CLOVERDALE — Sometimes what looks easy on paper is anything but on the football field.
The Cloverdale Eagles, winless on the season entering their North Central League I opener on Friday night against the Clear Lake Cardinals, didn”t play like a 0-3 team on their home turf. Coming off a bye week, the well-prepared Eagles gave the Cardinals all they could handle before finally falling 20-19.
Adrian Adams” 35-yard pass to Cole Brodnansky with 3:59 left in the game put Clear Lake ahead to stay 20-19. Cloverdale threatened twice in the closing minutes. After being held on downs by the Clear Lake defense, the Eagles got the ball back with less than two minutes left and were able to move the inside the Clear Lake 10-yard line with the aid of a questionable defensive pass interference penalty. Out of timeouts, the Eagles elected to throw the ball instead of kick a field goal and Brodnansky picked off a fourth-down pass with 33 seconds remaining to seal Clear Lake”s nail-biter of a win.
“They have a kicker and they were definitely within his range,” Clear Lake coach Milo Meyer said. “Yeah, I was surprised,” Meyer added of Cloverdale”s decision to pass the ball on fourth down instead of trying for a game-winning field goal.
Cloverdale took a 13-7 lead into the fourth quarter. Clear Lake moved in front 14-13 on a Garrett Harwood 1-yard run with 8:31 left in the game, Brodnansky adding the extra-point kick. On that drive, Adams called a handful of his own plays and moved the Cardinals down the field.
“Kudos to him,” Meyer said of Adams. “He saw some things out there and he asked if he could call some of his own plays. We let him do it.”
Cloverdale pushed back in front 19-14 on a 59-yard touchdown pass with 7:51 left, but the Eagles came up short on the conversion run.
Both teams had touchdowns called back because of penalties during the second half. A long pass from Adams to Deshawn White in the third quarter was wiped out on a chop-block penalty.
Clear Lake”s first points of the game came on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Adams to Gabe Wolfin with 7:51 left in the second quarter, tying the score at 7-7.
Cloverdale sandwiched touchdown runs by Luke Bernardi in the first quarter and Josh Holden in the second quarter around Clear Lake”s score to take a 13-7 halftime lead.
Clear Lake drove into field goal range on its first possession of the game but Brodnansky missed wide right on a 30-yard attempt.
“They”re never easy,” Meyer said of league games, especially those on the road. “It was just good to get a win.”
Adams finished 7-for-18 for 98 yards and the two touchdowns.
The Cardinals also gained 177 yards on the ground led by Harwood”s 63 on 12 carries. Brodnansky had 61 on six rushes.
