CALEDONIA — On Friday, for the second time this season, the Caledonia High School football team entered halftime trailing by one score and moving the ball well on the ground.
And much like its Week 2 loss to Aberdeen, mistakes and big plays in the second half stymied Caledonia’s hopes for a rally and first win.
The Confederates trailed 12-10 at halftime before Byhalia used a 44-yard run on third-and-22 to score on its opening drive of the second half. Byhalia’s Corvell Todd then returned a punt for 70 yards and a score to extend the lead en route to a 34-18 victory.
“It was very energetic at halftime,” Caledonia senior running back Dylan Hankins said. “I thought we were about to do it and get around that edge. But that punt broke away and I felt everything change.”
The winless start hasn’t stopped Caledonia coach Ricky Kendrick from trying to steer the team in the right direction in the first year of his second stint at the school. He’s animated and boisterous when his players make a mistake, but he’s upbeat and honest about the challenges and the long row they continue to hoe.
“We’re inexperienced, and we know that coming in,” said Kendrick, whose team slipped to 0-4. “Our guys are working hard, working as hard as anyone’s players are working.”
When the Confederates played mistake-free football, they were competitive. The running game notched 243 yards without a pass completion. Hankins, who spent most of his reps the first three weeks at linebacker, led the Confederates with 134 yards on 19 carries and a score.
Prior to Byhalia’s punt return touchdown, a blocking penalty wiped out a first-down run from Hankins that reached Byhalia territory.
“It’s very frustrating,” Hankins said. “I felt like we put it all out there, gave it our all, but we’d shoot ourselves in the foot. It’s very, very, very irritating.”
Hankins convert on fourth-and-inches with a 2-yard run. His 10-yard scoring run cut Byhalia’s lead to 28-18 early in the fourth quarter.
But on third-and-12 on Byhalia’s next offensive series, Caledonia was flagged for having too many players on the field. The play had resulted in an incomplete pass and fourth down, but Byhalia turned the lifeline into a 34-18 lead five plays later.
“We just have to grow up,” Kendrick said. “We are not designed by what we do and by our ability right now to overcome a lot of big mistakes and adversity. We have to stay ahead of the chains. When we do, we’re in really good shape. When we have those penalties, we have a hard time recovering from that. We know it, and we’re going to work to get better at that.”
Kendrick said he and his staff must work to prepare his players better.
“I say this in my classroom, I don’t believe in luck,” Kendrick said. “A team that fails to prepare has prepared to fail. I have to take some of that on me. As coaches, we have to prepare better. We got to make sure to do the little things and be disciplined, and that doesn’t only occur on the grass, but in the classroom. We saw some breakdowns in our character tonight, and that’s what we ultimately want to build. I want good young men around me, and I think that’ll take care of itself.”
Tyrico Richmond led Byhalia with 170 yards on 17 carries and three touchdowns. Jedarius Gore and Brandon Chrest had sacks for Caledonia.
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