2007 Chenango Forks Varsity Football

TOWN OF CHENANGO -- The mood in the Chenango Forks post-game huddle was almost somber.

Phrases like "back to the drawing board" and "we've just got to work harder" were uttered by players and coaches following Saturday afternoon's game.

This from a team that remained undefeated with a hard-fought 14-6 home victory over Norwich at Blue Devil Field.

"Yeah, the score was 14-6, but I think for a lot of the game, Norwich outplayed us," Forks coach Kelsey Green said. "That's what we're not happy with."

A week after an emotional, come-from-behind victory over archrival Chenango Valley, the Blue Devils (6-0, 3-0) needed to overcome their malaise and Norwich's strong play to remain undefeated.

Forks also needed 131 yards and two touchdowns from senior running back Joe Aston to erase an early 6-0 deficit. Aston's first touchdown and the ensuing extra point gave Forks the lead. His second gave the Blue Devils some breathing room.

But it was the Blue Devils' defense that held Norwich (3-3, 1-2) scoreless on three trips inside the Forks 20-yard line that sealed the victory.

"We know we can play better than this," Aston said.

Green could sense something was off with his team all week. He could tell that, collectively, their heads were still celebrating the previous week's last-minute victory over CV instead of focusing on Norwich.

"We have a lot of young players," said Aston, one of 18 Forks seniors who were honored in a pre-game ceremony. "After a huge win like last week, it can be tough to get as amped up for a game like this. We needed to work harder."

The Purple Tornado took advantage by playing strong, excellent football on both sides of the ball. Norwich's front line dominated play early on, and running back Chris Mattingly (87 yards) repeatedly broke several tacklers on his runs.

Norwich drove deep into Forks territory on its first two possessions. On the second drive, quarterback Nate Foote hit Christian Hotailing on a 6-yard scoring pass to give Norwich a 6-0 second-quarter lead.

"I don't want to take anything away from Norwich," Green said. "Norwich did what you're supposed to do. They came out and played extremely well. We did not do that."

The Blue Devils finally got going midway through the second quarter, and they were sparked by Aston. On a third-down sweep, Aston broke one tackle in the backfield, and then slipped through two more before racing 23 yards for the touchdown. Rob Lumsden's extra point gave the Blue Devils a 7-6 lead which they held at halftime.

The third quarter was scoreless, as both teams batted for yards and field position.

"We've got a good offensive line," Norwich coach John Pluta said. "We were able to move the ball the whole game. We're not going to come down here and trick them, and they're not going to trick us."

Norwich had a great scoring chance at the end of the third quarter, driving to the Forks 5-yard line. But on second down, the Purple Tornado was penalized for an illegal block in the back. The 10-yard penalty from the spot of the foul -- which was 12 yards behind the original line of scrimmage --killed Norwich's scoring chances, and the Purple Tornado missed a 37-yard field goal.

Forks took the ensuing drive 80 yards down the field, with Aston scoring from 5-yards out to make it 14-6 with the PAT.

"For about a minute, I thought we were fine," Green said. "Then boom, they were right back on the doorstep."

Aided by 25 yards in Forks penalties, Norwich drove to the Forks 12. But once again, the Purple Tornado couldn't put points on the board, as Foote's fourth-down pass to Mattingly fell incomplete.

"We needed to score in those situations, and that didn't happen," Pluta said. "That was the difference."