Shawnee 23
Ada 21
Oct. 11, 1985

Although the 1985 Ada squad wasn’t one of the premier Cougar editions, the magnitude of Shawnee’s victory still can’t be diminished.

Shawnee came into the game at just 2-3, was unranked and was mired in a three-game losing streak. Ada was ranked fifth in Class 4A and was stalwart at Norris Field.

That wasn’t the only downside for a Shawnee team trying to defeat the Cougars — a longtime state powerhouse — for the first time since 1950.

Several days before the squads met, Shawnee coach Mike Sperry dismissed four senior starters for disciplinary reasons. The Shawnee camp was racked by adversity.
Sperry and his staff had to make several lineup alterations because of the dismissals.

Timm Bright, a 175-pound junior, took a starting running-back slot in Shawnee’s split-back, veer offense. The nose guard responsibilities were to be shared by Eric Thompson and Bryan Shaw while Wade Auld inherited the weak corner spot in the secondary. Wendell Gordon moved to strong corner and Trace Grisso switched to free safety. Linebacker Jeff Witcher, who had been sidelined two straight games because of an injury, returned to the lineup. Witcher had tallied 39 tackles in the first three games.

Shawnee sent notice it had come to play by taking the opening kickoff and moving down the field on a 16-play, time-consuming march. Ralph Shaw capped the drive with a 26-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead.

In the second quarter, Scott Dubler of Shawnee recovered an errant pitchout at the Cougar 35. After an illegal-procedure penalty and a clipping infraction temporarily waylaid the Wolves, 5-9, 165-pound senior Wade Auld cut inside the Cougar defensive end, broke into the secondary and stymied two tackle attempts at the 15 en route to a 39-yard scoring play. Shaw’s point-after attempt put the Wolves up 10-0 at the 4:10 mark.

Chris Melson’s 67-yard punt return for a touchdown just 1:11 before halftime cut the margin to 10-7. Melson later went on to play quarterback at Oklahoma.
Auld then returned the ensuing kickoff 48 yards to the Cougar 37 and quarterback Chris Dockrey quickly hit Ryan Miller for a 21-yard gain. Dockrey went back to the air, finding Grisso for a 16-yard touchdown pass. Shaw converted the extra point, giving Shawnee a 17-7 upper hand 32 seconds before intermission. That remained the score at halftime.

At the outset of the second half, Ada churned 80 yards in 12 plays for a touchdown with quarterback Clint Wood tossing a 25-yarder to Brett Hager for the score to cut the deficit to 17-14. Hager was 15 yards behind the nearest defender and actually bobbled the ball before completing the catch.

That’s the way the game stayed until the 5:52 mark of the fourth quarter when Wood and Jay Stokes teamed up on a 65-yard scoring pass to put Ada up 21-17 — the first Cougar lead of the game.

“After Ada scored, Chris Dockrey came over to the sideline and promised me that we would score,” said Sperry, as reported in the Oct. 12, 1985, News-Star.

Dockrey was right on the money with his prediction. Three plays — all passes — covered 80 yards and consumed just 52 seconds. Grisso launched the drive with a 32-yard reception that was almost intercepted. After Auld’s 31-yard catch moved the ball to the 17, Dockrey rolled right and found a wide-open Shaw for the game-winning touchdown.

Ada’s next possession was non-productive, largely due to a sack by James Davis. Shawnee took possession and ran out the clock, thanks to a 32-yard Dockrey-to-Grisso pass play on a 4th-and-17 situation from the Cougar 34.

Grisso completed the night with six catches for 125 yards. Miller posted three receptions for 53 yards and Shaw had three catches for 47 yards.

Shawnee accumulated 410 yards of offense while Ada was limited to 168. Ada accumulated just 48 yards rushing on 32 attempts. The Wolves chalked up 17 first downs to nine for the Cougars. Both teams had two turnovers.

Sperry, still living in Shawnee, vividly remembers the game. “Anytime anybody beat Ada, it was a big deal,” Sperry said. “With all the distractions and playing at their place — and to take the ball and go 80 yards at the end and win the game — it was a huge deal. The kids just made the plays. We played well in all phases of the game.

“It was what high school football is all about. It was a special thing for all of us. Our kids really stepped up and they were long on intestinal fortitude. The same bunch of kids that year were down 20-0 to McAlester in the third quarter and came back to win 21-20.”

One of the seniors on the 1985 squad was Kirk Fridirch, who went on to play collegiately at Tulsa and is presently the head coach at Tulsa Union High School.