The Oxford Wildcats overcame some opening night jitters but made some critical stops when they were needed to beat Clio, 14-12, to begin defense of the Flint Metro League title.
Oxford overcame three lost fumbles in the first half and two interceptions in the game.
When it was needed, the Wildcat’s defense answered the call.
Perhaps the most critical play was when the defense collared Mustang quarterback Joe Dubiel inside the 1-yard line on a two-point conversion attempt with 7:34 left.
The Wildcats also blocked a field goal in the first half that proved to be an important stop.
Oxford had more than 300 yards in offense for the game but several drives were stopped by penalties or turnovers.
The first TD for Oxford came with 4:52 remaining in the second quarter. Oxford quarterback Nick Tombrella hit Spencer Britt on a 35-yard pass.
Matt Versteeg kicked the first of his two conversions for a 7-0 Wildcat lead.
An interception by Tony Esparsa helped set up the TD. Esparsa made the interception when he was rushing the quarterback, tipped a pass and grabbed it.
Tombrella then hit Britt on the first play.
Clio got on the board with three seconds left in the half on a 26-yard field goal by Spencer Spears.
Spears connected on a 30-yard field goal with 40 seconds left in the third quarter to narrow the gap to 7-6.
The Wildcats then put together their best drive of the evening. Geoff Charles did most of the work on the 80-yard drive, picking up chunks of yards through the middle of the Clio defensive line.
Tombrella finished the drive with a 15-yard TD pass to Charles with 8:05 left.
Clio came back quickly using a passing attack, eventually scoring on a 19-yard TD toss to cut the gap to 14-12.
But, when the Mustangs tried for a two-point conversion to tie the score, the Oxford defense stopped the quarterback on a run around the right side just inches away from the goal.
After Oxford’s offense sputtered, the defense stopped Clio again and the Cats took over with under a minute left.
Charles finished with 180 yards rushing on 26 carries.
Tombrella contributed 92 yards rushing and three the two TDs.
The week Oxford will entertain Kearsley in a 7 p.m. game.
The Hornets are new to the Flint Metro League and lost in their opening game to Lapeer West, 24-21, on a last second field goal.