Chiefland gets physical, out-muscles Wildwood in Class 1A-Rural showdown

The Indians resorted to a more physical brand of football in the second half and it paid off against the Wildcats

CHIEFLAND, FLORIDA- The battle for Class 1A-Rural supremacy took place in Levy County and it was hard hitting, tension and action packed.

It had a little bit of everything in this small town matchup between Wildwood and Chiefland. What the contest came down eventually staying the course, being physical and limiting the mistakes. The Indians were that team in the second half and in overtime.

Chiefland got back to its bread and butter of pounding the football behind Dakota Fisher and Junior Brown as they pulled off a thrilling 28-20 overtime victory over Wildwood. 

The match was between two teams that are expected to compete for the Class 1A-Rural state title. The Indians improved to 5-0 and the Wildcats fell to 4-2 on the season.

Chiefland running back Junior Brown finished with 42 yards rushing in the Indians’ win / Photo courtesy of Watson Durham

“That was our gameplan all week and that was to come out and be the more physical team,” Chiefland head coach James Corbin said. “Honestly, I don’t like to make excuses but I thought it was a detriment to the team to not play a football game for two weeks. The offensive line really stepped up in the second half and I couldn’t be more prouder.”

The pads were popping all from the first whistle to the final bell as both teams wanted to make a statement. Wildwood (4-2) would be the team that would get on the scoreboard first in the opening period. Quarterback Jamari Dickens (12-of-27, 199 yards) found a little bit of space, scoring on a 1-yard plunge to put the Wildcats up 8-0 with 8:00 in the first quarter.

Chiefland (5-0) started to face some frustration on the sideline in the first half, but eventually found pay dirt when Brown (15 carries, 42 yards) scored on a 3-yard run to cut the deficit to 8-6 in the second period. 

The Indians in the first half played more as a spread team and by the second half went to their single-wing look from a year ago.

Down 14-6 at intermission, the change for the Indians proved to seriously pay dividends. After a quick Wildwood possession to start the second half, Chiefland scored on its opening possession as wide receiver Clint Thomas scampered in off tackle for a 17-yard touchdown run.

The Wildcats took the lead back just before the fourth quarter when Dickens connected with Vernell Brown III (three catches, 86 yards) on a 12-yard touchdown pass. Armed with a 20-14 advantage, it looked like Wildwood would be able to stave off any Chiefland comeback attempt.

Wildwood quarterback Jamari Dickens threw for 199 yards in the loss.  / Photo courtesy of Watson Durham

Fisher (17 carries, 104 yards) scored on a 6-yard run with 10:00 remaining to tie the score back up at 20-20. Both teams had opportunities to win the game in regulation time and Wildwood got within Chiefland’s 20-yard line with under a minute left. The Wildcats’ self-inflicted penalties pushed them back out of range and into an overtime session.

The game became a slugfest in the second half of the two Class 1A-Rural teams.  / Photo courtesy of Watson Durham

It didn’t take Chiefland too long to find the endzone, with Fisher plowing ahead on an 8-yard run to go up 28-20. The Indians’ defense stood tall and on fourth down, the Wildcats’ last gasp on a Dickens grave would get intercepted by Thomas, thus sending the sideline and crowd into jubilation.

“This (win) is going to give us a good advantage, good motivation and play more physical every game,” Fisher said. “It’s all about winning states this year. Nothing less and nothing more.”

Andy Villamarzo can be reached at andyvillamarzo@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Villamarzo.