Nevada football drops second road game, 42-14

WILLARD -- The Nevada Tigers entered the second week of the 2013 high school football season with high hopes, despite a rough start to the year.

The Tigers entered Friday's contest against the Tigers of Willard High School knowing they would have a tall task ahead of them -- literally. It was apparent before the two teams took the field that Willard would have a significant advantage on the offensive and defensive lines and that ultimately turned out to be the difference-maker in the contest as Willard dominated both sides of the ball in a 42-14 victory.

The Tigers entered the night hoping to erase the bad taste of last week's season opener in which the events leading up to the game took the heads of the Nevada players away from the task at hand, ultimately leading to a 26-6 loss in a game in which Tigers head coach Erik Yoakam still believes Nevada was the better team. Willard, on the other hand, entered the night riding the high from a dominant performance last week against Marshfield, in a 30-16 victory.

Willard didn't waste any time taking advantage of its size advantage, shutting down Nevada's first drive. On the home team's opening drive, that advantage once again showed as Willard was able to put up the first touchdown of the contest on a 33-yard run by Z Barr with 8 minutes, 12 seconds left in the first quarter to make it 6-0.

Barr continued to be a thorn in the Tigers' side all game long as he picked the defense apart with his power and speed. He wasn't the only one, however, as a number of Willard players had their way with the Nevada defense, including Hunter Yeargan, who finished the night with 212 yards and four touchdowns on just 10 carries.

On the third drive of the game, the Tigers were finally able to overcome the size disadvantage, capitalizing on the game's first turnover to find the scoreboard for the first time. The Tigers ultimately capped off the drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Alex Payne to wide receiver Brett Norton to take a 7-6 lead as the first quarter came to a close.

Norton was the true star of the drive as he was not only the one who got the interception that led to the possession for the Tigers, but also finished the drive with three receptions, including a 52-yard catch that ultimately set up the touchdown play.

Despite that strong drive, Willard was ultimately undeterred and came right back with a strong drive of its own. Yeargan capped off the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run with 11:25 to play in the second quarter to give Willard a 14-7 lead after the two-point conversion.

Willard wasted little time adding to that lead as Nevada's offense sputtered at midfield. Robert Richmond gave his team a two-score lead with 8:42 left in the half as he took a 25-yard run into the end zone to make it 20-7.

That wasn't the end of the scoring for Willard in the half, however. After shutting down the Tigers once again and forcing a punt from the end zone that gave his team good starting field position, Yeargan once again had his way with the Nevada defense, taking a 41-yard run into the end zone to give Willard a 28-7 lead with 3:44 to go.

That was where the offense ended for the opening half and the Tigers ultimately took a three-score deficit into the locker room at halftime.

By the time the half came to a close, it was clear who was in control of the contest. Yeargan finished the half with 99 yards on seven carries, while Barr had 63 yards on five carries, leading the Willard offense.

Things didn't go near as well for Nevada on the ground in the half as the Tigers finished with just seven yards rushing. Payne had much greater success in the passing game, however, as he went 7-for-14 for 110 yards in the opening half.

The Tigers of Willard picked right back up where they left off as the second half began. Just when it looked like the Tigers' defense might be able to put a stop to Willard's opening drive, Yeargan took a 48-yard run into the end zone to extend Willard's lead to 28 at 35-7 with 9:38 to go in the third quarter.

Though the Tigers were able to get something going once again on the next drive, it came at what could be substantial cost. Just as Nevada got into the Willard red zone, Taylor Manes went down with an apparent leg injury and never returned to the game after being helped off the field, unable to put any weight on his right leg.

Just after that injury, the drive stalled, ultimately resulting in Payne throwing his only interception of the night to Barr at the goal line.

Yeargan once again made the Tigers pay on the ensuing drive as he made it even more clear he was taking the game on his shoulders. Yeargan took his fourth touchdown of the night 66 yards to not only give Willard a 42-7 lead with 1:51 to go in the third, but also enact the running clock.

That didn't last long, however, as Payne took the offense on his own shoulders on the next drive. After nearly scoring on a 32-yard scamper, Payne capped off the drive with a 1-yard run to pull the Tigers back within 28 points at 42-14 with 9:29 left.

That was where the offense ended for both sides as Willard held on to take the 28-point victory.

With the loss, the Tigers fell to 0-2 on the year and will be back in action next Friday night, taking to the road once again to face the Panthers of Oak Grove High School. Kickoff in that contest is set for 7 p.m., at Oak Grove.