The Blue Devils suffered a mauling at the paws of the Putnam Valley Tigers in this year’s Homecoming Game, but the loss didn’t beat their school spirit.
In our small school, Homecoming week is an important way to unify the community. The week contains many exciting events, such as a parade and the game under our “Friday Night Lights.” A set of rented field lights– a rarity for Haldane– created an electric atmosphere for everyone involved during the big night.
While there were many enjoyable moments, the centerpiece of the week was the football game itself. Unfortunately, it did not end in our favor. This year, Haldane varsity football faced a difficult task, with their Homecoming opponents being the Putnam Valley Tigers, an infamous rival of the Blue Devils. The Devils struggled against the Tigers before ultimately losing to the stronger players. “I was proud of their fight,” Assistant Coach Jeffrey Sniffen stated. “They went against a team that was physically bigger than them, older than them, more experienced than them, and yet they fought pretty hard from the beginning of the game, to almost to the end of the game.”
The game got off to a bad start for the Blue Devils with Putnam Valley scoring within the first 8 minutes of the game, and again with 1 minute and 20 seconds left in the first quarter. While this did not look promising for the rest of the game, Haldane’s effort did not falter for even a second, and they came back in the second quarter scoring via a 21-yard pass 4 and a half minutes into the second quarter. Unfortunately, the extra kick was missed and the score remained at 14-6 with the Blue Devils trailing.
Over the rest of the second and third quarter, Haldane was able to hold the Tigers where they were while having some impressive offensive and defensive plays. It wasn’t until the 4th quarter where the game began to shift. The referees called a targeting penalty on Linebacker Merrick Williams; he was going to block a pass, but since his hands weren’t up, it looked more like he was trying to go after the quarterback. Williams did end up running into the QB, who, because of the difference in momentum, went flying, making the hit look even worse. This call resulted in a 15-yard penalty and an automatic first down for Putnam Valley, changing the game.
After this call, about 4 minutes into the fourth 4th quarter, the Tigers scored with a 21-yard touchdown pass and gained the extra point along with it, disrupting the previously unchanged score. Putnam Valley continued to make the score deficit larger three minutes later through a 7-yard pass, which was run 11-yards into the end zone, with only 5 and a half minutes left on the clock. After getting the ball back, Haldane fumbled with 5 minutes left for a turnover to Putnam Valley. With less than a minute of the game remaining, the Tigers threw the ball for a 25-yard touchdown and scored the extra point, bringing the final score to 35-6.
It was a bitter defeat, and the team has much to work on. “We had some costly mistakes,” Sniffen commented, “And to us, that really boils down to just a lack of focus, a lack of attention to detail, and ultimately, a lack of discipline. So that’s the big message and the big takeaway from that game.”
Despite the loss, Sniffen was appreciative of the support shown by the Haldane community. “It was exciting to see so many kids on the sidelines watching the game,” Sniffen said. “Watching all the little kids before the game all lined up, the excitement was definitely palpable, and that’s exciting for Haldane football and its future.”