KAISER, Mo. - Blair Oaks won Friday night's game against School of the Osage thanks to a key stretch in the third quarter, but the Falcons would not have been in position to take advantage if not for some huge plays in the first half.
The Falcons converted on four third-and-long situations and two fourth-down plays while coming up with their first three scoring drives in the first half to ensure they never trailed in what turned out to be a 51-22 victory.
Blair Oaks showed it was ready to rise to the occasion on its very first possession.
Facing third-and-15 after its first two plays, quarterback Jordan Hair hit C.J. Closser with a huge 44-yard pass that put the Falcond deep in Osage territory. Then on fourth-and-16, the duo hooked up for a 28-yard touchdown pass.
"It was really nice to see the kids make the plays when we needed them, because we keep trying to emphasize to the kids the importance of trying to be consistent and trying to get off to a good start."
Osage answered with a touchdown on its next drive - a 4-yard pass from Zack Wheeler to Dylan Riley - before Blair Oaks came up with three clutch plays on its ensuing possession.
Facing third-and-10, Brenden Brown ripped off a 14-yard run. Then on third-and-16, Hair and Adam Schell hooked up on a 19-yard pass. Finally, on third-and-10, Closser hauled in a 31-yard pass from Hair for a touchdown.
"I would think our kids would probably all agree they didn't play their best game tonight, but sometimes you're not going to play your best and you're going to have to figure out how to win the game," Walker said. "They did that, and that was kind of how some of those series went. Sometimes you're not going to have the best series, but when they needed to make a play, they made a play."
After forcing a three-and-out, the Falcons put together a 15-play, 72-yard drive that was capped by a 1-yard touchdown run by Hair to push the lead to 20-8. Once again they had a big conversion, as on fourth-and-9 at the Osage 16, Hair and Schell connected for 11 yards.
Osage answered with a 10-yard touchdown run by Riley, Blair Oaks got a 5-yard touchdown run by Hair, and the Indians picked up a 61-yard touchdown pass from Wheeler to Brandon Pierce to end a crazy first half with Blair Oaks up 28-22.
"(Blair Oaks is) very explosive on offense and they made a lot of good plays," Osage coach Devin Johnson said. "It was a six-point game (at halftime) and we had six plays where we gave up a third-and-long or a fourth-down conversion. You can take any one of those plays away and it takes away a score.
"... That's what happens when you play a good team, they usually have a way to execute and we just didn't make the play."
So finding themselves still in position to get a win, the Falcons did just that in the first 1:35 of the third quarter.
A wayward pitch by the Indians on the first play from scrimmage bounced into the hands of Cody Alexander, who scampered 25 yards for the score.
"It was like a ground ball in baseball, it just popped right to me," Alexander said.
The momentum went from Osage to Blair Oaks in the span of just 18 seconds.
"In the moment, it was fine," Johnson said. "It was a negative play, obviously, but it was still a two-score game and we were getting the ball back. But in the grand scheme of things, looking back on it, it's a momentum-changer."
The Blair Oaks defense then forced a big three-and-out by Osage. The Falcons then scored on their very next play. Alexander went in motion from his slot position, reversed back, took the handoff and burst through the line before outracing everyone for an 81-yard score.
"We made an adjustment at halftime because we saw their safety was going across with the motion," Alexander said. "So we stopped and went back from motion and it was there."
Walker said the change was necessary because the Osage defense had done a good job taking away some things Blair Oaks had wanted to do in the first half.
"Cody made a really great cut, the line sustained their blocks and we were able to break one," he said. "That got us a little bit of breathing room."
Trying to stay within striking distance down 44-22, the Indians put together a 10-play drive. However, the final play was an interception by - who else? - Alexander down at the Blair Oaks 3-yard line.
"I thought (the receiver) had me beat for a second, but the ball was underthrown and I just went and made a play on it," Alexander said.
Blair Oaks' final score came with 31/2 minutes left in the game. Closser, in the last of a group of nifty catches, did a great job of getting a toe down before going out of bounds in the corner of the end zone on a 6-yard pass from Hair.
"C.J. made a couple of fantastic catches that are as good as any catches as I've seen at any level," Walker said.
After passing for 157 yards and rushing for 88 in the first half, the Indians had 59 yards passing and minus-4 rushing after halftime.
"Whenever you have a three-score deficit, it changes up your playbook a little bit," Johnson said. "So we weren't able to be as balanced as we were in the first half and catch them offguard with some of the things we were going to do.
"Once you get in that position, you're hoping to steal a quick one or have a guy who makes a play offensively. That was probably the biggest difference - the three-score differential changes the way you call the game."
Blair Oaks improved to 6-0 overall and 4-0 in the Tri-County Conference, while Osage dropped to 3-3 and 2-2.
Both teams play again Friday, with Blair Oaks hosting California and Osage playing at Eldon.