The last scheduled 2020 home game for the Greene County High School football team ended in dramatic fashion Friday night at Linduska Field in Jefferson heard on KG98 and streamed on www.raccoonvalleyradio.com. Coach Caden Duncan’s Rams kept Clarinda out of the end zone in overtime on third and goal from the one yard line, then again on fourth and mere inches to preserve a 22-15 victory in OT. The win is the third straight for Greene County and puts the Rams at 4-2 overall and 2-1 in Class 2A District 9. The Cardinals are 2-4 and 2-2.
Hard-fought and close all the way, the contest saw the Rams put up their biggest rushing numbers of the season, but they couldn’t put the Cardinals away. The Rams were penalized just five times all night, but every penalty nullified what would have been a first down, including a first and goal on the first drive of the game. The Rams had just one turnover, an improvement from recent weeks, but a lost fumble inside the Clarinda 35 put an end to yet another promising drive.
The game was scoreless until the second half when the Rams got on the scoreboard on a two yard keeper by quarterback Bryce Stalder. Stalder scored on a two-point conversion run for a lead of 8-0 with 3:28 to play in quarter number three. Clarinda made it 8-7 on a Wyatt Schmitt pass play to Michael Shull covering 53 yards. The Cardinals were penalized on what would have been a tying two-point conversion, then kicked a PAT after being backed up five yards to make it 8-7.
The Rams went ahead 15-7 on a one yard TD run by Stalder and a Nathan Behne PAT kick with 4:29 to play in the game. That drive went 64 yards on five plays. Shull returned the ensuing kickoff 80 yards for a TD and Schmitt tied the game on a conversion run with 4:16 left.
Both teams had the ball down the stretch in regulation, but couldn’t mount a meaningful drive.
In overtime, the Rams had the ball first and scored on just two plays from the Clarinda 10. Nathan Black went nine yards on first down and Stalder scored from a yard out for his third TD of the evening. Behne booted the PAT and it was 22-15. Then came white knuckle time. The Cardinal picked up four yards on first down, then five more on second, before the two two defensive gems at the goal line. Coach Duncan is also the defensive coordinator, so his postgame smile may have been just a bit wider after the defense came through in OT.
Black had a career night rushing for the third straight week with 152 yards on 25 carries. Stalder had a career best 117 rushing yards on 15 attempts, and Jackson Morton had 16 carries for 83 yards. In all, the Rams had 56 rushing attempts for 352 yards. The aerial attack was quiet with just three completions on 18 attempts for 39 yards, so the Rams totaled 391 total offense yards. Sophomore Tadyn Brown led Clarinda with 134 rushing yards on 13 attempts, and the Cardinals finished with 238 total yards of offense.
The COVID-19 shortened season ends Friday, Oct. 9 in Shenandoah for the Rams. Coverage on KG98 and streaming on www.raccoonvalleyradio.com begins at 6 p.m. with coverage at 7 p.m. The Mustangs lost 28-0 to Atlantic on Friday night and have a 2-4 record.