It was a matchup long overdue, the first ever meeting between 2015 state champions Kinder and Notre Dame and it did not disappoint. The Pios overcame a 28-0 first half Kinder lead to extend their regular season win streak to 30 when John William Lamm booted a 35-yard field goal with 2:06 to play for a 38-37 Notre Dame win.
“I’m going to tip my cap to Kinder, but I’m going to take my hat off to the guys in the red helmets,” explained coach Lewis Cook. “To go through what they went through all week, losing a classmate, you can’t ignore the fact that it happened. It’s not an excuse, but it’s hard and I can’t ask them to make football first. They aren’t thinking about that and I can’t blame them. I wouldn’t expect them to. But to come back and do what they did when everything was going against us. That was amazing!”
It looked like a typical Notre Dame start when Cameron Nelson returned a punt 75 yards for a touchdown, but a block in the back nullified the score. Three plays later, the Pios punted it back.
Kinder QB Trent Johnson converted a fourth and two by creasing the defense for a 22-yard run. Johnson then converted a fourth and eight with a 12-yard pass to Hayden Thomas. Johnson found Jordan Cordova for a 7-yard TD pass for a 7-0 Kinder lead.
Notre Dame fumbled it back on the next play and Thomas ran 24 yards to put the Yellow Jackets up 14-0. Two plays later, Keyon Pugh intercepted a Garrett Bergeron pass and returned it 30 yards for a score to make the Kinder lead 21-0 in a span of less than three minutes.
“We were getting outplayed,” added coach Cook. “They were whipping us. They fumbled three times and we don’t have anyone around it and they get back on them. When you are playing at the same pace, you are going to get some of those. They had us on our heels defensively and offensively we were getting ripped up front.”
The Pios didn’t pick up a first down until the fourth play of the second quarter and had just 3 yards of offense before another punt. Kinder QB Trent Johnson turned the corner for a 74-yard TD run and Notre Dame found itself down 28-0.
“We had some blown assignments in the running game and they were juking our guys to get open on pass plays,’’ assessed Pios defensive coordinator James McCleary. “We didn’t read our keys very well when it came to the quarterback and the pitch. I don’t know if we were as focused as we should have been but it still comes down to being disciplined.”
The Pios went to the passing game and struck quickly with two big plays. QB Garrett Bergeron completed a 19-yard pass to Landon Meche on a deep out at the Pios 37. Bergeron then threw a swing pass to Waylon Bourgeois who got outside and turned it up for a 63-yard pass and run. John William Lamm added the point after to get the Pios on the board 28-7.
“The screen to get that first touchdown when nothing was going our way was big for us,” reflected Cook. “We found a few plays that allowed us to continue to move it and get back in the game. It was just a matter of keep doing what we were doing and just keep fighting and hoping to come out of it OK.”
ND DL Tucker Kojis pressured Johnson into a third down incompletion and a punt to the ND 47. QB Bergeron went downfield for a 30-yard first down pass hauled in by Gentry Borill. Noah Bourgeois added a 23-yard run to the Yellow Jackets 12. Garrett Bergeron scored on a one-yard sneak three plays later cutting the Kinder lead to 28-14.
The Pios defense just couldn’t get off the field and with a minute and a half left Kinder positioned for a field goal. Zack Lafarque lined a spiraling kick through the uprights from 34-yards out as time expired in the half with Kinder ahead 31-14 on the top ranked Pios.
Notre Dame drove to the Kinder 32 with the third quarter kick, but an interception halted the threat. Pios linebackers Thomas Stevens and John Hoffpauir, who led the Pios with 10 tackles, stepped up with big stops on the next Kinder series to force another punt.
Cameron Nelson returned the kick 55-yards to the Yellow Jackets end zone and for the second time in the game had the scoring return called back for a penalty. This time, the Pios offense responded by driving 35-yards in five plays to make it 31-21 Jackets.
The key play, perhaps in the game, was a one-yard run by Waylon Bourgeois who took a late hit at the end of the play and prompted a response from teammates against a Kinder team that had most of the game taunted their lead with on the field antics. It was a spark Kinder would regret.
On fourth and four at the Kinder 29, QB Bergeron connected with Gentry Borill on a 9-yard quick slant for a first down. Waylon Bourgeois popped through the right side of the line for a 20-yard touchdown and Lamm kicked the PAT to pull the Pios within ten of the Jackets.
“We didn’t really do a lot different,” noted Cook. “We had some things we thought would go for us and sometimes they did, sometimes they didn’t. They were gambling and taking chances and that allowed us to pop some of those runs.”
The Pios defense was also a different team in the second half. Alex Brouillette sacked Kinder QB Johnson for a 10-yard loss after the ensuing kickoff. John Hoffpauir ran down Johnson on and option to force a third down and long. Johnson looked downfield and Pios safety David Schmid read the play from the snap, waiting for the throw and reacting for an interception at the Kinder 42.
“We were more disciplined in the second half,” explained defensive coordinator McCleary. “I thought we did really good in the front seven. We took #21 out of the game, we just didn’t do very well on the perimeter. I do think the way we fought back says a lot about their character that they never gave up and kept trying.”
Collin Kirsch broke another big third down play with a 32-yard run to the Kinder two. Bergeron kept from the power formation for a one-yard score to get the Pios within 31-28 with the point after.
With two minutes to play in the third quarter, the Pios again shut the gaps of the Kinder flex bone and forced a fumble from QB Hayes Fawcett. Pio Zeke Petitjean recovered at the Kinder 17-yard line.
QB Garrett Bergeron completed a 13-yard pass to Gentry Borill on first down and on the next play Waylon Bourgeois powered in from the four. Lamm added the extra point to give Notre Dame its first lead of the night, 35-31.
Kinder stormed back from the 21-point Pios run to reclaim the lead on a 60-yard TD run by QB Trent Johnson. The senior two-way performer rushed for 212 yards on the night. The extra point was blocked by Alex Gardiner and left the Kinder lead at two points, 37-35.
“In the fourth quarter when things were tight they kind of got flustered again,” said coach McCleary about his defense. “The biggest thing is that they try to overdue things. They try too hard at times instead of letting the game come to them.”
The Pios drove to the Kinder 29 where QB Bergeron suffered his third interception of the evening. The Pios defense got back in gear with Tucker Kojis and Thomas Stevens combining for a third down stop at the Kinder 30. Cam Nelson returned the punt 21 yards and with just under six minutes to play ND set up at its 41-yard line.
Waylon Bourgeois gained 26 yards on first down. Notre Dame got to the Kinder 17 on a pass interference call when Gentry Borill was leg whipped by a beaten defender. With just under four minutes to play, John William Lamm split the uprights from 35 yards to give the Pios a 38-37 lead.
Time for another defensive gem and the Pios got it on fourth and four at the ND 43 with a minute to play. Tucker Kojis and Thomas Stevens stopped Trent Johnson a yard short of the sticks and the Pios ran out the clock for the win.
“It wasn’t an outstanding night for us,” summed up coach Cook. “At times it was as ugly as it could get. But teams with heart and desire find a way to get it done. The Pios never really went away. They had to fight all night and I am awfully proud of them to come back like we did.”
Notre Dame returns to home turf next week. The Pios will host Lake Charles College Prep for homecoming. The game will be played in the Rayne High Stadium.