CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – Clarksville High and Rossview kicked off the 2019 high school football season in Clarksville Friday at Hilda J. Richardson Field, as the two teams met for the 17th time in the Warfield Shield game rivalry.
The Wildcats put together a stellar fourth quarter on both sides of the ball, capturing a 24-10 victory over the Hawks in the season opener.
Rossview paid the price at the hands of Price Warfield who picked off the Hawk pass attempt and took it the distance for six points and the eventual game-winning score.
Clarksville head coach Isaac Shelby said he couldn’t have scripted a better ending to the game.
“It was awesome man,” Shelby said. “That kid just battles. It was a great play and I’m very proud of him.”
The visiting stands were loud for most of the contest, as the Hawks traveled well to support their team.
“Our fans are great,” Rossview head coach Todd Hood said. “It’s much more fun to win, but that’s part of football. We’re going to keep battling and keep getting better. I’ve very proud to be coaching here at Rossview and very proud of my kids tonight.”
On the Wildcats’ opening possession of the game, Rossview was called for pass interference on fourth-and-seven to keep the Clarksville drive alive. Hunter Busbee proceed to rip off a huge gain on the ground, setting up the first score of the night for the Wildcats.
Despite the early miscue, Hood liked the resilience his group showed the rest of the way out.
“I was really proud of the way our kids played tonight,” Hood said. “The energy level was very sharp. I thought the defense played well. The first half was good for us. The second half not so much. There were critical times where we needed to make plays, but didn’t do it.”
The Hawks later found some momentum on the ground, punching it in from 11 yards out to tie the game at 7-7 in the second quarter.
With under seven minutes remaining in the first half, Rossview kicker Aaron Pardo extended the Hawk lead to 10-7 with a 25-yard field goal.
In the second quarter, Clarksville connected through the air for a huge gain, but the Hawks were able to force a fumble and recover the loose ball to eliminate the Wildcat threat.
Ball security appeared to be a glaring issue for CHS in the early going, but Shelby isn’t too worried about his group’s ability to hold onto the ball moving forward.
“It’s something we work on every day and tonight wasn’t our night on it,” Shelby said. “It changed the first half, but we’ll keep working at it.”
Both teams struggled offensively to start the second half, but a 34-yard kick off the foot of Clarksville’s kicker Zach Langford tied the game at 10-all late in the third quarter.
Shortly after Warfield’s interception returned for a touchdown, Rossview failed to handle a Clarksville punt cleanly, as the ball ended up in the hands of a Wildcat.
Wildcat quarterback Colby Cook put the game on ice late in the fourth quarter, diving into the endzone for Clarksville’s final score of the contest.
The Wildcat win marked their third straight in the series, giving Clarksville an 11-6 overall record against their crosstown rival.
“Beating such a well-coached team like Rossview is hard to do anytime,” Shelby said. “We’re grateful to have that win and now we move on to Springfield.”
Clarksville (1-0) travels to take on Springfield Friday, Aug. 30 while Rossview (0-1) hosts LaVergne Friday, Aug. 30.
Hood discussed how his team can regroup and immediately turn their attention to the Wolverines after dropping such an emotional rivalry game.
“It’s going to be tough,” Hood said. “We’ll get in tomorrow, watch film and work them out. It’s a very emotional game when you play this type of atmosphere and your crosstown rival. We’ll bond together, travel together and see if we can find a win.”