Joaquin stumbles at the finish line

Things went from bad to worse for the Joaquin Rams Friday night. They have struggled mightily this season adding only one victory to the win column thus far with a 1-6 overall record. The bright side headed into their homecoming matchup with San Augustine was that despite the rough start, Joaquin still controlled their own destiny moving forward. A win over the Wolves and a win over the West Sabine Tigers would ensure their place in the post season.

Despite holding the lead for almost an entire four quarters, the Rams were unable to put San Augustine away.

The Wolves received the opening kick and marched down the field before stalling out inside the 20. Joaquin took over on offense, and with 3:29 left in the first quarter, Gauge Jordan broke loose for a 68-yard touchdown rush.

The Rams’ defense was able to force San Augustine to punt on the ensuing drive, and Jordan capitalized again, this time on an 8-yard touchdown sprint. With a 14-point lead early in the second quarter, Joaquin appeared poised to string together their second win in as many weeks. The Wolves had other plans.

San Augustine quickly answered with a touchdown of their own cutting the lead to seven. Joaquin’s drive stalled and they were forced to punt on fourth down. The Wolf kick returner then muffed the kick, and Joaquin’s Elijah Hardison was able to recover the ball giving Joaquin excellent field position.

With a lot of help from his offensive line, Jordan crossed the goal line yet again giving the Rams a 20-7 lead following a failed two-point conversion attempt. The Wolves scored once more before halftime leaving the score at 2013 headed into the locker room.

The third quarter was a shootout. Justyn Brown scored first for the Rams, but San Augustine answered quickly. Gauge Jordan crossed the goal line for a fourth time before the Wolves answered with a deep pass down the field for a touchdown. With 1:22 left on the clock in the third quarter, Hardison carried the ball to pay dirt. The Rams entered the final quarter with a 41-27 lead.

Within four minutes of play in the fourth quarter, San Augustine tied the game at 41. Brown then threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Jordan giving them a seven-point lead following the extra point. San Augustine took only 13 seconds off the clock before crossing the goal line to trim the lead. Rather than tie things up, the Wolves elected to go for two. This decision ultimately sealed the fate of the Rams. Joaquin was unable to prevent the two-point conversion putting them down by one with 3:34 left to play.

The Rams would be unable to make any headway on offense on their final drive, but with three tim- eouts and a few stops, the Rams could get the ball back with about a minute left to play. Unfortunately, an untimely pass interference penalty on fourth down prevented the Rams from getting one last shot.

This week the Rams will face off against the toughest opponent they’ve met to date, the Timpson Bears. This will be a tough matchup for the Rams but look for them to come out with a chip on their shoulder as they try to atone for last week’s tough loss.