The Herd down Cards on Saturday

“Hey, Coach, I need the ball,” the junior wide receiver pleaded.

Markham’s request was ultimately granted, and he delivered.

Seniors Jacob Roth and Mathis Baehr did, too.

When added together, it was the perfect way for the Herd to post an entertaining 27-17 nonleague football victory over Randolph at Bill Race Field.

Falconer/Cassadaga Valley/Maple Grove’s Charlie Reichenbach lines up to tackle Randolph’s Connor Braley on Saturday at Bill Race Field in Falconer.
OBSERVER Photo by Steve Garvey

“They’re so good,” Fischer said of that trio. “Sometimes they want the ball all the time, and that’s OK. They are special athletes, no doubt about it.”

Markham caught passes of 45 and 56 yards in the final period, the latter for the clinching touchdown; Baehr had two TD grabs and ran for another score; and Roth, who had never played quarterback at any level until this weekend, completed 5 of 11 passes for 168 yards and three touchdowns.

“The passing game saved us,” Fischer said.

Not bad for a season opener that began Friday night, was suspended because of weather early in the second quarter due to heavy rain and intermittent lightning, and was completed on a cool Saturday afternoon.

Until Mother Nature interrupted the season opener, though, there were plenty of highlights on both sides.

The Herd scored first, courtesy of a 27-yard pass from Roth to Baehr, who leaped high and made a juggling catch in the corner of the end zone. Rider Carlson tacked on the extra-point kick to make it 7-0 at the 7:22 mark of the first quarter.

The lead didn’t last long.

On the ensuing kickoff, Randolph’s Alexander Garland picked up the bouncing ball at his own 13 and didn’t stop running until he reached the end zone. Griffin Nelson’s extra-point boot was good and the game was tied 7-7 with 7:08 remaining in the opening period.

On Falconer/Cassadaga Valley/Maple Grove’s first offensive play after Garland’s TD, the Cardinals recovered a fumble and, two plays later, Kevin McElwain, ripped off a 25-yard scoring run. Nelson’s kick was good, giving Randolph a 14-7 lead with 6:10 left in the first quarter.

That’s where the score remained until weather interrupted it all early in the second period and, ultimately, forced a suspension of play.

Eighteen hours later when the game resumed, the big plays continued.

Baehr’s 29-yard TD run and Carlson’s PAT, set up by a recovered onsides kick to begin the second half, tied the game 14-14. Inside the final minute of the third quarter, however, the Cardinals regained the lead when Nelson booted a 40-yard field goal that easily cleared the crossbar.

As it turned out, that was the last points the Cardinals would score, thanks to Falconer/Cassadaga Valley/Maple Grove’s inspired defensive effort.

“Actually, defensively they just brought the house, which we’re used to,” Randolph head coach Brent Brown said. “Everybody does that against us, right? We have a young offensive line and some new guys in there, so this will be a good film for us, because everybody does that and we had no answer and they ended up shutting us down.”

Meanwhile, the Herd’s offense was finally able to hit its stride.

The first big play to Markham came at the midway point of the fourth quarter when he took a short pass from Roth and sped up the sidelines for 45 yards and a first down at the Randolph 20. On fourth down and 11, Roth connected with Baehr on a 21-yard touchdown strike. Carlson’s point-after attempt was blocked, but Falconer/Cassadaga Valley/Maple Grove had the lead for the first time since the first quarter, 20-17.

The Cardinals turned the ball over on their next possession when Roth recovered a fumble near midfield. Two plays later, he connected with Markham on a slant that resulted in a 56-yard game-clinching touchdown with 2:42 remaining.

“Once they got the wind,” Brown said, “they hit a couple passes to (Markham), who is very fast. Those couple plays were the difference.”

Randolph had two more possessions — both of which took the Cardinals deep into Herd territory — but the first ended with a Baehr interception and the last was an incompletion in the end zone as time expired.

“We’re at the point in this program where it’s all about belief,” Fischer said. “They still haven’t fully engaged in believing and this will help them going forward.”

NOTES: Markham finished with two catches for 101 yards and a TD and Baehr had three receptions for 57 yards and a pair of TDs. … Roth led the Herd on the ground with 54 yards, Markham collected 49 and Baehr chipped in with 39 and a TD. … Baehr (nine tackles), Zach Markham, Charlie Reichenbach and Grant Zahm all had nine tackles, and Roger Markham collected six tackles and recovered a fumble. … For the Cardinals, Connor Braley rushed for 72 yards on 20 carries, and McElwain added 50 yards on nine trips. … Randolph quarterback Jaxson Morrison was 5 of 11 for 71 yards. … Baker Huntington (42 yards) and McElwain (16 yards) both had two receptions. … Defensively, the Cardinals were led by Wyatt Weaver with nine tackles, Braley with seven and Huntington with six.

Randolph 14 0 3 0 — 17

F/CV/MG 7 7 0 13 — 27

F/CV/MG — Baehr 27 pass from Roth (Carlson kick)

Ran — Garland 80 kickoff return (Nelson kick)

Ran — McElwain 25 run (Nelson kick)

F/CV/MG — Baehr 29 run (Carlson kick)

Ran — Nelson 40 FG

F/CV/MG — Baehr 21 pass from Roth (kick blocked)

F/CV/MG — Roger Markham 56 pass from Roth (Carlson kick)