SAFFORD — Safford kept finding ways back into the game Thursday night, but Coolidge kept finding ways to push the Bulldogs right back out.
The Bulldogs scored on the final play of the first half, recovered an onside kick to open the third quarter and twice cut the deficit to 12 points in the fourth. Each time, Coolidge answered.
That proved to be the difference in a 40-21 Bears victory that dropped Safford to 2-2 on the season and improved Coolidge to 3-2.
The final score looked more lopsided than the numbers. Coolidge finished with 306 yards of total offense, while Safford had 292. Just 14 yards separated the teams, but 19 points separated them on the scoreboard.
The difference came in a handful of moments, and most of them went Coolidge’s way.
The first was a crusher for the Bulldogs. With 5:20 remaining in the opening quarter, Safford was threatening when the ball came loose. Coolidge sophomore Hieroshi Maddox scooped it up and raced 95 yards for a touchdown.
Instead of Safford putting points on the board, Coolidge suddenly had a 7-0 lead.
The Bears stretched the advantage to 14-0 with 5:41 left in the second quarter when Dayce Cade scored from 6 yards out.
Safford needed something before halftime and got it at the last possible second.
On the final play of the half, quarterback Parker Whisman found Dane Jacobson for a 27-yard touchdown. The extra point was good, and a game that had felt like it might be slipping away was suddenly 14-7.
Safford then rolled the dice to begin the second half. The Bulldogs opened the third quarter with an onside kick and recovered it, giving them the football and a chance to tie the game.
For a moment, the entire feel of the night changed. The crowd came alive, Safford had possession and one touchdown would have pulled the Bulldogs even.
They could not take advantage.
Safford went three-and-out, and Coolidge responded with a scoring drive of its own. Freshman Jeremiah Valenzuela finished the possession with a 6-yard touchdown run with 7:56 remaining in the third quarter. The extra point failed, but the Bears had restored a two-score cushion at 20-7.
Less than three minutes later, Coolidge landed another big shot when freshman quarterback Juan Alvarez connected with Maddox for a 79-yard touchdown with 5:03 remaining.
The two-point conversion failed, but the Bears had pushed the lead to 26-7.
Safford still wasn’t finished.
Whisman scored on a 1-yard run just six seconds into the fourth quarter, cutting the lead to 26-14 and giving the Bulldogs another chance to make things interesting.
Coolidge answered again.
Cade, who had played quarterback earlier in the game, lined up at running back and scored from 5 yards out with 5:22 remaining. His second rushing touchdown of the night pushed the lead back to 33-14.
Safford responded with its biggest offensive play of the game when Whisman found Jacobson downfield for a 62-yard touchdown with 4:21 remaining.
That made it 33-21 and once again gave the Bulldogs a glimmer of hope.
Coolidge shut the door on its next scoring drive. Valenzuela scored from a yard out with 1:01 remaining to produce the final 40-21 margin.
Whisman completed 4 of 9 passes for 112 yards and two touchdowns while carrying the ball 20 times for 96 yards and another score. He was also sacked three times.
Jacobson accounted for almost all of Safford’s production through the air, catching three passes for 107 yards and both Bulldog receiving touchdowns, covering 27 and 62 yards.
Safford finished with 180 rushing yards and 112 passing yards.
Coolidge’s biggest plays came from a group that Safford may be seeing for a while. Alvarez and Valenzuela are both freshmen, while Maddox is a sophomore.
Alvarez completed 6 of 11 passes for 117 yards and a touchdown. Valenzuela carried eight times for 62 yards and two scores, while Maddox caught four passes for 151 yards and a touchdown to go along with the 95-yard fumble return that opened the scoring.
Cade completed 2 of 6 passes for 69 yards with an interception and also rushed 11 times for 45 yards and two touchdowns.
For Safford, the story was less about Coolidge’s youth and more about opportunities.
The Bulldogs had them throughout the night. They scored on the final play of the first half, recovered an onside kick to start the third and twice cut the margin to 12 points in the fourth quarter.
Each time, Safford found a way to climb back toward the Bears. Each time, Coolidge found a way to stop the climb.
The Bears have now won two straight against Safford after defeating the Bulldogs 28-14 last season.
Thursday’s game was the 30th meeting between the programs, and the Bears’ victory pulled the all-time series even at 15-15.
