Smithville’s 24-21 victory at Grandview felt like a dominant morale-boosting game heading into the playoffs until the final minutes unraveled for the Warriors.
“We controlled the game from start to finish, or I guess from the start until the last two and a half minutes,” Smithville Head Coach Jason Ambroson said after the game. “You’ve got to give them credit, and we’ve got to be better at salting things away late in the ball game.”
Instead, with a few minutes left in the game and Smithville leading 24-7, Grandview running back Mikelis Johnson pushed through the Smithville linebackers at midfield for a first down and kept going before being taken down at the Grandview 10-yard line. It set up a touchdown pass to Maddox Griswold.
With just over three minutes left in the game and the score now 24-14, Grandview recovered an on-side kick. Quarterback Dave Franklin hit Ja’Lyne Armstrong on a short slant route that he took for about 30 yards. Mikeles Johnson broke through the line again and ran for a touchdown on the next play.
Suddenly, Grandview was down just 24-21 with two and a half minutes left. The Bulldogs sideline was in a frenzy now, seeing the comeback win within sight.
Another onside kick. This time, Smithville got the ball. Grandview had just one timeout left after Head Coach Dan Joiner used his first two in crucial situations as his team tried to fight back earlier in the quarter. Smithville ran the ball, grinding away time and setting up a 4th and 1. Smithville chose to go for it.
Grandview took over at its own 42-yard line with 32 seconds left. They began the drive with a pass to Michael Smith Jr. along the sideline for a 20-yard gain. The Bulldogs hustled to snap the ball. Dave Franklin dropped back as a Smithville defensive end immediately closed in, hitting him just as Franklin released the pass deep over the middle to tight end Cameron Greene.
Smithville defensive back Jace Sarrett broke for the ball and snagged it Franklin’s pass instead. The Warriors survived the fight.
“I put us in a bad position with a bad play call that last play of the game,” said Grandview Head Coach Dan Joiner. “But other than that, our kids had great composure. They’re tough kids that have been through a lot.”
Grandview’s near-comeback will allow the Bulldogs to host the first round of the playoffs on their home field in a matchup with Center in District 7 of Class 4.
Smithville still ends the regular season as champions of the Suburban Blue Conference and as the top seed in District 8 of Class 4. Jason Ambroson wasn’t worried about the score against Grandview and comparing this game to how other teams in their district fared against the same opponent. He says there can be improvements to be made, but overall was satisfied with the season for what was an inexperienced Smithville team coming into the season with 17 new starters across offense and defense.
“Everybody worries about scores. People want to compare scores and talk about that. I worry about teams,” Ambroson said. “We’ve had to grow and learn. We’ve had some guys banged up and not able to play. What we found is we’re growing up, we’re getting better, we’re learning.”
“At times, we play pretty well, and other times we make some mistakes. We’ve got to get a little bit better.”
