The Beggs Golden Demons came out swinging Friday night, throwing early haymakers at the second- ranked Holdenville Wolverines and stunning the packed crowd at Tate Stadium with a flurry of big plays in the opening half. For two quarters, it looked like Beggs might just hand the state’s No. 2 team their first loss of the season. But in the end, a pair of tipped passes and a costly turnover flipped the game’s momentum, allowing Holdenville to pull away for a 52-26 win in a key 2A-II District showdown.

Beggs, now 3-3 on the season and 1-2 in district play, wasted no time making their intentions clear. Jason Nethon returned the opening kickoff 30 yards to set up a short field. On the very first offensive play, quarterback Ethen Davison stepped up and fired a laser to Bobby Baker up the left seam for 40 yards, bringing the Golden Demons to the 1-yard line. Trey Ross punched it in on the next play, answering Holdenville’s opening touchdown and tying the score at 6.

The Golden Demons were just getting started. Their next possession was a grind-it-out 12-play, 71-yard march that chewed up the clock and ended with Nethon muscling across the goal line for a 2-yard score. Then the defense got in on the action. Holdenville running back Joe Remis lost the football after a big hit from Ross, and linebacker Landen Kelley scooped it up and returned it 24 yards to the 1-yard line. Ross scored again, giving Beggs a 20-14 lead and firing up the home sideline.

Holdenville answered with a 10-play, clock-eating drive to even the score, but Beggs came right back. Davison needed only four plays to strike again, this time launching a deep ball down the left sideline to Jordan Wesley, who outran the coverage for a 58yard touchdown. The home crowd erupted as Beggs took a 26-20 lead late in the second quarter.

But Holdenville wasted no time responding. Using a trick-play fumblerooski, Remis broke loose for a 31-yard touchdown on just the second play of the ensuing drive. That score gave the Wolverines a 28-26 lead at the break, but Beggs went into halftime confident and fearless, having gone blow-forblow with one of the top teams in the state.

The opening drive of the second half turned out to be the turning point. Beggs put together another impressive drive, moving 84 yards in 12 plays to reach the red zone. But on third down, Davison’s pass to a wide-open receiver was tipped at the line and fell incomplete. The drive stalled, and Holdenville wasted no time capitalizing, marching 75 yards in five plays and scoring on a 1-yard run by Memphis Thionnet to extend their lead to 36-26.

On the ensuing kickoff, disaster struck. The Demons fumbled the return, giving the Wolverines a short field once again. Holdenville quarterback Abe Gomez scored on the very next play, and just like that, the visitors had built a commanding 44-26 lead.

Beggs wasn’t done fighting. Davison delivered a 50-yard strike to Peyton Kelley to bring the Demons back to the doorstep, but once again, a tipped pass in the end zone led to a turnover on downs. It was the second red-zone drive in a row that ended empty-handed for Beggs, and it sealed their fate.

Still, the Golden Demons showed throughout the night that they can go toe-to-toe with the elite. Davison finished with 321 passing yards on 15-of-28 attempts, spreading the ball around to a talented group of receivers. Baker hauled in 7 catches for 128 yards, Wesley added 5 grabs for 109 yards and a touchdown and Kelley chipped in with a 50-yard reception. Ross had two rushing touchdowns and a big forced fumble, while Nethon added a touchdown of his own on the ground.

The loss drops Beggs into a crowded playoff race in District 2A-II. With four weeks remaining in the regular season, the Demons are locked in a four-way tie with Community Christian, Coalgate and Tishomingo. Beggs already holds a head-tohead win over Community Christian – a potentially crucial tiebreaker. The next test comes on the road at Comanche on Oct. 16, where every possession will matter as the playoff picture begins to take shape.

“Our kids fought tough tonight against one of the best teams in Oklahoma,” said Beggs head coach David Shannon. “Our district is full of great teams and we have played two of the best in the last seven days. Our players are stacking good days and getting better. I am proud of their effort and we will get back to work to fix the mistakes.”

Despite the loss, Beggs left no doubt they have the heart, toughness and talent to make a run. The scoreboard didn’t tell the whole story – the Golden Demons made Holdenville earn every inch.

— Holdenville 52, Beggs 26

Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final Beggs 6 20 0 0 26 Holdenville 14 14 16 8 52 — 1st Quarter

• Holdenville – Bo Black 1-yd run (2pt failed)

• Beggs – Trey Ross 1-yd run (kick failed)

• Holdenville – Abe Gomez 4-yd run (Gomez 2pt run) — 2nd Quarter

• Beggs – Jason Nethon 2-yd run (Davison to Baker 2pt)

• Beggs – Ross 1-yd run (2pt failed)

• Holdenville – Gomez 1-yd run (2pt failed)

• Beggs – Davison 58-yd pass to Jordan Wesley (2pt failed)

• Holdenville – Joe Remis 31-yd run (Gomez 2pt run) — 3rd Quarter

• Holdenville – Memphis Thionnet 1-yd run (Gomez 2pt run)

• Holdenville – Gomez 7-yd run (Gomez pass 2pt) — 4th Quarter

• Holdenville – Black 4-yd run (Black 2pt run) — Beggs Stats Passing

• Ethen Davison: 15-of-28, 321 yards, 1 TD — Rushing

• Trey Ross: 5 carries, 26 yards, 2 TD

• Jason Nethon: 6 carries, 25 yards, 1 TD

• Bobby Baker: 1 carry, 1 yard — Receiving

• Bobby Baker: 7 catches, 128 yards

• Jordan Wesley: 5 catches, 109 yards, 1 TD

• Peyton Kelley: 1 catch, 50 yards

• Trey Ross: 1 catch, 27 yards

• Mike Lewis: 1 catch, 7 yards