By CRAIG ADKINS
For The Reporter
CARMEL – The Carmel football team hadn’t played Brebeuf Jesuit since 1980 and the Greyhounds had a 8-0 record against the Braves in games that were played from 1973-80.
The Braves came into last night’s game on a high note after winning a thriller at Guerin Catholic last week (69-62) and came away with a stunning 28-27 win over Carmel.
The Hounds got off to a great start in the first. After Brebeuf turned it over on downs at the Carmel 22, the Greyhounds marched down the field, converting a fourth down and five from the 49. They would have a third and goal from the 19. That’s when Anthony Coellner found Jacob Bellin for a 19-yard touchdown for a 7-0 lead.
In Brebeuf’s next series, quarterback Maverick Geske threw an interception to Nate Williams. That put Carmel in business. Coellner hit Dominic Shockley for a 36-yard strike for a 14-0 advantage after one quarter.
The Braves got on the board almost immediately with a 39-yard TD catch by Taylor Clark from Geske, cutting it to 14-7.
The two offenses traded picks, the later by Carmel’s Nate Williams for his second.
Coellner threw his second touchdown, again to Bellin from 14 yards for the 21-7 margin.
Brebeuf would score twice more before halftime on two more touchdown passes and the score was tied 21-21 at the half.
“They made plays. Their explosive plays are not just chunks. They’re the length of the entire field and those are hard to overcome,” said a frustrated Carmel head coach John Hebert.
“You’ve got to get yourself ready to go on the next series. We took advantage of some and not others, so it was tighter than what it could’ve been. They made plays at the end, and we were short two points,” continued Hebert.
The third quarter consisted of a few punts, a lot of penalties from both teams and Carmel turning the ball over on downs at the Braves’ 23 didn’t help either.
“They (penalties) were untimely, and they extended drives when we thought we were getting off the field,” stated Hebert.
“I’ve got to watch them on tape to evaluate. They certainly did us in in the short term and they found a way to continue the drive after that,” added Hebert.
Wide receiver Liam Mann got Carmel back in from 27-21 on a 25-yard touchdown catch from Coellner. Prior to the extra-point attempt, the Greyhounds were called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, moving the attempt back to make it a 37-yard try. The kick would be long enough, but just left of the upright from Lukas Krishtanmoorthy.
The momentum stayed to Carmel on Brebeuf’s next drive. Nate Williams found his way to a third interception of Geske, but the ‘Hounds went three and out and punted.
On the second play of the Braves’ next drive, Geske was rushed and completed a jump pass to Taylor Clark, who raced to a 65-yard score that made it 28-27 with 8:32 left in the fourth.
“I think their quarterback does a really nice job. The ball is not in his hands for very long, but you can tell he has a great rapport with his receivers. They have a great connection, and he puts the ball right where they can catch it. They use that space for big plays, and it worked for them tonight,” stated Hebert.
Krishtanmoorthy would miss a 37-yard field goal just left on Carmel’s next possession.
Carmel’s defense was amped up as Brebeuf started driving. The Braves had a fourth down and four at the Greyhound 41 and the pass attempt was batted down by Dylan Gould.
The Greyhounds had their final opportunity to try to get the lead for the win with 2:02 left. Once again, penalties became a drive killer. They wound up with a fourth down at 15 at their own 48 with 58.9 seconds left. Coellner’s pass would fall incomplete, turning it over on downs back to the Braves. Brebeuf took a knee for the final play to run out the clock.
“It’s going to be a real challenge. We still have to go through all of this, watch the tape and figure out what’s correctable and what good things were there too,” said Hebert.
Brebeuf Jesuit (4-1) won its fourth straight game and plays at home next week against Roncalli
(2-2). The Royals were victors at home over Guerin Catholic, 35-23.
Geske threw for 336 yards and four TDs, along with three interceptions, all to Nate Williams. CJ Harris rushed 18 times for 103 yards, while Taylor Clark caught six passes for 194 yards and three TDs.
Carmel (2-3) heads to North Central (0-5) next week. The Panthers were blown out at Butler University’s Butler Bowl by Cathedral, 53-13.
Anthony Coellner had another great night passing, going 33 of 49 for 401 yards and four TDs. Dominic Shockley caught eight for 134 yards and a score. Jacob Bellin grabbed nine for 103 with Liam Mann also catching eight for 81.
