EXCLUSIVE: Cozad vs. Ogallala Football Game 2022

Photo Credits: Screenshots from Maxpreps.com

For the people who want to know most of the play-by-play of the Cozad-Ogallala 2022 high school varsity football game.

By: Evan Troxel

It was the Cash Chyktka show in Ogallala on Friday night as Cozad defeated Ogallala 26-14 in varsity high school football.

It seemed like Cash Chykta was very much involved in the action (he actually had the football in his hands) for seemingly one of every two offensive plays for Cozad.

Cash Chykta scored two touchdowns in the second half and had the game-sealing interception in the fourth quarter for Cozad.

Caden Rezac was 3 for 10 passing for Ogallala in the first half (or something like that) and he was benched as quarterback in the second half for Harry Caskey who scored two rushing touchdowns for Ogallala.

In the second half, Rezac scored on a two-point conversion for Ogallala and had an interception on a failed two-point attempt by Cozad.

Dreu White and Cord Chytka each scored one touchdown for Cozad in the first half. Noah Shoemaker made two extra points for Cozad in the first half.

The Cozad Haymakers scored 14 points in the first half and the Ogallala Indians actually outscored Cozad 14-12 in the second half!

Cozad could have put the game out of reach for Ogallala in the first half, but fumbles by Cozad in the second quarter and mistakes by Cozad (that Ogallala could not capitalize on) throughout the entire second half kept the game within reach even though the game never really felt close at all from the very start.

Ogallala’s offense ran the ball most of the time throughout the game because they supposedly could not throw the football successfully at all!

The offense was so awful in the first half that Caden Rezac was benched as quarterback and Harry Caskey was the starting quarterback in the second half.

Rezac played wide receiver on at least one play (or some plays) in the second half.

Cozad’s defense played well the entire game or the Ogallala offense just did not recognize opportunities they could have taken advantage of (or both).

Ogallala’s defense really did not play that bad in the second half and if Ogallala could have stopped Cozad’s big plays throughout the entire game, Ogallala might have actually won the game on Friday night.

Cozad and Ogallala now both have one win and two losses in the regular season.

Cozad hosts Lexington next Friday night while Ogallala travels to Gering. Both games are scheduled for a 7 p.m. kickoff local time.

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Cozad (1-2) remaining schedule (every Friday night):

vs. Lexington

vs. Broken Bow

at Gothenburg

vs. Sidney

at Holdrege

vs. Minden

Ogallala (1-2) remaining schedule (every Friday night):

at Gering

vs. Alliance

at McCook

vs. Chadron

at Sidney

vs. Holdrege

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Game play-by-play and non-summary:

Ogallala received the opening kickoff. Ogallala quarterback Caden Rezac’s first completion of the game (on third down) went from the Ogallala 23 to the Cozad 37. Two plays later, Ogallala was on the Cozad 31. Rezac then threw an incompletion and then Ogallala went for it on fourth and four and I believe Rezac got sacked (or perhaps even fumbled but Ogallala recovered) at the Cozad 40. Turnover on downs.

Rezac’s incompletion on third down and going for it on fourth down (instead of punting) were probably the biggest mistakes of the entire game for Ogallala.

After a few Cozad plays, Ogallala committed an offside penalty, which resulted in Cozad being at their own 46. Cozad then had the ball at the Ogallala 42 and fumbled to the Cozad 49. Another negative play for Cozad (to the Cozad 47) resulted in them being forced to punt.

The offside penalty by Ogallala perhaps killed their chances of scoring on the next offensive possession.

Ogallala started at their own 20 (instead of the 25), Mario Bush had a run from the 19 to the 34 for 15 yards and then Ogallala was forced to punt after five running plays from scrimmage on the entire possession before fourth down.

So Cozad got the ball at their own 30. They had a huge running play from their 37 to the Ogallala 16 yard line. Cozad got the ball to the Ogallala 10 and then Cozad let a lot of time run off the clock and that was the end of the 1st quarter.

Cozad then called a timeout before any play was ran in the second quarter and then Dreu White scored a touchdown (I believe he ran it in) and Noah Shoemaker tacked on the PAT, to make it 7-0 Cozad.

Ogallala started their next drive at their own 28 and then fumbled at their own 45 for a turnover.

Cozad’s Cord Chytka (pronounced Kit-ka) then caught a short pass from quarterback Noah Shoemaker and then eventually ran down the right sideline (I believe) and scored a 45 yard touchdown in the east end zone. Shoemaker again tacked on the PAT and it was 14-0 Cozad with 9:11 left in the second quarter.

Ogallala got the ball on their own 30, Caden Rezac got sacked at the Ogallala 28 and a blocked punt resulted in a turnover on downs.

So Cozad started at the Ogallala 18, got first and goal a few plays later at (or near the 1 yard line) and tried to score on three straight running plays but were unsuccessful. QB Noah Shoemaker then fumbled on fourth down and recovered his own fumble at the Ogallala 18 for a turnover on downs.

A Cozad touchdown could have put the game away for good at this point.

Caden Rezac threw two incompletions and Ogallala was forced to punt.

Cozad got the ball back at their own 44 and three plays later, Shoemaker then ran from the Cozad 43 to the Ogallala 45. Cozad moved back to the 50 on a false start penalty and then got to the 45 on a running play on third down. A time out was called with 1:47 left in the 2nd quarter on 4th & 10. Cozad got Ogallala to jumped early for an offside penalty and then Cozad got a completion to the Ogallala 28 and the drive continued.

Three plays later, Cozad’s Cash Chytka caught a pass and got to the Ogallala 14 and then an offside penalty put the ball at the Ogallala 9 yard line.

Noah Shoemaker then fumbled the ball again and this time Ogallala came away with it at their own 17.

Again, Cozad could have essentially (or almost) put the game out of reach with a touchdown.

Based on my notes, I guess Ogallala got a first down (somehow) on a run (I believe) to their own 26. (I think Ogallala actually started this drive at like their own 14.)

Caden Rezac was 2 for 4 passing on the possession before Cozad called timeout before the final play of the first half which was an incompletion.

So Rezac was 2 for 5 passing on the final possession of the half.

Halftime Score: Cozad Haymakers 14, Ogallala Indians 0.

Cozad started on their own 25 to start the second half after the Ogallala kickoff and then were backed up five yards due to a penalty. Cozad then got a completion to the Cozad 31, had two running plays to get to the Cozad 47 and then a 10 yard holding penalty backed them up to the Cozad 37.

An offside penalty on Ogallala put the ball at the Cozad 42 and then a short pass screen play received by Cash Chytka to the left side in which Chykta eventually ran down the left sideline to the west end zone resulted in a 58 yard Cozad touchdown.

Cozad missed the extra point and the football moved very fast and I think it went to the left of the uprights (if it did not go under the goalposts). Cozad 20, Ogallala 0.

Ogallala got the ball back at their own 29 after the Cozad kickoff and Ogallala’s Harry Caskey came in and played quarterback in the entire second half.

Ogallala ran four straight running plays to start the drive (with Harry Caskey, on the second play of the drive, running from the Ogallala 31 to the Ogallala 42 for a first down willing his way for at least five more additional yards he probably should not have gotten, but the Cozad defensive could not stop him) before an incomplete pass and then Ogallala was forced to punt.

Harry Caskey punted and the football had to go extremely high in the air as it was almost blocked.

Cozad got the ball back at their own 39 yard line and got a first down on a running play two plays later. Two plays later Ogallala got a sack to the Cozad 48 and then Cozad lost four yards on a completion to their own 44.

Cozad was then forced to punt and Ogallala got it at their own 31.

Ogallala then ran three straight running plays and on the third play got to their own 49. Ogallala ran to the Cozad 42 for a first down.

Ogallala threw an incomplete pass three plays later on third down from the Cozad 42.

Ogallala then called timeout with 32.9 left in the third quarter before a fourth down play from the Cozad 42.

Harry Caskey threw an interception and Cozad started the next possession at the Cozad 29.

Ogallala probably should have punted in hindsight instead of being stupid about it and going for it on 4th & 10.

The third quarter ended at this point (or after the next play).

Ogallala’s defense forced Cozad to go 3 and out and the Cozad punter fumbled the snap, probably panicked and decided to just run for the first down. Ogallala stopped him at the Cozad 24. At this point there was 11:13 left in the 4th quarter.

Ogallala had three running plays and Harry Caskey scored from 14 yards out on the third running play. He weaved his way in and out of traffic and angled his way to the right pylon eventually scoring in the west end zone.

On the two-point conversion, Caden Rezac scored on a sweep going from right to left easily scoring on a running play to make the score, Cozad 20, Ogallala 8.

9:54 left in the 4th quarter.

Cozad got the ball back at their own 29 and ran a play for one yard. A facemask penalty was called on Ogallala.

Then a huge running play to the Ogallala 39 yard line and a facemask was called again putting the ball at the Ogallala 23.

Cozad got to the Ogallala 13 on a running play and then two plays later Cash Chytka scored a 12-yard touchdown in which he just got inside the right pylon in the east end zone.

Cozad decided to go for two after the touchdown and Ogallala’s Caden Rezac intercepted the football on the right side (the south side of the field) and probably would have scored two points if the play was allowed to continue but the referees blew the play dead as apparently the defense is not allowed to score any points on a two-point conversion.

That could have been a huge play if two points were allowed to be scored on a conversion after a touchdown and if the game would have been a lot closer.

Cozad 26, Ogallala 8.

Ogallala got the ball back at their own 35 yard line, Caskey completed a pass to the Ogallala 43.

Two plays later, Ogallala got a running play to the Cozad 38. An offside penalty moved the football to the 33 and then two plays later a pass interference call at the goal line on a pass from Harry Caskey to the right pylon set up Ogallala at the Cozad 14.

At this point there was 4:55 left in the 4th quarter.

Two plays later, a completion put the ball at the Cozad 6 (from the Cozad 12). Harry Caskey then ran it basically up the middle and slightly to the left avoiding a few defenders for a touchdown.

On the two-point attempt, Caskey tried to run to the right side but he was stopped before he could really run forwards (to the west end zone) up the field.

Cozad 26, Ogallala 14. 3:49 left in the 4th quarter.

A penalty put the football at the Ogallala 30 for the kickoff and Ogallala did an onside kick which went straight to the Cozad player basically standing almost directly across from the kicker.

Cozad football at the Ogallala 40.

A false start by Cozad put the football at the Ogallala 45. Cozad lost yards back to the Cozad 48 and then they called timeout. Cozad got back to the Ogallala 46 and then Ogallala called timeout.

Cozad completed a pass to the Ogallala 45.

Cozad then punted and a fair catch penalty was called against Cozad.

Ogallala’s Jayden Curtis was going to receive the fair catch on the punt (and probably would have caught it) and the flag was enforced from the Ogallala 14.

In hindsight, Ogallala probably should have declined the penalty and forced Cozad to punt again.

So Ogallala started at their own 29. Cozad called a timeout with not a lot of time left in the game. There was two-plus minutes left in the game at this pont.

Harry Caskey threw two incompletions and then a third down running play got Ogallala to their own 41 for a first down.

Caskey then threw a pass to wide receiver Race McClure who went from the right side of the field all the way across the left side to the Cozad 31.

Unfortunately for Ogallala, a penalty (or probably two penalties put the ball at the Ogallala 42).

So after all of that, Ogallala only gained a net of one yard from the previous play! Caskey then completed a pass to the Ogallala 47.

At this point, I believe there was still more than a minute left in the game.

And then, Caskey threw an interception (somewhere around midfield) to Cash Chytka, who took the football all the way down to the Ogallala 16 yard line where he eventually stepped out of bounds on the south sideline!

And then Cozad just took two kneel downs and the game was over!

Final: Cozad Haymakers 26, Ogallala Indians 14

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Analysis/Opinion:

Cozad:

Cozad accomplished what they wanted to accomplish on Friday night. They were 0-2 before Friday’s game and apparently were very hungry a win.

Cash Chytka clearly is a stud at the high school football level. Or at least against Ogallala and teams like Ogallala right now (who clearly are not 100% on their A+ game or even B+ game on every play).

Obviously everyone knows Cozad is not going to win the state championship in football (or probably even make it to the state championship or the semifinals for whatever class Cozad is in right now) if Cash Chytka gets the ball on offense on like one of every two offensive plays.

If Cozad is actually serious about getting to the state championship game or winning the state championship game, the Haymakers need to get the ball to their other playmakers more often on offense (and perhaps Cord Chytka maybe needs to receive the football a lot more often).

Maybe Cash Chytka’s performance on Friday night was a one-time event, but I doubt it.

If Cozad continues to go to Cash Chytka too often in the playoffs/postseason (if the Haymakers make it there), they are going to be stopped at some point!

Ogallala’s current head varsity basketball coach Andy Gillen perhaps learned the hard way in the 2018-19 season (in Ogallala’s third-place finish at state and a single loss all season) that you cannot score a lot of your points (in a single game) by getting steals and scoring a ton of easy layups against the best high school basketball teams in Nebraska and still expect to win every single time.

The same thing applies with Cozad’s Cash Chytka in football…

Ogallala:

According to other media reports, such as the Keith County News newspaper, Ogallala took a different approach to the offseason that was completely different in the summer and in training camp than in previous seasons with Brent Bauer as Ogallala head football coach.

Based on that information alone, the Ogallala Indians should be better in 2022 than they were last year.

Or at the very least, they should not expect to make a significant improvement this year from last year, since they supposedly “changed” their overall approach.

Ogallala’s final won-lost record may not even be better than last year’s but the current players from last year’s team will probably get better.

Ogallala lost impactful seniors who obviously graduated and this is their biggest roster on the football team they have had since Brent Bauer has been head coach. So obviously there is going to be some growing pains.

Ogallala is now 1-2 and I get the sense that this team is not going to make the playoffs this year if they don’t win every game (or almost every game) from here on out at this point of the season other than at McCook (which will probably be an Ogallala loss).

If the Ogallala offense is serious about winning they have to figure out how to get the football into the hands of all of their receivers (and not just one or two receivers). And they cannot keep putting themselves into the position that they “have to” throw the football deep every time they throw it and automatically expect good things to happen!

The only two players who were impactful for Ogallala last night (whether it was a positive or negative impact) were Caden Rezac and Harry Caskey.

The passing game against Cozad for Ogallala was mostly shut down with overthrows and the running game was also shut down against Cozad despite some success.

Ogallala honestly beat themselves (in many areas) more than Cozad beat them last night. The strategy by the Ogallala head coach (at least on fourth down) going into the Cozad game was reckless, stupid and greedy. I get that you don’t want to give the other team the football back, but sometimes you just have to give it to them!

Ogallala may have been at least somewhat handicapped or one-dimensional because Harry Caskey may not know the passing playbook well enough and Caden Rezac was not the quarterback in the second half last night!

Ogallala may have already sealed their end-of-season fate, just three games into the regular season. The next two games for Ogallala are probably going to determine whether Ogallala makes the playoffs this year or not. Then, they play at McCook on September 30th. Despite the fact that you should empty the tank (as a football player) during every game, Ogallala will need enough fuel in the tank for their final three games of the regular season.

Brent Bauer said on the Ogallala Coaches Show on KOGA 930 AM radio today (Saturday) that he thinks the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will win 21-10 against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football on September 11th (tomorrow).

(For people who don’t know or don’t live in Ogallala, he has displayed Tampa Bay Buccaneers merchandise, like a flag, outside of his home. I don’t want to assume anything but I think he is a Tampa Bay Buccaneers fan.)

I think there is going to be more scoring than that as Dallas lost at Tampa Bay 31-29 in last year’s regular season opening game.

“It sucks to be 1-2.” –Brent Bauer on the Ogallala Coaches Show on KOGA 930 AM radio (Saturday, September 10th, 2022).

Ogallala easily could be 3-0 or 0-3 right now.