NORTH EASTON, Mass. - There's eating up the clock, and then there's what Stoughton did in the fourth quarter on Friday night.
The Black Knights took over at their own 26-yard line with 10:30 left in the fourth quarter, trailing 14-13. 16 plays and 9 minutes and 22 seconds later, sophomore Jake Gibb hit a 25-yard field goal to give Stoughton at 16-14 lead, leaving just 1:08 left for the Tigers.
And even with that much time, the Tigers almost stole the game back.
Senior quarterback Nick Cidado led the Tigers from their own 28-yard line down to the Stoughton 11-yard line in just 51 seconds but the Tiger's 28-yard field goal attempt was wide as time expired.
"We had a tough time," Stoughton head coach Greg Burke said. "They are a good team, an excellent team. I'm happy they had a great season and I'm glad we aren't playing them again. They gave us a good licking in the first one and we played a little better today and we played harder and it showed I think, that we got a little better then maybe they did. But that's a great team, I'm glad I don't have to play them next week. This one counts."
Gibb, now the starting quarterback for the Black Knights, had two key passes and two key runs during Stoughton's long drive, all four coming on third or fourth down. Gibb hit junior Brian Crimmins for a 21-yard gain - and his first completion of the game - on just the third play. Their next third down, Gibb scrambled for a four yard gain and a first down. Four plays later, Gibb's quarterback sneak gave the Black Knights a first down after being faced with fourth and two. Just three plays later, Gibb his Crimmins over the middle for a 9-yard gain to bring Stoughton into the OA red zone.
"He has so much potential," Stoughton captain Lennox Green said of Gibb. "We all knew that Jake was a great quarterback and we all knew it from the start but he was a sophomore and Stanley was a senior. When we Jake came in, Jake did his job and he got us here. He can definitely make those throws. His throws are so great, he throws a great ball."
The Black Knights opened the scoring on the first play of the second quarter as Green - 13 carries for 96 yards and two touchdowns - punched it in from one yard out to give Stoughton a 7-0 lead. After Oliver Ames was forced to punt on their next drive, Cidado placed it down at the Stoughton 1-yard line and OA defensive lineman Colin Lozzi burst through on the first play, tackling the running back in the end zone for a safety, making it 7-2.
The Tigers were able to take their first lead just before halftime as Cidado hit sophomore Franklin Holgate - who made a great catch - for a 29-yard catch to the Stoughton 1-yard line. Cidado then went play action before finding a wide open Holgate in the end zone. The two-point attempt was broken up as OA led 8-7 with 12 seconds left in the half.
Oliver Ames extended their lead early in the second half, after Stoughton's first series went three and out and a low snap gave OA the ball at the Black Knight 26-yard line. Five plays later, Cidado hit sophomore Andrew Callachan over the middle on fourth down for a 8-yard touchdown. The fake extra point attempt failed as Oliver Ames led 14-7.
Both teams traded punts before Stoughton took over at their own 31. After runs from Joey Girolamo and Jovani Pires (16 carries, 107 yards), Green took the handoff left before finding a lane back to the right, running for a 45-yard touchdown. Stoughton's fake extra point attempt also failed and OA still led, 14-13. Oliver Ames had two incompletions and a punt on their next drive that opened the fourth quarter before Stoughton's monster drive.
"I'm glad we hung in there, I thought we played great overall," Burke said. "We've got a long way to go and I don't know who we're playing next week but this is a treat for the kids, the town, and all of the families who've been hanging in there with us. And that's for the people who didn't think we'd get anywhere and that's even better"
Stoughton will play Plymouth South in the D3 State Semifinals on November 22nd at 7:00 at Marciano Stadium at Brockton High School.
OLIVER AMES A PROGRAM ON THE RISE
It didn't have the end result they wanted, but the final drive proved why OA quarterback Nick Cidado is among the best in the league this year.
The Black Knights milked away almost 10 minutes of the fourth quarter before taking a lead and handing the ball back to OA. With 1:01 left in the game, Cidado drove his team down from their own 28 to the Stoughton 11-yard line in 51 seconds.
He even found a receiver in the end zone but strong pressure from the Stoughton secondary forced an incompletion.
Cidado hit sophomore Sam Kelly three times on the drive for 40 yard and hit Callachan once for another 21. With any more time on the clock, it's likely Cidado had one more play in him.
"He's the best quarterback I've ever coached and I've had some pretty good ones in 22 years," Oliver Ames head coach Jim Artz said. "In 22 years, I've had some damn good players play for me and he's the best quarterback I've ever had."
Cidado is among a large group of seniors that have helped turn the Oliver Ames program around.
"OA football in the past has been an afterthought, a joke, a punch line," Artz said. "People get all their seniors in and this group going back about three years ago, we’ve changed that. We’ve changed the dynamic of this team. We’ve changed the way people look at us, our expectation level has changed and I love them for that."
Oliver Ames will now play their last game of the season against Sharon on Thanksgiving Day.
"My heart breaks for them," Artz said of the seniors "Because it's not just a one year commitment that they've given, they've given me four years out of their lives and it's been an honor, a privilege to be called their coach. My heart breaks because they deserve better than this."
Ryan Lanigan can be contacted at [email protected] and followed on Twitter at @R_Lanigan.