By Mark Schmerling

It was a 14-0 high school football game in the second quarter on Friday evening, with Polk County leading visiting Landrum, but it was still anyone’s game, when the Cardinals drove to within the Polk five-yard line.

They got that far due in large part to a sensational kickoff return by Anthony Anderson, who sprinted all the way to Polk’s seven.

With fourth and goal, Landrum went for the gold, but Polk defenders Damien Jackson and Ryan Badger had other ideas, and stopped the ball carrier at the two, where the Wolverines took over. When the game ended, Polk had a 35-14 win, and a 2-2 record, with two consecutive victories.

“That was a game-changer,” Polk coach Jamie Thompson said of that play that kept Landrum out of the end zone. The Cardinals scored twice in the fourth quarter, but not until the Wolverines had built a 35-0 lead.

Landrum is now 1-2.

“It’s we; it’s us,” is the Wolverines’ theme this year, and fittingly, many individuals contributed.

Quarterback Jamal Wheeler used his legs and his arm to move his team down the field.  You’ll also see number 7 making more tackles. Jordan Smith both carried the ball more than ably, and continued to tackle opposing runners with deadly regularity. Damien Jackson enjoyed another big defensive game. Storm Wheeler intercepted three passes and nearly stole another. Both Bryce Martin and Jamal Wheeler broke up pass plays with near-interceptions. Khiree Green and D.J. Twitty helped spark the defense. Jason Chupp caught passes and tackled ball carriers.

All the while, Landrum quarterback Jacob Corn, receiver/running back Anthony Anderson, Caleb Pruitt and others stubbornly picked away at the Wolverines all evening. Damien Cantrell, who both wrestled and played baseball for the Wolverines earlier this year, showed grit as a Cardinal ball carrier. Skyler Powell made plenty of tackles, and place-kicker Hannah Phillips made both PAT attempts.

Grit was not the difference, said Cardinal coach Jason Farmer, who noted of his players, “They never gave up. We had opportunities.”

Farmer, who has made a point of getting his players “stronger and faster,” observed, “We’ve got to get in the weight room and get stronger. Hats off to those guys,” Farmer said of Polk.

Friday’s game opened with Polk kicking off to Landrum (Twenty minutes later than scheduled, due to concerns about possible stormy weather). Polk’s defense led the Cardinals to punt on a fourth and four, deep in Landrum territory.

Jamal Wheeler led his team downfield, but a holding penalty against the Wolverines put them in a fourth and eight situation. Davis Derkach, who made all five of his PAT attempts on the night, missed a field goal attempt, and the Cardinals took over on their 20.

After Corn ran for two yards and Cantrell ran for six more, Cantrell broke free and wasn’t stopped until he made it to the Polk 48. However, Storm Wheeler picked off a Corn pass, with just under six minutes to go in the first quarter, and ran it back to Landrum’s 40.

Less than ten seconds later, Jamal Wheeler hit Jason Chupp on a long pass that Chupp took into the Landrum end zone. After Derkach’s kick, the Wolverines lead, 7-0.

Landrum’s next drive was derailed when Polk defender Fred Salerno tripped up Corn for a 10-yard loss.

Landrum punted to Polk, who made it down to the Landrum 23, before Storm Wheeler bolted into the end zone for the Wolverines’s second TD, with 11 minutes left in quarter number two.

It was on the subsequent Polk kickoff that Anthony Anderson made his searing dash down to the Wolverine seven, before the Wolverines’ keyed-up defense held its ground and gave the ball back to the offense.

After Landrum set Storm Wheeler back to the one for a yard loss, Jamal Wheeler took the ball to the 12 on a keeper, just inches shy of a first down. Storm Wheeler bulled ahead to the 14 for the first. Two plays later, the Cardinals’Caleb Pruitt tackled Jamal Wheeler for a short loss. Two plays later, Polk punted a short, high punt by Jordan Smith to the Landrum 48. Landrum found itself in a fourth and five bind, but did not punt. Rather, Pruitt carried the ball, but Jamal Wheeler tackled him for a loss, and Polk took over at mid-field.

This time, Polk had to punt again, and Landrum apparently took over at its 15. However, a penalty against the Wolverines set them back to fourth and 17, where Jordan Smith punted once again. Now, Landrum had the ball at its 23. Before the Cardinals could move far, Damien Jackson broke past the Cardinal line and sacked Corn for a 15-yard loss.

Facing a fourth and 25 deep in its own turf, Landrum punted a strange punt that didn’t go far. Polk’s Joshua Kornmayer covered the ball at Landrum’s three, with just over two minutes left in the half. A few plays later, Jamal Wheeler angled into the end zone on a keeper; Derkach booted another one through the uprights and Polk led 21-0.

Polk’s short kickoff gave Landrum the ball at the Cardinal 29. Pruitt ran the ball out to the 40 for a first down. On the next play, Pruitt showed a great second effort, taking the ball to the Polk 46.

After an incomplete pass, the half ended, stopping Landrum’s drive, with Polk riding a 21-0 lead.

Landrum kicked to Polk to begin the second half, with Chupp taking the ball to his own 39. From there, Jamal Wheeler burst free and scampered 61 yards for another score. A kick later, and it was 28-0, Polk.

After Polk’s kick, Landrum started at its 40. Corn hit Anderson for 11 yards for a first down at Polk’s 49.

On a subsequent third and eight, Storm Wheeler picked off his second pass of the night, near the Polk 30, and ran to the Landrum 34. However, an illegal block cost the Wolverines, who were marched back to their 30.

From there, Jamal Wheeler reversed himself, as he has done often and productively, and ran the ball to his 40 for a first down. Later, on a fourth and six, Polk focused forward. Jamal Wheeler hit Jordan Smith on a short pass. Smith turned on his jets and carried the ball to the Landrum 10.Two plays later, Jamal Wheeler took the ball to the Landrum two, was tackled hard, and the ball popped loose into the end zone.

Landrum alertly covered the ball for a touchback, and took over at its 20, with about four minutes remaining in the third quarter. The Cardinals were unable to move forward, and Polk took over at the visitors two, after a dead ball foul. With just under four minutes left in the third quarter, Jordan Smith took the ball in for a touchdown, and after another Derkach kick, Polk enjoyed a 35-0 lead.

When Landrum next got the ball, Cantrell made runs to mid field and to the Polk 31.

The quarter ended, with Landrum holding the ball. Powell carried to the Polk 25. Two plays later, Corn hit Caleb Pruitt at the Polk five. Powell then bulled into the end zone for a score. Phillips made the PAT.

Landrum’s defense held Polk in check, and when the Cardinals next got the ball, Corn connected with Pruitt who took the ball the rest of the way, for Landrum’s second TD. Phillips hit another PAT,and the scoring ended at 35-14.

While the scoring was over, the respective efforts were not. After Storm Wheeler narrowly missed an interception, Skyler Powell made a diving catch of one of Corn’s passes, this at Polk’s 15. On a third and 10, Storm Wheeler (you guessed it) picked off another pass, this one in the end zone.

Polk took over at its 20, with two-plus minutes left in the game. From there, the Wolverines let the clock run out, and a game that began with the possibility of another close finish between two rivals ended, following a different script.

After the game, Thompson acknowledged the “great” Wolverine fans, and told his players, “You came out focused and ready to go. You kept your composure. I love you. I’m proud of you.”

What did Thompson tell his players in the days preceding the game? Hint: it wasn’t about the well-publicized rivalry.

“I told them all week that the focus would be on playing to our potential. We couldn’t get lost in the rivalry.” Thompson noted that the Wolverines couldn’t get sidelined by focusing on the historic nature of the two teams’s history in the 23 years since Polk County High School grew from two older schools consolidating.

Thompson admitted that the Wolverines have not yet reached their potential, but even so, he never doubted who would win on Friday. “I never felt there was any risk of our losing control of the game.”

As for Landrum, Farmer knows he has tough, competitive players. “We gutted it out,” he said of the game. Of all the tough Cardinal players, Farmer said Jacob Corn “is really our toughest.”

What did Farmer tell his players prior to the contest?

“Enjoy it,” he said “That’s what high school football is all about,” and about creating memories. He noted that “we’ve got to get working,” to make those memories.

Regardless of the outcome, Thompson had plenty of respect for the Cardinals.

“They took some things away from us inside . . . We were able to home run them (offensively). Each week, we’re looking a little bit better.”

This Friday, the Wolverines travel to East Henderson, while Landrum visits Carolina.