Late turnovers sink Wolves in 34-20 loss to Bobcats

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DILLEY WOLVES FOOTBALL

In a season of tough breaks, Dilley suffered through yet another in a difficult 34-20 loss to Comfort on Friday, October 21 at Gosch Field.

The Wolves turned the ball over five times and saw three interceptions returned for touchdowns, including one with the game tied and Dilley driving in Bobcats’ territory and the third and final to secure the win for Comfort.

This loss, however, also ended the Wolves’ playoff hopes.

“The boys again, played hard,” DHS Athletic Director and Head Football Coach David Silva said. “We’re a young team that just needs to learn to finish games.”

It marked the third straight game in which the Wolves either led or were tied late in the contest but couldn’t hold on. Dilley allowed 32 unanswered points to Nixon-Smiley, 12 unanswered to Natalia and 14 straight against Comfort. 

“We had a 19-6 lead over Nixon-Smiley, 6-0 lead over Natalia late in the game, and tied 20-20 against Comfort late in the fourth quarter,” the coach said. “Defensively, the boys have played lights out but surrendered three pick-sixes. It’s a young team but the majority of this group will be back and this upcoming season will be their third year under the system, no excuses.”

Despite their youth, the Wolves never folded after falling behind early. Comfort built a 20-8 lead early in the third behind a huge momentum swing. Trailing by five early in the second half, Dilley was driving at the Comfort 15-yard line, looking to take the lead when the Bobcats stepped in front of a Dilley pass and sailed the other way for a score.

Now trailing 20-8 with around three minutes to play in the third, the Wolves calmly regrouped and added a pair of Seth Cano touchdown runs to tie things up 20-20 late in the fourth quarter.

Dilley had a drive to the Comfort 26 that ended on downs early in the fourth but behind its stout defense, the Wolves tied the game on a Cano 10-yard scamper.

Things then quickly unraveled for the Wolves in the span of mere minutes. Dilley forced another defensive stop and had the ball at the Comfort 46-yard line late in the game when another errant pass was picked off and returned for a touchdown. That score put the Bobcats on top 27-20 late in the fourth. On the Wolves’ very next possession, a third pass was intercepted and returned for a score as Comfort’s lead ballooned to 34-20.

Cano had a hand in all three Dilley scores as he tossed a 51-yard strike to Esai Lozano in the second quarter and then added two second half touchdown runs.

The Wolves had their best offensive effort of the year with 327 yards of offense and 18 first downs but five turnovers, including four interceptions proved costly.

Cano went 14 of 37 for 206 yards with a touchdown and four interceptions. He also ran for 84 yards on 21 carries with two touchdowns as he tallied nearly 300 yards of offense and three scores.

Johnny Rodriguez led the defensive effort with 14 tackles, including two for a loss while Aiden Gonzales and Lozano both had 11 tackles.

Dilley closes out its season this Friday at Karnes City. The Badgers are also out of the playoff picture, sitting a game behind of Comfort, who holds a head-to-head victory over them. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. at Karnes City.