COTTAGE GROVE– The Lions are back in business.
After only two games, the Lions know that they can climb their way through Class 3A just fine — in fact, maybe this was the answer all along.
“The 3A classification is where we need to be. That’s where we can compete,” coach Steve Turner said.
The Lions won 26-14 over the Coquille Red Devils in their home opener last Friday, and are 2-0 on the season. Cottage Grove had experienced only two wins in the past five years. Now, they have two wins in just two weeks.
In the first quarter, senior quarterback Kaeden Grogan led the first scoring drive that included 12- and 15-yard completions. Then, the Lions had 6 yards to go and junior John Paulo Delima connected with Grogan, who took it 11 yards to the 3-yard line. For the final play of the drive, Clayton Dewitt ran for a touchdown and a 6-0 lead. However, they went for two and failed.
The Red Devils were able to tie the game by the end of the first quarter, 6-6. The Red Devils also failed on their two-point try
With the game tied, both teams became more tense and scrappy as they rolled into the second quarter. The momentum changed when the Lions capitalized on a fumble by the Red Devils around the 10-minute mark. Senior linebacker Brayden Bauer took a fumble all the way to the 1-yard line, and the Lions scored on the next play to take a 12-6 lead but with another failed two-pointer.
However, the Red Devils were capitalizing on the Lions’ mistakes as well. Helped in part by the Lions’ penalties, the Red Devils scored a touchdown and a two-point conversion to take a 14-12 lead against a frustrated Lions defense.
During Coquille’s drive, a Lions player became frustrated after another penalty on their defense and started yelling at a teammate. Turner quickly reacted by reminding his players about teamwork and collaboration – yelling from the sidelines, “Pick each other up! Don’t knock each other down!”
In another instance, the referee scolded one of the Lions’ more aggressive players and the coaches emphasized “no more cussing” for the rest of the game.
“I think it was the excitement and all that stuff, and they want to do well,” Turner said. “For the false starts, it definitely means they’re still inexperienced.”
Turner recognizes that the mistakes from this game “are obviously things that will hurt a football team.” However, he said this was not an area the Lions particularly struggled with in their game last week. Most likely, it was a result of the excitement and nerves of a home opener, he said.
It wasn’t until the final quarter that the Lions sealed the deal. Around the 7:30 mark, Dewitt scored to put Cottage Grove up 18-14. The Lions then converted their first two-point conversion for the game and led 20-14. With the lead in hand, the Lions continued to take advantage of interceptions and fumbles by the Red Devils.
The big finish came from senior defensive back Gavin Grogan, who intercepted a Red Devils pass at 4:35 and ran 45 yards for the final score. Overall, Dewitt had 23 rushes and 99 yards, Delima had 9 runs and a total of 175 yards, and Kaeden Grogan had 3 receptions for 42 yards, with his longest being 17. After cruising in last week’s 59-34 victory, Turner credited Coquille for its toughness Friday.
“Coquille was obviously a better football team than what we saw last week,” Turner said. “They were pretty physical. And so, it just took us a while this time. But we wore them down. We had to believe in ourselves and believe in each other. It all comes down to belief.”
Turner was grateful for a more challenging game and said these are the types of games that make a difference. It helps his team foster mental fortitude and faith.
“It’s games like this that make you get better,” Turner said. “That game that we played last week was purely for confidence’s sake. But this is the kind of game that makes your team improve because you have to dig down. You gotta dig down and find out about who you are.”
Going forward, Turner recognizes the need for improvement but also remains grounded in his confidence in playing at the 3A level.
“We’re getting better at all the things that we worked on last year. Obviously, we’re not where we need to be, but since we’re in 3A now, we have the opportunity to compete,” Turner said. “Right now, we have no goal set for how many wins. I’m not the type of person that looks behind me. I’m looking ahead. So right now, our focus is on Creswell – but it doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things, because now we’re in the league. The important thing is that we have to win our league games.”
The Lions play host to the No. 37 Bulldogs for the first time in the schools’ histories.
