In a game for the ages, the Danville Blue Devils (10-2) continued their playoff march with a 21-point quarterfinals lead, and then had to withstand a fierce comeback attempt and a final-seconds kick by the Hillsdale Falcons (7-5) to take home a 42-41 thriller Friday night in front of a home crowd.
The Danville-Hillsdale regional quarterfinals playoff matchup also featured a heroic return from injury, and the game’s outcome was decided in the final seconds as Danville was able to hang on by a thread to get the win to advance to the Division 7, Region 25 Final Four.
Danville got off to a strong start, enforcing their physicality on both sides of the ball. On their first drive, the Blue Devils were able to score with less than two minutes off the clock after a couple of big catches by Kaiden Colopy, who finished off the drive by taking a screen pass 46 yards to the end zone after tight-roping the sideline.
On Hillsdale’s first drive, quarterback Jake Hoverstock fumbled as he was trying to fight for a first down. Kendall Carter forced the fumble, and Dillon Looney was able to come up with the football, fighting among a slew of grappling players.
Danville quickly made Hillsdale pay for the mistake. Max Payne took over as a dual-threat quarterback option, unloading a couple of first-down runs and then finding Josh Byers Jr. in the back of the end zone for a touchdown. After a missed extra point, the score put Danville up 13-0 not quite halfway through the first quarter.
Hillsdale continued to look out of sorts offensively, with penalties and missed throws forcing them to punt the ball back to Danville. On the ensuing drive, Danville faced a fourth-and-seven at the Hillsdale 29. Danville coach Matthew Blum decided to go for it, and the Blue Devils converted on a bullet pass from quarterback Walker Weckesser that found Colopy, who made an athletic grab as he fell out of bounds. An end-around run by Colopy gave him his second touchdown of the half. Payne ran in the two-point conversion, and Danville extended its lead to 21-0 before the first quarter came to a close.
The Falcons were able to find a rhythm offensively in the second quarter, but they weren’t able to come up with stops, leading to both teams trading touchdowns. Hoverstock led the Falcons down the field with a mixture of runs and passing plays, setting up a QB sneak on third-and-goal that brought the game within two scores. However, Payne responded with a 50-yard run, helped by a great block from Colopy. On the next play, Colopy took a handoff around the outside for another touchdown, his third of the half, putting Danville up 28-7.
The high-octane affair continued, as Hoverstock again led his team down the field with the Danville defense providing little resistance, and found a wide open Max Vesper to bring the score to 28-14.
The ensuing kickoff rolled out of bounds, giving Danville the ball at its own 40. Weckesser made one of the most impressive plays of the night, escaping a sack and throwing a 40-yard dart across his body to Peyton Horn, setting up first-and-goal. On fourth-and-goal at the one, Payne ran violently up the middle, just managing to cross the goal line on the second effort.
On their final drive of the half, Hillsdale got good field position on Danville’s squib kickoff and made short work of the Danville defense, capping off the drive with a three-yard touchdown run from Braylen Jarvis, cutting Danville’s lead to 35-21 as the game reached halftime. In one key, but potentially overlooked moment of play-calling before the half, Danville called for a fake punt within its own territory and Payne converted, preventing Hillsdale from having a chance at further cutting into the lead.
In the third quarter, the entire fabric of the game changed, as Hillsdale ran the Danville defense onto its heels and Payne came out of the game with an apparent injury.
On the first drive of the half, Hillsdale quickly marched down the field, finishing off the drive with a touchdown run from Jarvis to make it 35-28.
While Danville got good field position off another kick out of bounds on the ensuing kickoff, their offense lacked power and drive without Payne, and Hillsdale defensive end David Parker batted down a key third-down pass from Weckesser to force a punt. The Hillsdale fans erupted, loudly using their cowbells throughout drives.
On the next Hillsdale drive, Owen Sloan erupted for a 49-yard run to the Danville 27. A few key runs from Hoverstock set up another short touchdown run from Jarvis. Just like that, Danville’s 21-point lead was erased, momentum swung, and the team was starting to look outmatched heading into the final quarter.
Hillsdale’s problems on special teams continued, as a third kickoff out of bounds again set Danville up at the 40. It was at that moment that Payne, playing through pain, came onto the field, trying to will himself and his team to glory. While Payne brought the home fans back into the game with a couple of first-down runs, Danville was ultimately stopped on fourth down at the Hillsdale 45.
Danville’s defense, which hadn’t come up with a stop since the first quarter, was tasked with going against what seemed like an unstoppable Hillsdale rushing attack. They didn’t disappoint, as star Blue Devils linebacker Levi Lyons, the No.1 tackler in the KMAC, came up with a pair of tackles in the backfield, forcing Hillsdale to punt.
After Payne threw an interception on a deep pass down the field on Danville’s next drive, the defense faced its biggest moment of the game. On fourth-and-two at their own 39-yard line, Hillsdale decided to go for it with a run up the middle. A swarm of Danville defenders came up with the critical stop, and the home crowd energy at the stadium exploded as Danville fans sensed an opportunity to take control of the game.
Danville rode Payne on the next drive, setting up designed runs, first a 16-yard scamper to the 25, and then a run to the outside setting up first-and-goal at the nine. On the next play, Payne hit Weckesser in the end zone for a touchdown, giving Danville a 42-35 lead with six minutes remaining.
In the game’s final act, Hillsdale slowly and methodically worked its way down the field as fans began to crowd the sidelines, trying to get a closer look at the game’s conclusion.
Hoverstock converted on a pair of third downs, including a pass to Braylen Jarvis on third-and-seven that set them up in the red zone. On fourth-and-two at the 11, they got Danville to jump offsides, setting up first-and-goal at the six. On the next play, Hoverstock ran up the middle, absorbing a big hit from Weckesser as he crossed over the goal line for a touchdown.
Trailing 42-41 with 1:07 remaining in the fourth quarter, Hillsdale chose to go for the two-point conversion in an attempt to win the game. Hoverstock rolled to his right, looking for his open receiver in the corner of the end zone, but pressure from Weckesser prevented an accurate throw.
The Danville home fans celebrated the stop, assuming that it essentially marked the end of the game. That was a wrong assumption, as Hillsdale managed to recover the onsides kick as both teams fought for the ball at the bottom of the pile, with the Falcons taking over at the Danville 47-yard line.
A pair of quick strikes from Hoverstock to Jarvis set up Hillsdale at the Danville 18. However, they were unable to take the pigskin any further, with Danville getting a clutch, athletic pass breakup by Colopy in the end zone. The game, with all of its twists and turns, came down to a single kick in the final seconds. The kick to decide the game was a 36-yard field goal attempt that fell short of the goal line.
The result marked the end of a great season from Hillsdale, and allowed Danville to advance to the regional semifinals, where they will play the Lucas Cubs this Saturday.
“I’m proud of the way the guys responded tonight. In those situations, it really shows the hard work and preparation that all of them put in every single week to allow us to have moments like this in front of this crowd," Danville coach Matthew Blum said when asked about the fight his team showed to keep pressing on after Hillsdale rallied back from a three-score deficit. "I’ll remember this game for a long, long time.”
For the Blue Devils, Weckesser completed 10 of 18 passes for 166 yards and a touchdown.
Payne was 2-for-3 in the air for 17 yards and a score. Payne carried 17 times for a team-leading 138 yards and a TD, Lucas toted the pigskin four times for 30 yards, and Colopy had three carries for 29 yards and two scores. Colopy also caught five passes for 101 yards and a 47-yard TD. Weckesser caught a nine-yard TD option from Payne, and Joshua Byers caught an eight-yarder from Weckesser.
Payne also kicked a 56-yard punt. On defense, Lyons was a force with nine solos and nine assists for 18 tackles, including three for a loss of yards. Weckesser was in on 12 tackles, and Dustin Beckett and Horn both were in on 10. Carter caused a fumble and was in on eight tackles.
No. 3 Danville (10-2) will take on the No. 10-ranked Lucas Cubs (6-6), Saturday, Nov. 12, at Clear Fork High School in the District 7, Region 25 semifinals. Lucas advanced by beating No. 7 Toronto, 35-26, and No. 2 Lowellville, 35-25. Danville beat No. 14 Windham, 41-18, before downing No. 6 Hillsdale. So far this season, Danville has outscored its opponents 337-190 and Lucas has a 331-270 scoring advantage. The winner will take on the winner of the No.1 John F. Kennedy (11-1) vs. No. 4 Southern (11-1) matchup.
