The Oakville Senior High School varsity football team was just a couple plays away from winning its second playoff game of the 2014 campaign, but instead the Tigers ended their season with a heartbreaking loss to Jackson in overtime last week.

The Tigers were trailing by 14 points at the half, but staged a comeback that gave them the lead by the fourth quarter. However, they gave up the equalizer to Jackson to force overtime play and eventually lost 41-35.

Jackson drove first in overtime, capitalizing on its possession on a very close play that was almost intercepted.

Then it was Oakville’s turn and the Tigers had a nice drive going, but had a “bad snap,” according to head coach Arlee Conners. The Tigers turned over the ball, ending their season.

“It was a tough loss. We just got outdone at the end,” Conners told the Call. “They made one more play than we did at the end. But the guys fought hard. We were down two touchdowns at the half and they came out in the second half and really gave a heck of an effort. (Until) that fourth-down play (in overtime) … we had our chances.”

The Tigers ended up with a 5-6 record in a roller-coaster season with plenty of ups and downs.

“… Overall, we had our ups and downs, but I thought our guys were pretty resilient all year long,” Conners said. “They always found ways to bounce back after tough losses and they had some big wins in the process.

“We had a roller-coaster going and we just came up short, and that’s kind of what the last game came down to. But to fight the way they did under the circumstances they were under, there was nothing bad about it and I was definitely proud of everything they did.”

The elite group of young men who played their last high school football game for the Tigers will leave behind a lasting legacy, according to Conners.

“For the seniors there will definitely be some good memories they’ll leave behind, and they left some good things for the guys behind them to look up to and,” the coach said. “They laid it out there on the line and that’s all I can ask for.”