoming. The loss eliminates Cordova from postseason contention. The Blue Devils will take on Oak Grove (3-4, 2-3) on the road next week.
"They're a top-10 team, and we just showed that we're just as good," Smothers said.
Northside is now tied atop the 4A Region 5 pile with Dora and Haleyville as all three teams are 4-1 in region play. Northside will play Dora (4-3, 4-1) at home next week.
"Dora's an animal," Jones said. "We gotta work on us, and be ready to go. We can't make many mistakes, because if you do that against Dora you're gonna get beat."