South Tama seniors Miguel Medina, Juan Robles, Wyatt Surman and Keidyn Sokol walk off the field after a tough defeat at the hands of Fairfield. PHOTO BY JAMES BRANT

It was a chilly Friday night for football as the South Tama Trojans took on the Fairfield Trojans. This is South Tama’s last home football game of the 2023 season as they look to get a much anticipated win in front of the home crowd.

The game didn’t start in South Tama’s favor as Fairfield came out hot from the gun. On the first pass of the game, STC quarterback Daniel Wiese threw the ball straight into the hands of a Fairfield defender who took it all the way to the house for a pick six. Then continuing the momentum set from their defense, the Fairfield offense charges down the field capping the drive off with a 1-yard run by quarterback Sam Weaton.

Down 14-0 to start off the game STC needed a quick response on offense. Junior Cody Blocker and senior Gavin Bridgewater provided that for the Trojans with electrifying runs and catches as they marched down the field. The drive was ended with a 2-yard touchdown run by Gavin Bridgewater, making the score 14-7 going into halftime.

Fairfield’s offense was looking good to start the second half as they found themselves in the red zone on the brink of another score. But the South Tama defense was able to stand strong, stopping the offense on fourth down and really setting the tone for the rest of the game as both defenses didn’t allow a score for a while as the ball went back and forth between these two teams.

Then with two minutes left in the game junior Cody Blocker got an interception giving STC a chance to tie the game and send it into overtime. As South Tama slowly moved up the field the Fairfield defense looked as strong as ever and eventually made the game winning play recovering a fumble by STC quarterback Daniel Wiese. This set up the Fairfield offense perfectly to punch the ball in for a touchdown to end the game with a final score of 20-7.

Trojan senior Jeramy Dolash fights off a Fairfield defender for extra yards, aiding the South Tama offense. PHOTO BY JAMES BRANT

Quarterback Daniel Wiese was 7/11 on passes for 52 yards. Junior Cody Blocker was STC’s rushing leader with 18 carries for 96 yards. Senior Gavin Bridgewater had South Tama’s only touchdown of the game and had a spectacular defensive performance with 16 tackles.

The South Tama Trojans will be looking to bounce back from this tough loss as they go on the road next week to play a familiar rival, the Benton Bobcats.