Maroon Devils fall to Robbinsville on last-second field goal; coach cites penalties, turnovers

The Maroon Devils lost to Robbinsville on a last-second field goal in a close, physical game, Maroon Devils head coach Sherman Hull said in a postgame interview.

Hull said the team “played their tails off” but that late-game miscues — specifically penalties, turnovers and problems in the kicking game — cost Swain County Schools’ Maroon Devils the win. “We were a little sloppy in the penalty game. We had some penalties that really showed up at bad times for us and then a couple of turnovers that really killed us,” he said.

Hull described the contest as the kind of physical matchup the schools expect when they meet. He singled out special-teams breakdowns, saying the Maroon Devils stopped one fake punt but “the other one, we lined up wrong,” and called for cleaning up those errors going forward. “Anytime you lose right there at the end on the last second field goal … giving yourself a chance to win, that’s the most important thing,” Hull said.

Statistical details discussed in the interview: Robbinsville’s quarterback, identified in the broadcast as Lehi, completed 17 of 24 passes for about 174 yards; the Maroon Devils’ passing was efficient in parts of the game, with the announcer citing either 13 of 15 or 14 of 16, and two incompletions that were intercepted. Hull said both interceptions occurred in the first half and that the team settled into a more efficient passing game afterward.

Hull also noted the running game did not gain as many yards per carry as he wanted, saying, “I wasn’t real pleased with us up front. I thought we didn’t do as well in the yards per carry category as I wanted to.” He praised his players’ effort and preparation while urging correction of mental penalties such as false starts and offsides: “Nobody makes us false start or jump offsides. That’s a mental thing.”

Turning to the upcoming game, Hull previewed a road matchup against Haysville’s Yellow Jackets and emphasized limiting the impact of Haysville running back Trey Graves. “He’s a tremendous football player … when he gets an open space, he’s a speedster,” Hull said, adding that Haysville is “really, really big up front” and that the Maroon Devils must match that physicality and stay disciplined on the road.

The coach closed by asking fans to travel and support the team and by reiterating the immediate focus: correct the penalties, clean up special teams, tackle effectively and prepare for the physical test in Haysville.