‘We played flat out terrible’: QND buried by state-ranked Mahomet Seymour in third-quarter avalanche

QUINCY — The Quincy Notre Dame football team was still in the game.

The Raiders trailed 14-0 at halftime, but they forced a three-and-out by Mahomet Seymour on the first series of the third quarter. A poor punt gave QND the ball at the Bulldogs’ 42-yard line. A running play on first down moved the ball two yards to 40-yard line.

Then, in a span of six minutes, the wheels fell off the Raiders’ bus.

Mahomet Seymour used four turnovers to score four touchdowns and turn a close game into a rout, posting a 41-0 victory over Notre Dame on Friday night at Advance Physical Therapy Field. It’s the Raiders’ worst loss since they lost 63-7 to Quincy High School in the last game of the 2018 season.

Lateral turns into 49-yard fumble recovery for TD

“We played flat out terrible from start to finish in this ballgame,” QND coach Jack Cornell said during his postgame interview on WTAD Radio. “There’s no other way around it. I’ve got guys hanging their heads, feeling sorry for themselves.

“That’s a good team. Hats off to Mahomet Seymour. They’re 6-0 for a reason. … We laid an egg tonight. I thought we had a good plan coming in and a really good week of practice. But when it came time to play in the game, we just couldn’t do anything.”

On the second-and-eight call from the Mahomet Seymour 40, QND quarterback Calvin Lavery threw the ball to his left to wide receiver Jackson Stratton. Lavery’s throw was ruled a lateral by the officials, and it was behind Stratton, who didn’t catch the ball. The Bulldogs’ Michael Gallier scooped up the fumble and raced 49 yards for a touchdown.

On QND’s next play from scrimmage, Ben Kasparie fumbled on a running play to the left side, The Bulldogs’ Kale Schweighart recovered the ball at the 10-yard line. After a 5-yard penalty, Mahomet Seymour quarterback Wyatt Bohm found Gallier for a 15-yard touchdown pass — just 1 minute and 22 seconds after Gallier’s first score.

Two third-quarter interceptions lead to touchdowns

Lavery was then picked off by Jake Waldinger on the Raiders’ next drive. Luke Johnson then scored on a 4-yard run with 6:51 left in the third quarter.

After a three-and-out by QND, the Bulldogs appeared to have scored on a 31-yard pass from Bohm to Quenton Rogers. However, Rogers fumbled at the goal line, and Zach Friedersdorf recovered the ball in the end zone.

Another interception by Lavery, this time by Braden Houchin, gave the ball to the Bulldogs on their own 30-yard line. Bohm hit Rogers with a 70-yard touchdown on the next play with 4:24 to play in the third quarter, putting the visitors ahead 41-0.

“It’s like we got into a vat of quicksand and just let it overtake us in every way possible,” Cornell said. “Just flat out terrible. Disappointing from start to finish.”

Raiders outgained 547 to 143 by Bulldogs

Mahomet Seymour (6-0), ranked No. 10 in Class 5A, racked up 547 yards of total offense. Bohm completed 17 of 31 passes for 347 yards, with Rogers catching seven passes for 210 yards. Interceptions in the end zone by Friedersdorf and Charlie Lavery prevented the Bulldogs from putting more than 50 points on the scoreboard.

QND (4-2), ranked No. 9 in Class 4A, was limited to 24 yards rushing. Lavery completed 7 of 28 passes for 119 yards. Jack Gilliland had three catches for 64 yards. The game was marred by 25 penalties, with the Raiders earning 13 flags for 117 yards.