High School Sports

WELLBORN — Coaches with a number of years in the business are often set in their ways. Sometimes, it takes a lot to convince them of things.

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Even when they're trying to convince themselves.

"I keep telling myself we're young," said Wellborn coach Ricky Weems after his team's 34-14 loss. "We're going to make mistakes."

But no matter whether Weems ever convinces himself, it won't mean it'll be any easier to deal with.

Friday's 34-14 loss to Glencoe (2-4, 2-2) was especially hard to take. Wellborn wasn't that far away from winning the game — which would have been the Panthers' first victory of 2008 — but it was those mistakes that put them playing catch-up for nearly three quarters.

Glencoe scored 21 seconds into the game on a 46-yard Trey Hill-to-Tim Chunn pass, but the Panthers answered right back.

Delrickus Rhoden scored from 32-yards out to cap the four-play drive, and with Brandon Hughes' point after, the Panthers took the lead — for the first and last time.

Rhoden finished as the game's leading rusher, with 188 yards on 24 carries and two touchdowns, but his last one, a 67-yarder, didn't come until only 1:24 remained.

Between his two scores, it was just far too many mistakes for Weems' — or any other Panthers' — liking.

Wellborn fumbled four times and lost all four. They threw one interception, too, and were lucky two more didn't get picked off.

After the first touchdown, Wellborn drove 10 plays, only to fumble the ball away. On their next drive, the Panthers missed a field goal, getting no points out of a 14-play, 61-yard drive.

With Glencoe posting touchdowns on its first three drives, the 20-7 hole was just too much for the Panthers to dig their way out of.

"It was just too many mental mistakes," Weems said. "We practice one way and they play a different way in the game.

"A lot of it was just mental mistakes."

Despite Glencoe having more people in coaches' shirts on their sideline than Wellborn had reserves in shoulder pads, fatigue or depth never appeared to become a factor.

In the second half, Wellborn was still able to move the ball. After the Panthers' Jarvis Bolton recovered a Glencoe fumble, the offense mounted a 14-play drive, marching the ball deep into Glencoe territory, only to fumble the ball back to the Yellow Jackets trying to gain extra yardage.

Wellborn's next three drives all ended in turnovers — a snap over the quarterback's head, an interception and a fumble — before its final drive of the night ended with Rhoden's long touchdown run.

Glencoe, however, was not without its own miscues.

The Yellow Jackets had one interception, two fumbles in the span of three plays, and at one point in the third quarter were penalized on four consecutive plays. All total, Glencoe had just that one interception (a pick by Preston Woodard), lost just one fumble, but were penalized 11 times for 139 yards.

The Yellow Jackets' passing game provided the biggest difference to help overcome their mistakes and ultimately win the game. Hill was 13-for-23 for 188 yards and two scores.

While the two touchdowns were enough, it was Glencoe's passing game that was able to keep Wellborn's defense honest and pave the way for its ground game. Bobby White led the Panthers defensive unit with six solo tackles, with two for a loss. Sherman Huston also had two tackles behind the line.

Wellborn returns to action next week as it visits Weaver.