Bluffton won a wild 40-37 seesaw battle over Delphos Jefferson in a Northwest Conference thriller to highlight a wet Homecoming Friday night, October 15, at Harmon Field. VIDEO https://youtu.be/nNgIijfiekg
Pirate senior quarterback Nate Schaadt returned to action with a vengeance after missing the previous game nursing injuries. He accounted for 319 yards of total offense and four touchdowns, including 285 on the ground, to pace Bluffton to victory.
Bluffton improved to 5-4 overall and 2-4 in league play after snapping a three-game losing skid with the win.
DJ fell to 3-6 and 1-5 in NWC play with the defeat.
The game was close all the way and was tied 16-16 at intermission, setting up a wild second half of offense. The largest lead of the night by either team was nine points.
DJ got good field position on a fine kickoff return to start half two. Trent Teman tossed a 25-yard TD pass to Andrew Miller in place of the momentarily banged-up Colin Bailey as the Wildcat backup signal-caller.
Braylon Scalf's point after kick put the visitors on top, 23-16.
The Wildcat defense then stopped the Pirates on a fourth down try to take over at the Bluffton 38. But a penalty helped the Pirate defense thwart DJ, and a Wildcat punt was shanked short out of bounds.
Pirate Landon Shutler broke several tackles on a jet sweep and powered 31 yards to the DJ 31.
Hayden Dearth then hauled in a seven-yard TD pass from Schaadt to pull within 23-22. Schaadt muscled his way in to score the two-point conversion to seize a 24-23 edge with 1:53 left in the third period.
Another good return on the ensuing kickoff to near midfield gave DJ fine field position. With 3.3 seconds left in the third quarter, Bailey connected with Tanner Voorhees on a 39-yard scoring strike.
The two-point conversion run by Bailey gave DJ a 31-24 edge.
Schaadt broke several tackles on a 22-yard run early in the fourth quarter. A 14-yard run by Shutler advanced the ball to the Wildcat 33.
Schaadt carried some Wildcat defenders on a 26-yard rush inside the DJ five. Schaadt then scored on a five-yard TD run to inch within 31-30. Schaadt sped in the two-point conversion to give the Pirates a one-point lead with 9:16 remaining.
The Pirates recovered a fumble on the following kickoff at the DJ 34 to continue the momentum shift.
On the next play, Shutler scurried in to paydirt on a 34-yard run. Schaadt scored another two-point run to advance the lead to 40-31 with 9:02 left to play.
DJ started its next possession at their own 23. After a first down, Jackson Wilson came up with a big sack of Bailey to force third and 28. But Bailey ran for 13 yards and then on fourth and 15, he completed a clutch 17-yard pass to move the chains.
Another third down aerial to Cole Hoersten moved the ball to the Pirate 39. A nine-yard pass to Miller was followed by an incompletion near the goal line. Bailey earned yet another first down with a five-yard run.
Bailey was sacked on a rollout for a loss of six by Ian Rieman. Bailey then was run out of bounds after a 10-yard run. On third and six, Hoersten snared a 22-yard TD pass from Bailey with 3:41 left to play.
The extra point kick was blocked to keep the deficit at 40-37.
The ensuing Wildcat on-sides kickoff was caught by Landon Worcester just past midfield. After two stops, on third and eight Schaadt ran for 12 clutch yards to move the chains and keep the clock moving.
On third and four in the final minute, Schaadt ran for a first down to clinch the outcome.
In the first half, Schaadt opened the scoring with a 16-yard TD run just 2:33 into the fray. His two-point run gave Bluffton an 8-0 lead.
Opposite number QB Colin Bailey answered with a 19-yard TD run with 3:03 left in the first period. His two-point pass to Cody Bailey tied it 8-8.
Bluffton turned it over on downs when the runner slipped on fourth and short.
DJ capitalized on a shortened field and scored on a Bailey 50-yard scamper 9:11 before intermission. Bailey's two-point pass to Jacob Simmons gave DJ a 16-8 margin.
Schaadt tied it with 4:36 to go in the half on a 10-yard run and two-point conversion run.
Schaadt scored 26 of the 40 Pirate points.
1 2 3 4 F
DJ 8 8 15 6 37
Bluf 8 8 8 16 40
Notes and stats
Bluffton out-gained DJ 473-362 yards in total offense. The Wildcats averaged 6.1 yards per play on 59 snaps. The Pirates averaged 6.8 yards on 70 plays.
Jefferson ran the ball 30 times for 165 yards (5.5 average). The Pirates netted a whopping 441 yards rushing on 61 carries for an average gain of 7.2 yards per run.
Bluffton amassed 29 first downs (25 rushing), compared to 19 by the Wildcats.
Schaadt rushed for 287 yards on 39 carries with three TDs. He also completed six of nine passes for 32 yards and one TD.
Shutler netted 127 yards on 14 carries with one score.
Ethan Bogart pulled in two passes for 16 yards. Dearth added one grab for a seven-yard score.
Bailey ran 20 times for 126 yards and two TDs. He also completed 17 of 25 aerials for 164 yards and two scores. Teman also completed two of four passes in relief for 33 yards and a TD.
Cody Bailey snagged nine passes for 74 yards. Miller caught seven aerials for 50 yards and one TD. Voorhees had one reception for 39 yards and a TD. Hoersten added two catches for 34 yards and a TD.
The Pirates committed zero turnovers and the Wildcats were guilty of two fumble miscues. DJ lost 40 yards on four penalties, and Bluffton was also flagged four times for 40 yards.
DJ converted seven of 15 third down tries and went 2-3 on fourth down. Bluffton succeeded on four of 10 third down attempts, and succeeded on two of five fourth down tries.
Worcester led the Pirate defense with 7.5 stops. Teman topped DJ with 9.5 tackles.
The Pirates won the time of possession battle, 26:25 to 21:35 minutes.
Friday's win should solidify a playoff spot for Bluffton. They came into the contest 12th in the Div. VI, Region 22 rankings. This year the top 16 teams from each region make it to the expanded postseason.
The Pirates are now 3-2 at home and 2-2 on the road.
The Pirates close the regular season at league-leading Columbus Grove (9-0, 6-0 NWC) Friday, Oct. 22. CG crushed Spencerville 45-7 in week nine.
