Published: September 21, 2008 10:46 am      

Miscues cost Duncan in 38-6 loss to Carl Albert

Turnovers and special teams play doom Duncan in second loss

MIDWEST CITY, OK — — Carl Albert held its homecoming Friday night and Duncan played its role, as far as the Titans were concerned, falling 38-6 to drop to 1-2 on the season.

The hosts scored touchdowns on a fumble return, interception return and a punt return to put Duncan away in a puzzling game that saw the Demon defense hold high touted running back David Oku to a pedestrian 15 yards on 10 carries.

“You look at the scoreboard and think its a poor defensive effort, but it really wasn’t,” Duncan coach Jim Holloway said. “We will have to look at film to evaluate but our preparation is a step forward. The defense was solid for the entire game, for the most part.”

Offensively the Demon line struggled against the quick Carl Albert front. Quarterback Houston Johnson enjoyed his best success on short drops. Rollouts and deeps drops were an invitation for disaster, a point proven early in the game.

The Duncan offense took the field midway through the first quarter after Carl Albert drove the field and converted a field goal. Mixing in a short passing game with zone read, the Demons drove down inside the 10 where the Titan defense forced a fourth and two from the three-yard line.

Duncan went for it, calling for a play-action pass out of the T-formation. Johnson never had a chance as he was sacked and fumbled the ball. Gatlin Arnold recovered and in a testimony to the defensive line’s quickness, went 84-yards for the score to give Carl Albert (2-1) a 10-0 lead.

Holloway cited the fourth down try as an opportunity to try and instill confidence in the offense.

“If we could have stuck a touchdown in, the score would have been 7-3,” Holloway said. “If that was a district game, we would have kicked. The worst we ought to be in, is them driving the ball 99-yards.”

That would be the most heard out of the Duncan offense for the rest of the half as it was held to one first down, that coming on a 47-yard run by Clint Miller to move the ball just past midfield in the second quarter.

“The first drive was great,” offensive coordinator said Todd Hudson said. “We were able to move the ball, we just needed four or five more of them.”

Defensively, Duncan gave up two touchdowns in the second quarter, with Carl Albert having the advantage of a short field both times. Taking over at the Duncan 39-yard line after a punt, Carl Albert scored in two plays. Quarterback J.T. Realmuto found Ozell Littleton on a slant for a 38 yard score. The second touchdown of the quarter came late in the half. The Titans took over at the 23-yard line after a punt and scored on one play as Oku took a screen pass and took it in untouched.

The Demon defense forced two turnovers in the half. A fumble by Realmuto was recovered and Casy Rowell had an interception on a fourth down conversion attempt.

“We made it a point to get 11 hats on the ball and I think our kids did a good job,” defensive coordinator Kim Longest said.

Duncan didn’t have much better luck in the third quarter as Carl Albert proceeded to put the game away. The offense continued to stutter, going three-and-out its first two possessions. The second punt of the half by Levi Huff was fielded by Markell Walker who took the ball 35 yards to pay-dirt, dragging a couple of defenders the last couple of yards.

The last score for the Titans came late in the quarter. Under pressure, Johnson threw an ill-conceived pass into coverage and was intercepted by Daytawion Lowe, who took the ball 52 yards for the score. Johnson’s two interceptions in the game were the first of the year for the senior.

The Demons did avoid a shutout with a touchdown late in the game. Chris Gilbert, along with several of the back-ups, took over in the fourth quarter and made the most of their opportunity. With 3:32 remaining in the game, Gilbert found receiver Randal Snider behind the defense and hit him for a 29 yard score. The extra point was wide, leaving the score 38-6, which would be the final.

Duncan will open district play on Friday when it hosts Chickasha. The Chicks are coming off of a 35-20 loss to Weatherford.