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Sports Column
I’m not sure if I’m allowed to call out officials as a reporter.
However, I was at last Friday’s Lone Grove-Madill football game and there was a big no-call at the end of the game.
Honestly, I may draw someone’s ire for this, but I’m generally of the view to speak my peace even when it’s an inconvenient truth.
Before you continue reading, please know that both the visiting Lone Grove Longhorns and host Madill Wildcats played a close, well-contested affair. Also, the goal of this column is not to take away from the visitors’ 22-20 victory.
Rather, it is to point out what happened; both the good and bad.
You’ll notice I didn’t say ugly, which we’ll get to later in the column.
For those not in attendance of Friday’s game, here’s the skinny. After a close game that saw Madill tie it up with less than a minute left in the fourth quarter, the game went to overtime.
Lone Grove scored on a short run, which Madill would later match.
However, controversy struck in the meantime. Rather than attempt an extra point kick, the Longhorns went for two points on a throw from their quarterback Colton Jones in the direction of wide receiver Gavin Peery. While Peery ultimately fell on the ball, the pass was a tad short; two or three bounces short that is.
And before anyone questions this assessment, please note that I, along with a number of other folks, was just a few feet away. Instead of calling an incomplete pass, the referees called the two-point conversion good.
Normally, a missed call like this doesn’t have much impact on the end product. Yet this was one of those non-calls that could have made a world of difference.
Although Madill scored a touchdown of its own in overtime through a Mateo Fajardo run, there is no guarantee the Wildcats would have won the game. After all, Madill’s own attempt at a two-point conversion was unsuccessful.
Now to the good stuff
Rather, what stuck out to me was the response of the Wildcat faithful.
The scene after a tough loss was dare, I say cliché at first with saddened players and upset shaking their heads in disbelief.
However, these standard responses soon gave way to a showing of solidarity and love. What looked like hundreds of students, parents and members of the crowd came down to the newly renovated Blake Smiley Field. There each of them embraced the players and coaches.
Maybe, it’s the optimist in me, but I don’t recall hearing any talk along the lines of getting robbed or cursing the game officials.
Rather, it was just a scene full of caring and support not unlike what I saw both at the team’s scrimmages and first game this season.
I’m not saying folks were smiling and happy with the loss. No, it looked as if folks knew it was one game and, in a few days, it would be onto the next.
Eventually, I had a job to do and that was to find Madill head football coach Todd Vargas after a tough loss.
As you can guess, no coach is ever happy after a loss and it’s the job of a sportswriter to let coaches vent in this moment.
And while Vargas was visibly upset, he didn’t dwell on the said no-call or deflect any of the blame.
Instead, he focused on his team.
“I will never question the heart of this team,” Vargas said. “We didn’t lose tonight because a lack of effort. That’s for sure. These kids wanted to win for this community so bad. These kids will bounce back and I will do a better job of leading the team.”
Rather than take the easy road and complain, Vargas chose to show his appreciation for his team and take ownership for its 0-2 start.
I hope we can all have the right response when life make the wrong call or no call.