FINALLY! | Gilmer frustrations slowed as Buckeyes whip NL, make playoffs / Analysis by PHILLIP WILLIAMS

GILMER–The Gilmer Buckeyes, perched for Playoff Paradise despite an unthinkable losing season, deciphered that their regular season denouement against the winless North Lamar Panthers here Friday night was Taylor-made for the home team’s quarterback .
Zade Taylor flung four first-half touchdowns as resurging Gilmer negated North Lamar, 50-7, in a District 7-4A Division II dustup at Jeff Traylor Stadium.
The perenially potent Buckeyes vanquished their last two regular-season enemies to go 4-6 overall–but 3-2 in district, good enough to glean a post-season berth–in a stupefying season supposedly sapped by injuries and inexperience.
Gilmer, whose overall losing mark was its first since 2018 and only its second in at least 30 seasons, now seeks to abrogate the Athens Hornets (8-2) in a bi-district bullfight at 7:30 p.m. this Friday in Henderson.
Athens finished second in its district to almighty Carthage, narrowly losing to the annually awesome Bulldogs. Gilmer meanwhile landed in a three-way tie for second place with Van and Pittsburg in their loop, won by Pleasant Grove.
Based on tiebreakers, the Buckeyes plopped into the playoffs as what is considered the third place team in their conference. After winning its season opener only to bewilderingly lose its next four frays, Coach Alan Metzel’s squad revived once the district schedule opened.
The team, which suffered several dreadful defeats in its pre-district wargames, recovered to finish yonder regular season on high ground. The Buckeyes produced their two highest single-game point totals of the year in their two most one-sided triumphs, slitting Spring Hill, 55-28, the week before nullifying North Lamar.
As for Friday night, Gilmer required little time to parry the Panthers, toting up leads of 22-0 at first quarter’s end and 36-0 at Twirling Time although Taylor didn’t even play all the first half.
He ceded the rest of the night at field general to backup Carter Johnston, who himself heaved one of Gilmer’s two second-half TDs as game officials ran the clock without stopping much of that time.
The Buckeyes were so omnipotent they utilized three different kickers on extra point tries, seized three turnovers while making nary a one themselves, and didn’t let North Lamar within seemingly 100 miles of the Gilmer goal line until the waning minutes after the casualty count reached 50-0.
Once the visitors took the opening kickoff, went three-and-out and punted to the 50 yard-line, Gilmer started off sluggishly with an incompletion and two-yard rushing loss before Taylor abruptly launched a 52-yard scoring shot down the middle to Trace Haynes.
Miguel Castaneda airlifted the first of his four successful PATs with 8:41 left in the first period.
After another Panther punt to the Gilmer 34, the Buckeyes eventually tallied on Taylor’s 12-yard missile to Austin Blakeley. Gilmer runner Tayveon Horne then tallied a two-point conversion on the “swinging gate” with 5:20 still left in the inaugural quarter.
On North Lamar’s next offensive, it disgorged the pigskin to Gilmer’s Brendan Darnold at the NL 23 when quarterback Jack Rusak made a stray pitchout. Overcoming a 10-yard penalty, Taylor promptly winged a 33-yard TD throw to Solomon Jackson and Castaneda’s PAT made it 22-0 with 3:58 still remaining in the first quarter.
After yet another Panther turnover, the Buckeye quarterback continued his reign of aerial agony for the visitors with another scoring sling to Jackson, this one for eight yards with 10:49 left to intermission.
That TD came on the eighth play after Buckeye Zaylen Johnson purloined a pass at the Gilmer 28. Castaneda boomed the first of two straight PATs before Horne hoofed three yards for Gilmer’s final first-half score with 6:36 still left to Band Time.
North Lamar tried an unsuccessful onside kick to open the second half, clearing the runway for Gilmer to bound 57 yards in just four plays for its next tally.
That came on Johnston’s 19-yard heave to Gauge Trossbach with 9:50 left in the third. With the clock continuing to run before the conversion, backup kicker Carlos Sanchez’s PAT kick went through at 9:29 remaining.
Soon came the third Panther turnover, all of which opened the gate for Gilmer TDs. After an unidentified Buckeye seized a fumble at the visitors’ 36, Gilmer scored on the seventh play afterward when runner Samuel Sutton-Williams bopped a yard with seven seconds left in the third.
Then a tad of weirdness.
The running clock ran out the time in the quarter before Gilmer could attempt the PAT. When the Buckeyes did, a bad snap prevented them from kicking it. However, a Panther penalty negated that failure and Gabriel Moulton then booted his team’s final PAT with no time left in the third.
North Lamar at least averted the ignominy of a shutout as runner Dallas Foster trooped two yards to TD territory with 4:34 left before he also added the PAT with 4:21 remaining.
And thus the Panthers’ latest pratfall netted them a 0-10 season–and while Gilmer at one point was disintegrating during the campaign, the Buckeyes now get a chance to win some honors to go along with their band’s state championship.
To do that, they’ll have to begin by making the Athens Hornets face the music next Friday.
CORRECTION/CLARIFICATION: Last week’s article on the Gilmer-Spring Hill game erroneously stated that Trace Haynes caught a late TD pass for Gilmer when Trossbach actually caught it.
As for the reporting on Gilmer Coach Alan Metzel reportedly leaving the game due to illness, Metzel said he went up to the home side press box as the Buckeyes had the game well in hand. He has been ill, but appeared to be in good health this week and coached Friday night’s game. This writer apologizes for the misunderstandings.