OSD loses season finale

From: The Daily Ardmoreite, CO
Nov. 5, 2002

From Staff Reports

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- The Oklahoma School for the Deaf Indians ended the regular season with their fourth straight loss on a cold Saturday afternoon as they lost 56-12 to Colorado School for the Deaf.

When the game began Saturday afternoon, the temperature was 38 degrees. On Friday, snow fell in the area.

"The cold weather took us out of the game," OSD coach Tommy Varner Jr. said. "There was three inches of snow on the field. Most of our players' hands were cold. We were not used to the weather there."

Playing with a view of Pikes Peak in the background, Colorado (4-4) jumped out to a 30-6 halftime lead and never looked back.

The lone first-half score for OSD (2-5) was a Steven Fewel 72-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.

OSD's other score came in the third quarter when Fewel hit Scottie Estep on a 5-yard TD pass.

"Colorado has to be one of the most underrated teams in the country," Varner said. "They won the game not because of their talents. They won the game because they had the desire and they wanted it more than we did. I give Colorado tremendous credit. It was a total opposite of last year's game (a 52-6 OSD win in Sulphur). They did not have a whole lot of speed or size. We outsized them and certainly were speedier, too. It was a matter of who wanted it the most. Colorado proved the latter."

Colorado Sch. for the Deaf 56, OSD 12

OSD Individual Statistics

Rushing -- Fewel 9-124, Wilbur 10-72, Stultz 7-30, Sears 1-12, Estep 2-6, Jenkins 1-5.

Passing -- Fewel 6-9-1, 71 yards; Estep 1-3-1, 19 yards; Jenkins 1-3-1, 17 yards.

Receiving -- Estep 5-66, Hall 1-22, Jenkins 2-19.

Tackles -- Blake 11, Stultz 10, Wilbur 10 with an interception.

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