Turnovers prove costly for Gents

WESTLAKE – Down three starters on defense due to injuries from their opener a week earlier, the Crowley Gents needed to play nearly flawlessly Friday to log their first victory of the 2016 prep football season.
The bad news was that didn’t happen.
As it turned out, anything and everything that could go wrong did go wrong for the Gents in their non-district game against Westlake (1-1).
From penalties in key situations to giving up huge plays on third-and-long situations, the Gents simply couldn’t catch a break.
But the main problem wasn’t the six flags for 55 yards or giving up countless big plays on third downs.
No, the overall deciding factor was turnovers.
The Rams recorded five takeaways and were able to get a 31-yard field goal from Jackson Hodges with just over three minutes remaining to escape with a 17-14 victory over the mistake-prone visiting Gents.
“We are very far from where we need to be. We’ve gone backwards,” said CHS coach Josh Fontenot, whose team fell to 0-2 on the season. “It’s disappointing and this is a little embarrassing the way we played tonight. The work has been put in, but sometimes hard work just isn’t enough; you have to come out and execute.
“But five turnovers and giving up big plays on third down...We are just not a very good football team right now and if we don’t grow up and mature, we are going to be in for a very long season.”
The Gents had two of their five turnovers in the first half, the first being an interception that led to Westlake’s first score of the game.
On Crowley’s opening drive, Julian Mejias picked off a Paul Dugar pass at the WHS 25 and returned it to near midfield. The Rams moved down to the CHS 3 yard line on 10 plays before fullback Brayden Winn punched it in to give the hosts a 7-0 advantage.
The Gents responded almost immediately after three runs by Dugar netted 34 yards. Keith Wilson then took a handoff from Dugar, weaved through the heart of the Rams defense and raced 37-yards for a touchdown. Casey Stewart added the extra point to tie the game at 7-all with 2:46 remaining in the opening frame.
The Gents took their only lead of the game early in the second quarter when Wilson hit pay dirt again, this time from three yards out. Stewart’s PAT put Crowley up 14-7 with just over 11 minutes remaining in the half.
Westlake, however, tied the game on its ensuing possession when Brevin Ned scored from four yards out and the teams entered the half knotted at 14-all.
Crowley had four possessions in the second half and all resulted in turnovers of some sort.
The Rams mounted a seven-minute, 13-play drive to start the third quarter but had to settle for a 31-yard field goal attempt that sailed wide right.
A 20-yard scamper from Dugar on the Gents first play after the miss looked to give Crowley the momentum.
But just like that, it was all gone.
On the next play, Dugar’s pitch on an option didn’t hit its mark and the Rams recovered the loose ball.
Fortunately, another time-consuming drive for the Rams that extended into the fourth quarter resulted in another missed field goal attempt, this one from 26 yards out.
Four plays later, after the Gents marched 42 yards and looked to be in control, a fumble by Donald Francis gave the ball right back to the Rams on their own 33 yard line.
The hosts benefited from a personal foul after a sack on their ensuing possession and then converted on a fourth-and-one to keep their drive alive.
Then on third and long, a big pass (19 yards) to Tristin Johnson gave the Rams a first down in the red zone.
The Gents defense stood tall once again and forced a field goal attempt but this time, Hodges was money, nailing the eventual game-winner from 31 yards out with 3:24 remaining.
The Gents turned the ball over on downs after a missed pass on fourth down with 1:46 remaining.
But once again, the Gents’ defense stood tall and recorded a sack on fourth down to give their offense one last chance.
The Gents moved the ball on consecutive passes with under a minute to go but Dugar’s final throw was intercepted by Chris Cline to seal the victory.
In all, the Gents’ defense was on the field for over 18 of the 24 minutes in the second half.
“We would run, fumble, run, fumble, run, fumble,” said Fontenot. “I mean, five turnovers: I don’t care who your are playing, you can’t beat anybody like that. And then we didn’t get any (turnovers).
“Defensively, we played good at times but we can’t keep putting them back on the field.”
The Gents picked up 301 total yards on the night while the Rams logged 292 yards.
Dugar was the Gents’ leading rusher with 15 carries for 112 yards while Wilson picked up 92 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries.
Dugar also completed three of nine pass attempts for 27 yards. He threw two interceptions.
And although 300 total yards is impressive, the output was overshadowed by the mistakes.
“It’s a matter of us growing up,” said Fontenot. “And I don’t mean that in a ‘we need more playing time way.’ We need to grow up and man up.
“There’s nothing right now that I can look at and say that we did well. There’s no sugar coating it. It’s time to grow up, it’s time to man up and it better mean something to you because if it doesn’t, it’s going to be the same results.”