Promising season ends for Bulldogs with first-round exit: 'It's a tough pill to swallow'
Oct. 28—MAHOMET — Jack Gallier, the heart and soul of the team, kneeled at the 50-yard line and stared ahead at the orange and navy tents set up behind the east end zone at Frank Dutton Field.
Luke Johnson, the backfield workhorse, crouched off to the side to let the emotions out while the rest of his teammates started a single-file line to hug their coaches.
Jon Adkins, the head coach who believed in his guys all season, embraced his wife, hat tucked over his face, after doing so with each of his players.
Then, it started to rain again.
Fourth-seeded Mahomet-Seymour had just fell 20-19 to 13-seed Triad in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs, so the rain fit the mood, but it also put an early end to the Bulldogs' attempt to soak up their last moments on the field this season.
"It's a tough pill to swallow because I couldn'tbe more proud of this group of kids," Adkins said as water began dripping from the bill of his hat. "Nobody, and I mean nobody, gave this group a chance outside of our locker room. All everybody wanted to talk about was who we lost from last year and that these kids couldn't win. These kids proved them all wrong."
M-S ended its season with a 7-3 record after not losing a single game until the state quarterfinals the last two years. The goal was to take that next step, and while the Bulldogs didn't get there, they did win a third consecutive Apollo Conference title for the first time in program history and have plenty more to be proud of.
"It's not the type of emotions I wanted," Gallier said. "At the end of the day, whether it's first round, semifinals or even the state title game, I left no regrets on the field. I give all glory to God for putting me in this position. I'm just glad I was part of this organization for four years."
Things looked promising for the Bulldogs early. Brock VanDeveer intercepted a pass on Triad's first offensive play of the game, and Johnson broke loose for a 45-yard touchdown a few plays later to give M-S the first score of the night.
Johnson added another touchdown, this one from inside the 5-yard line, to start the second quarter to give M-S a 13-0 lead.
It was chilly, rainy and windy throughout most of the first half, making it hard to get anything going with the passing game. The Bulldogs attempted one pass on the first drive of the game, which fell incomplete, and didn't call another pass the rest of the half.
Johnson is one of 14 seniors who just played their last game in an M-S uniform, and the Bulldogs gave him the ball play after play Friday.
"It hurts because you don't want to see it end," Adkins said. "I'm incredibly proud of them. I love them to death, and I'm going to miss them. Somebody's got to lose, but we didn't want it to be us."
Triad got on the board during its ensuing possession to make it 13-7 going into halftime.
The rain stopped before the start of the second half, and that's when the Knights' passing attack picked up. They had a 37-yard completion set them up for a touchdown run from inside the 10-yard line and give them a 14-13 lead.
M-S immediately responded by marching downfield with ease and taking the lead back on a 2-yard run by VanDeveer.
The score was 19-14 heading into the fourth quarter, and it stayed that way until there was only 2:11 left on the clock. Triad scored again to take a one-point lead, giving M-S time for one more shot.
After a couple sacks and a penalty, the Bulldogs faced a fourth-and-long to decide the season. Lucas Dyer dropped back to pass and launched the ball down the left sideline as he got hit. The ball hung in the air for what felt like a full minute, and a Triad defender tipped it out of bounds to ice the game.
"When you're a family, it hurts," Adkins said. "There are 14 guys we aren't going to see on a regular basis, who aren't going to be on this field again, who aren't going to go to practice with us anymore. They're always going to be part of this family. It's 'See you later,' not 'Goodbye.'"
