Watauga’s iconic season ends in Round 2, falling to Mallard Creek, 23-0

November 23, 2024

1

DSC01116e-X3 — Evan Burroughs fends off a Mallard Creek defender for a short gain on Nov. 23, in Round 2 of the state playoffs. Photo by Jared Everett for High Country Sports

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — When playing against one of the best high school defenses in the state and not blocking according to plan, just about any team is doomed to take a licking. That was Watauga’s fate on Nov. 23 in Round 2 of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association 4A state playoffs. In spite of visiting Mallard Creek being flagged with 15 penalties and 167 yards, the Mavericks ran roughshod over previously undefeated Watauga on Nov. 23, 23-0.

Penalty flags were a common occurrence on Nov. 23 during Watauga’s Round 2 playoff game vs. Mallard Creek at Jack Groce Stadium. The Mavericks were called for 15 penalties, including 10 for offensive holding. Photo by Jared Everett for High Country Sports

The atmosphere wasn’t quite as electric as earlier Pioneer playoff games, the crowd thinned due to a conflicting App State Football home test against Sun Belt Conference rival, James Madison that included the Mountaineers’ Senior Day festivities. Originally schedule for Nov. 22 (Friday), the NCHSAA Round 2 playoff game was moved to Saturday because there had been no school on Friday, due to snow.

The lack of filled grandstands didn’t stop the regular tenants of Jack Groce Stadium from trying, however. It is just that against a substantially larger school’s team comprised of many players who will go on to compete at the next level, in college, Watauga was going to have to play mistake-free football.

And they didn’t. In addition to missed blocking assignments, there were penalties, bad snaps and miscommunications on offense. On defense, the gaps weren’t filled quickly enough to stop the speedy and athletic Mavericks carrying the football.

With many of their biggest gains called back because of holding penalties, Mallard Creek was only able to roll up 276 yards of total offense. Defensively, though, they held the usually potent Pioneer offense to just 87 total yards, 45 rushing and 42 through the air.

Nothing worked for the Pioneers. Mallard Creek stuffed the run attempts through the center. They stifled Watauga’s attempts to attack the perimeter. And the Mavericks’ secondary was effective in covering Pioneer receivers, with Watauga quarterback Maddox Greene simply running out of time before being tackled in the backfield or just barely making it back to the line of scrimmage.

Due to a conflicting App State home football game, Watauga’s grandstands were not as full as normal — but a number of students turned out in spite of the cold weather. Photo by Jared Everett for High Country Sports

Without question, Mallard Creek deserved to win this football game.

But two things stood out about the Mavericks’ performance— and they lead to our prediction that Mallard Creek will be decimated in the next round by the Hough High School Huskies (Cornelius), which defeated Independence (Charlotte) on Nov. 22, 47-3.

In short, they acted like they had never been there before.

More than any other level of competition, the 4A state playoffs feature the most competent officiating crews in North Carolina. The 4A West playoffs feature the largest schools and, arguably, the best teams. That usually means greater scrutiny and adherence to the rules of the game.

Much of Mallard Creek’s offensive success appears to stem from non-ball carriers’ being taught or encouraged to hold opposing defenders. Against Watauga, the Mavericks were flagged for holding 10 times out of the 15 penalties called against them. One was for pass interference and there were a couple of illegal blocks or personal fouls.

But they were caught 10 times. From looking at our photographer’s captured images, we have to wonder how many times they were not caught because in the images, the holds look very intentional. Get beat by a defender? By any means necessary, don’t let him get to the ball carrier.

This isn’t to say that other teams, including Watauga, don’t slip up and hold from time to time. At Mallard Creek, holding seems to be an epidemic.

Second, Mallard Creek had the poorest display of sportsmanship of any team we have yet to see in high school sports. Beginning with a coach on top of the press box taunting Watauga fans and being asked by school administrators to leave, to the Maverick players themselves coming over to the Watauga sidelines after the game, even onto the track below the grandstands and behind the player benches, to mock and deride the Pioneers and the Watauga fans in the grandstands.

Quarterback Maddox Greene escapes the clutches of a Mallard Creek defender. Photo by Jared Everett for High Country Sports

In short, they acted like they had never been there before, as if they had never won before, devoid of any semblance of professionalism. If such childishness is encouraged or tolerated by Mallard Creek coaches, at the very least they showed they didn’t have control.

Again, against Watauga, Mallard Creek was the better opponent and deserved the win, but unless they clean up their act, our prediction is they will not go much further than next week against Hough.

After the game, Watauga head coach Ryan Habich complimented his players for continuing to battle throughout the contest and was genuinely pleased with the season-long effort. It was the seventh consecutive season in which Watauga went undefeated in the Northwestern Conference, winning the league championship each time.

“We didn’t block very well,” he acknowledged to reporters later.

Of note, senior quarterback Maddox Greene finished his four years as the Pioneers’ starting quarterback, taking over midyear as a freshman, amassing almost 5,000 yards rushing and over 4,300 yards passing.