After a 24 point victory against a winless Rochester High School in week seven, Clarkston Wolves Head Coach Kurt Richardson was unhappy with the way his defense played.
After a 27-0 road victory against Birmingham Groves, Richardson again seemed concerned with more than the final score of the football game.
“It was good enough to win. (There were) too many penalties, and we didn’t take care of the football again,” Richardson said.
“Those are the things that will get you beat.”
“I’m proud of my guys, I thought they played hard. I thought Clarkston was fantastic,” said Falcons Coach Brendan Flaherty.
The win moves the Wolves to 8-0 going into the ninth week of the season against the only other undefeated team in Oakland Activities Association Division I play, Lake Orion. The Dragons defeated Troy Athens handedly on Oct. 13.
The Wolves will likely be seeking revenge on Oct. 20 at Clarkston High School when the two teams meet. Lake Orion ended Clarkston’s season in 2005, defeating the Wolves in the district finals of the state playoffs.
Richardson said the Dragons’ offense is strong because of a balance between rushing and passing threats. They also have a great defense and a good kicker, he said.
“They’re solid all the way around, they’re a good football team,” Richardson said.
Richardson said being undefeated going into the last game of the season is something many players dream about.
“This is what we’re all about. This is what we’ve been thinking about since day one,” he said.
Wolves Running Back Jimmy Popp returned to the lineup against Groves and rushed for two touchdowns after missing action in the Rochester victory on Oct. 6.
The first quarter of the game was scoreless until a Clarkston drive made possible by a Kevin Badgley fumble recovery and a fourth down conversion from Popp on an 11-yard Eric Ogg pass. Popp finished what he started taking the pigskin for a two-yard jaunt through the middle of the Falcons defense at 7:30 of the quarter, giving the Wolves a 6-0 lead.
Groves put together a potentially tying drive on their next possession. The momentum ceased when Andy Lyons intercepted a Nolan Procter pass at the two-yard line.
Clarkston would not find the end zone again until the latter half of the second quarter. Badgley scored for the Wolves after catching an Ogg pass on third and 19 at the 6:33 mark. The pair hooked up again for the two-point conversion, pushing the Wolves’ lead to 14 points. Badgley finished with 110 yards receiving and Ogg passed for 135 yards.
The Falcons came back with a 60-yard drive deep into Clarkston territory. The Falcons were stopped on three consecutive plays within five yards of a score. Running Back Steve Rimmer was held up at the three-yard line on a fourth down rush, turning the ball over to the Wolves.
After scoring four touchdowns versus Rochester the week prior, Erik Thompson kicked off a scoring drive for the Wolves with a 40-yard kickoff return in the third quarter. Popp would rush in for the score several plays later from the six-yard line with 6:13 remaining in the quarter.
Clarkston tallied the final points of the game late in the quarter after Thompson streaked for 56 of his 78 yards down the sidelines on the first play of a Clarkston drive.
The Falcons had two additional chances to score after recovering Clarkston fumbles on two consecutive drives.
After Chris Rose recovered a fumble for the Wolves at Groves’ 43-yard line, Clarkston moved into scoring position, but elected to take a knee on two plays to end the game.
“We hate playing them because they’re so good, but they’re just classy,” Flaherty said.