Sep 16, 2017 4 min read

ROGERSVILLE – Carmichaels’ 36-30 victory over West Greene Friday night was a tale of two completely different games.

The first game was 30 minutes long.

West Greene was in complete control, winning 30-16. The Pioneers matched the Mikes’ physicality up front, and their skill-position players were, well, more skilled.

It looked like West Greene was going to start 4-0 and beat Carmichaels for the first time in a long time.

The second game started with West Greene quarterback Zach Pettit – one of the most dynamic players in the Tri-County South Conference – getting injured. He was taken off in a stretcher while wearing a neck brace, and the next 18 minutes of the game were unequivocally different than the first 30.

Carmichaels scored three straight touchdowns and shut out the Pettit-less Pioneers offense to finish off its win.

“Pettit’s our field general,” said West Greene head coach Rod Huffman.

“He’s our leader, him and Ben (Jackson). Without him, we’re a different team, and it showed.”

Carmichaels head coach said it’s clear Pettit’s absence had an affect on the game.

“Is that kid a difference maker? You’re right he is,” Krull said.

“Class A football, even getting into Double-A, we’re not blessed with 50 or 60 or 70 kids. … I think we all know, if our guy goes down, we’re in trouble. That’s the unfortunate thing about it. Good quarterbacks are so hard to come by, they really are, especially ones who can run it and throw it like him.”

The game started about as poorly for the Mikes as possible. A short kickoff was bobbled by the Mikes’ return team, and a West Greene player hopped on top of the loose ball.

The Pioneers started the drive only 35 yards from the end zone and scored eight players later on a 3-yard Pettit run to give his team the 6-0 lead.

The Mikes went three-and-out on their next drive, and West Greene added to its lead with a one-yard rush from sophomore fullback Andrew Litton. After a Ben Jackson two-point conversion, the Pioneers led 14-0.

The Mikes bounced back with an eight-yard run from sophomore quarterback Kevin Kelly to cut its deficit to six points.

It only took three plays for the Pioneers to get back on the board for the last score of the first half. The drive started with a 61-yard pass from Pettit to Connor Main and ended with another three-yard run from Pettit, who finished the game with 89 yards rushing on 15 carries and 88 yards passing on four completions.

The start to the second half was a complete turnaround from the start of the first half. West Greene went three-and-out, and Charles Lowry blocked the Pioneers punt and returned it to the three-yard line.

Senior running back Nick Mundell ran for a three-yard touchdown on the next play to bring the Mikes with a score.

“We were fortunate that we made some plays in the second half and blocked a punt – that was huge,” Krull said. “We dropped a pick-six right before that on the same drive. Our guys came out in the second half and they wanted it.”

Pettit then led the Pioneers on a 10-play, 65-yard touchdown drive, which ended with a five-yard Pettit touchdown run.

On the drive, Pettit was injured and wouldn’t return for the rest of the game as he was carted off the playing field.

The Mikes then scored three straight touchdowns, and the Pioneers couldn’t get anything going on offense. Mundell ran for a five-yard touchdown at the end of the third quarter.

The Pioneers went three-and-out, and the Mikes took two deep shots on the Pioneers’ defense. The first was incomplete, but the second was a 67-yard touchdown strike from Kelly to junior Garrett Ponick to tie the score at 30.

The Pioneers moved across midfield on their next drive but were stopped on a fourth-and-inches play.

“That was a terrible spot over there on that fourth-down call. You can quote me on that,” Huffman said.

“To me, that was the turning point in the game. Even though we had our second-string, third-string quarterback in. That was a terrible spot, and we should’ve had the first down.”

Mundell then gave the Mikes the lead for good with his third rushing touchdown of the game – this time from five yards out.

“I told the kids this after, when they walk out the door and the lights go off at the fieldhouse, it’s time to move on,” Krull said.

“But we’ll enjoy this one a little bit longer.”