Pollard’s late sack cinches much-needed win for Platte County

At this point, the route to the victory didn’t matter, just the result.

Raytown might have put up a late touchdown and then recovered an onside kick to create some unnecessary dramatic moments, but Platte County made the plays when necessary. The Pirates sealed a 31-26 Suburban Conference White Division victory Friday at Pirate Stadium only after sophomore linebacker Cobe Pollard surged through the line of scrimmage to record his second sack of the fourth quarter.

Platte County (2-4) stopped a two-game losing skid and potentially started a momentum-building path toward the postseason with a schedule seemingly opening up down the stretch.

“Without a doubt, we’re to a point where we need wins just for confidence and morale,” Platte County coach Bill Utz said. “The same battle cry of close but not there gets old. Honestly, you kind of run out of things to say. You just keep battling and hope they trust what you’re doing, and I think that’s a good example of what they did tonight. There were times where we could have caved, and kids stepped up and made some great individual plays, great team plays and battled all the way to the end.”

Platte County senior quarterback Dylan Zimmerman and Raytown senior counterpart Nathan Whitebear threw four touchdown passes apiece in what became a bit of a back-and-forth struggle. However, the Pirates never trailed, and Zimmerman’s second scoring connection with sophomore wide receiver Dayton Doll in the waning moments of the third quarter increased the lead to 31-20.

However, Platte County finished with only 315 yards of offense, and Zimmerman completed 12 of 26 attempts for 254 yards, doing just enough in combination with an improved but still overall inconsistent running game. The Pirates’ defense came up with just enough stops without star senior safety Cameron Wolfe (hamstring) and senior defensive tackles Mar’Ques Brown (disciplinary) and Gage Fulk (knee) while shuffling to a 3-3-5 formation to account for the absences.

Platte County sophomore linebacker Darrell Smith led the way with 11 tackles, while Pollard (10 tackles, 1 for loss in addition to two sacks), sophomore Archie Wesley (four tackles in his second game back from knee injury) and even senior Peyton Nickell (one quarterback hurry) saw increased snaps especially after senior linebacker Cameron Dean (four tackles) left with a potentially serious elbow injury. Dean’s absence only added to the shuffling after going from four down linemen to three linebackers at most times Friday.

“The next man up is our most important people,” said senior defensive lineman Blake Rueckert, who recorded a career-high 10 tackles. “They always have to be ready, paying attention, focused and know what to do.”

Raytown (3-3) managed only 77 yards rushing — 56 for senior running back Freddy Ersery and 21 for Whitebear on 22 attempts apiece.

Whitebear’s passing, especially on run-option plays, created continual problems for Platte County with the Blue Jays scoring on passes 62, 44 and 51 yards. The latter cut a game-worst 24-12 deficit to 24-20 after a successful two-point pass from Whitebear to Ersery with 3 minutes, 42 seconds left in the third quarter. They later drew within 31-26 after Whitebear hit Ersery for a 44-yard gain then converted a third down and a fourth down to keep an 89-yard touchdown drive alive.

The fourth-and-goal conversion resulted in a 7-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Talib Williams with only 44 seconds remaining in regulation, but a failed two-point conversion kept the deficit at 31-26. Without Wolfe, Platte County started third-year senior Garrett Smith-Dean (four tackles, one interception) and junior Jordan Burnett (1 tackle for loss, one pass breakup) at cornerback, while senior Andy McClure (eight tackles) shifted around to allow for sophomore Caden McGhee (one tackle, one pass breakup) to move over from his cornerback spot along with sophomore Montez Clemons (six tackles, one for loss; one pass breakup).

Platte County saw multiple opportunities to extend the lead but never went ahead by more than two possessions as Raytown’s big plays in the pass game piled up.

“We got a little close there, but I think we got the points where it matters; we stopped them when it mattered,” Rueckert said. “And we played together. That’s really the key.”

After the late touchdown, Raytown successfully executed the onside kick and took over at Platte County’s 48 with a chance to all but guarantee a win with a late touchdown. A 2-yard pass plus two incompletions left a fourth-and-8 still near midfield, and on the snap, Pollard’s blitz breeched the left side of the Blue Jays’ offensive line and resulted in his second sack and the third for the Pirates in the quarter.

Pollard has spent the past four weeks essentially as a co-starter with Dean, and the three linebacker look against Raytown paired them with Smith.

“Cobe’s an explosive player,” Utz said. “He plays 100 percent all the time, fast, so I’m thrilled for him. He’s a great kid, a great personality and works for the things he gets. I’m real happy for him to have that success, and he makes our defense better when he’s running around and in the mix.”

Platte County ran out the final 21 seconds with one kneeldown in a must-win for any hope of making a significant move up the six-team Class 5 District 8 standings. The Pirates continue to sit in fifth but put some space between themselves and No. 6 William Chrisman (3-3, opponent in regular season finale) and gained some ground on No. 4 St. Joseph Central (3-3).

Oak Park (5-1) and North Kansas City (5-1) occupy the top two spots and play this week, while Fort Osage (4-2) is third with games against both of the teams in front of them in Weeks 8 and 9.

Platte County’s optimal path would appear to be winning the next three — home vs. Belton (3-3), at Class 6 Park Hill South and home vs. William Chrisman — paired with an Oak Park win this week and losses for Fort Osage in the final two weeks of the regular season. The Pirates would hope to move to third in that scenario and then pass North Kansas City for second based on their head-to-head win over the Hornets in Week 3.

“It’s definitely a confidence thing,” Rueckert said. “Now that we got a win (in) our book again, I think we’re going to have that, and that’s going to lead us to more wins.”

Even a loss to Park Hill South (2-4 and the only team on Platte County’s schedule with a losing record), especially a tight one, could keep the two spot in play.

None of the scenarios would have mattered without the win over Raytown. Zimmerman completed passes to six different receivers with senior Division I defensive end commit Chandavian Bradley contributing another highlight-reel touchdown catch and run, while Doll totaled 61 yards on his two catches that both went for scores — the first two through the air of his career and adding to the rushing touchdown he scored on the ground as a freshman running back vs. Ruskin and Week 1 this year vs. Kearney. Platte County senior wide receivers Tristan Magnuson (two catches, 51 yards) and Dom Spears (four catches, 50 yards, touchdown) were also strong outside targets, while junior Dawsen Mizell hauled in two for 28 yards and senior running back Nate Walls’ lone reception went for minus-2 yards in addition to 13 carries for a season-high 52 yards rushing.

Despite completing under 50 percent of his passes for the first time this season, Zimmerman came up with big plays at the right times, especially converting third-and-longs in key situations.

“He is rewarding our faith, and those receivers are making nice plays, too — several of them,” Utz said. “It wasn’t just one kid; it was several kids made plays. That’s kind of when a play breaks down and those kids know where to go toward an open-field spot. They’ve played together enough and know each other, and it’s a testament to Dylan that he trusts his receivers and gives them a chance, and when you do that, you can get some big plays.”

The trend started on Platte County’s opening drive after the defense forced an initial three-and-out. A short punt — a trend for Raytown on the night — created a short field, and on an initial third-and-7, Zimmerman found Doll near the left sideline, allowing him to tip-toe in for a 39-yard score and 7-0 lead just 2:22 into the first quarter. This marked the first time since a Week 1 overtime loss to Kearney that the Pirates scored first.

Platte County missed a chance to take a bigger lead after forcing three-and-outs on each of Raytown’s first three drives. The Pirates settled for a 30-yard field goal try on their second possession, but senior kicker Aaron Cordova pulled the attempt wide. A 22-yard punt return from Smith-Dean created a short field on the third, but a holding penalty negated a long completion to Mizell that would’ve put them inside the 1.

Eventually, Platte County punted the ball away, and the struggles against the pass started. The Pirates’ did return junior Tucker McDowell (one tackle for loss) to the defensive line rotation in a limited capacity due to his nagging shoulder injury but relied heavily on Bradley (six tackles), junior Kohry Woessner (three tackles, one sack), sophomore Kameron Doyle (two tackles) and Rueckert. The three-man front and rotating linebacker corps stood up to the run so well early that the Blue Jays started going to the pass, and a busted zone coverage early in the second quarter opened up a gaping hole deep in the middle of the field for Whitebear’s first touchdown pass to Ransburg (three catches, 122 yards).

However, a failed snap on the kick attempt resulted in a failed two-point pass to keep Platte County ahead 7-6 with 9:59 left in the first half.

“Especially with the defense playing really well early, that was big,” Utz said. “We played with the lead all night, which is something we haven’t done yet. It’s a completely different game when you’re able to have the lead the whole time.”

On the next drive, Walls came up with perhaps his best runs of the season behind Platte County’s still-adjusting offensive line that was without senior guard/tackle Brody Gates, who suffered a knee injury in the previous week’s loss to Oak Park. The Pirates’ consistent starters remained senior Braden Parker (center), senior left guard Tyler Burch and junior left tackle Muyonta Maxwell, while freshman Quinn Lightle received his second straight start at right guard and senior Sage Lutz moved back into the top five with Gates out.

However, Platte County also rotated in junior Becker Greco at guard with Lightle shifting out to tackle, while Lutz also replaced Parker at center late in the game. Lutz started in that spot late in his junior season before kicking out to tackle at the beginning of this year.

In addition to more designed runs for Zimmerman and freshman reserve quarterback Rocco Marriott (six carries, 17 yards after scoring the first two TDs of his career on the ground a week earlier) in a special package, Walls found a couple of creases in the second quarter with runs of 25 and 14 yards on back-to-back plays. Two plays later, Zimmerman found Spears for an 8-yard touchdown to make it 14-6 — their second scoring connection of the season.

“We’re trying,” Utz said. “You’ve got to be able to run the ball. You just have to. That’s not a one-person fix. There’s several guys there and a whole offensive line and tight ends we need. In order to make a good running game go, there’s a lot of people that have to be in sync, and we’re getting there. We’re going to keep working until we get there.”

Platte County then didn’t do enough with back-to-back big chances.

Smith-Dean stepped in front of a pass in the left flat to end a promising Raytown drive with his third interception of the season and first since picking off two in the win over North Kansas City. He then returned it 8 yards while missing one of his shoes only for Platte County to go three-and-out.

Zimmerman then pinned Raytown at its own 5 with a 48-yard punt. The Blue Jays gained only 3 yards, and on their punt attempt, the ball went over Whitebear’s head in the end zone only to bounce right back up to him. The Pirates narrowly missed a block, but the kick went only 11 yards.

Platte County started at the Raytown 16 with 2:08 left in the second quarter and came away with important points when Utz bypassed a fourth-down gamble for a 29-yard field goal from Cordova to make it a 17-6 lead at the break.

“He missed that one, the early one, but to get his extra points and that field goal was big for him,” Utz said of Cordova, a dual-sport soccer player who has missed time this season due to a nagging quad injury. “You could just see him get more confident with every kick. Every kick looked better as the night went on.”

Platte County took the ball after halftime and and moved across midfield with third-down conversions on passes to Mizell (17 yards) and Magnuson (11 yards). However, Zimmerman mishandled a shotgun snap on the next play and couldn’t pick it up.

Raytown recovered, and four plays later on fourth and 7, Whitebear uncorked a 44-yard touchdown pass to Ransburg behind the defense.

With the lead down to 17-12, Platte County immediately took a sack and ended up with a third and 21 at its own 34. Bradley went into the game and streaked deep, going up to high-point a pass down the middle in between a pair of Raytown defenders. He came down and took big strides into the end zone for a 66-yard score to make it 24-12.

“When we started playing him on the offensive side, it was a big play thing,” Utz said. “He made another great big play again on a ball that I don’t know that anybody else catches. I think he’s the only one who can make that play, and for him to be able to score, it’s special.”

The two teams traded touchdown passes on the next two possessions, first a 51-yard touchdown pass to senior Jarvon Williams from Whitehair while rolling right with an RPO sweep look on a fourth-and-5.

Zimmerman came up big for Platte County again on a third-and-13 three plays later, finding Magnuson in traffic for a 40-yard completion down to the Blue Jays’ 22. On the next play, Doll again hold in a pass — this time along the home sideline — and scampered in from 22 yards out.

Because of the scores, Raytown never held possession with a chance to take the lead until recovering the onside kick with 44 seconds left following the 89-yard touchdown drive, the only true sustained scoring possession for an offense that totaled 378 yards to 315 for Platte County.

“Win or lose there’s always things you learn from,” Utz said. “We learned from an onside kick, knowing we have to field that and realize we need more work on that. Because of that, it put us in a spot where the defense had to win the ball game, and they stepped up.”

A big key ended up being the persistent pass rush from Platte County that resulted in six quarterback pressures — three from Bradley — plus plus for Woessner and Pollard over a span of three plays early in the fourth quarter to force a punt. McDowell blocked that kick, and the Pirates tried to run out the majority of the final 8:12 using runs with Marriott but ended turning the ball over on downs with a fourth-and-6 incompletion at Raytown’s 11.

Pollard came up big again in the final seconds to cap the best game of his career.