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Patriots, Panthers and War Eagles knocked out of playoffs

By MICHAEL BOYLAN
mboylan@TheCitizenNews.com

By J.FRANK LYNCH
jflynch@TheCitizenNews.com

The three local teams that had made the second round of the state football playoffs had their work cut out for them. All three teams fell short on Friday night, finishing great seasons a little too early for their likings.

Sandy Creek (11-1) hosted the Griffin Bears and lost 35-28. The Patriots got on the board first after Ishmael Gordon recovered a Bears fumble on the Griffin 25 yard line and Reggie Ellington burst through the line for a 25 yard touchdown run. Griffin followed Ellington’s score with a touchdown drive and though Sandy Creek could not get anything going on their next drive, they pinned the Bears six inches from their end zone with an incredible punt from Brian Brown.

Sandy Creek would get the ball back in the second quarter but Michael Jones would miss a 39 yard field goal attempt. The Bears would score two more touchdowns before the half, taking a 21-7 lead into the locker room and the knowledge that they would get the ball back to start the second half.

Griffin drove down the field again, looking ready to put the game away but Stephan Atrice picked off a Bears’ pass to prevent a touchdown. Sandy Creek couldn’t do anything on their next drive but they did stop Griffin on their next drive with a blocked field goal. It gave the Patriots the lift they needed as quarterback Josh Haney connected with tight end Mike Gates for a 27 yard touchdown. Sandy Creek’s defense came up huge on Griffin’s next drive with a big sack and a big punt return from Brent Brewer. Ellington would rumble 31 yards for the tying touchdown.

The crowd and the players were going nuts. This continued when the Patriots recovered a Griffin fumble with 43 seconds remaining in the third quarter and was sustained early in the fourth quarter when the Patriots ran a fumblerooski where Teddy Morris gained 57 yards and had Sandy Creek knocking on the door. They would go for it on a fourth down on the Griffin five yard line and not convert. Griffin scored after a receiver caught a tipped ball and ran 94 yards for a touchdown. They would go for a two point conversion and would take a 29-21 lead. The Bears scored again less than five minutes later but a bad snap on the extra point attempt kept the game in reach.

Haney scrambled for two first downs before throwing a 30 yard touchdown pass to Brewer to cut the lead down to one touchdown. The Patriots kicked an onside kick but Griffin recovered it, holding on to the ball and the win. Some of the good players on defense for the game were Brown, Michael Lockett, Michael Anderson, Brandon Lawrence, Rickey Nicholson, Gerren Griffin and Gordon. Griffin just found ways to wriggle out of the defense’s grasp or to catch passes that one would think were completely uncatchable due to the ball being tipped.

It was not the way that the Patriots wanted to end their season but they did not ever give up, fighting valiantly until the game was over. Though 22 seniors will graduate from this year’s roster, the Patriots will be back in contention for another region championship and state title again next year.

In a night when just about everything that could have gone wrong did, the No. 8 ranked Starr's Mill Panthers saw their improbable 2004 season come to an abrupt halt Friday night more than 300 miles from home.

The host Camden County Wildcats, the defending Class AAAAA State Champs and the state's No. 1 ranked team since the preseason, took advantage of Starr’s Mill mistakes early in the game and never looked back, shutting out the Panthers 21-0.

Perhaps it was the long distance from home, or the sandy, wet conditions of Camden’s home field, or the intimidation factor from 10,000 screaming Wildcat fans who filled BOTH sides of the stadium.

Whatever the reason, the Panthers never seemed to get in their game —Êuncharacteristic of a team that so often this season has played to perfection and found a way to win. After failing to make the playoffs last year, Coach Mike Earwood’s 2004 squad seemed to regain the magic, finishing the regular season 9-1, the only loss coming to Lovejoy in overtime.

After a solid win over Riverdale in the first round of the state playoffs last week, Starr’s Mill was dreaming of another deep run into the postseason.

But instead Friday night, the Panthers found themselves facing one bad break after another.

It was a first quarter fumble on a punt reception that turned the ball over to Camden deep in Panther territory, setting up the Wildcat's first TD. In the second quarter, the Panthers drove to within range and looked poised to score when a pass from quarterback Robby Davis was picked off in the endzone.

And so it went. In the third quarter, a blocked punt gave Camden the ball at the Panther's 35. All it took was one play, one pass into the corner, and the score was 14-0.

By the fourth quarter, Camden was shutting down nearly every Starr’s Mill offensive effort, and the wide-open Wildcat scheme was wearing the Panthers thin. Late in the fourth quarter, Camden finally completed a bona-fide offensive drive and sealed the win, 21-0.

As painful as the loss was for the the Starr’s Mill faithful, it could have been worse. One of the Panther’s most formidable offensive weapons, junior Antonio Scott, collapsed on the sideline in the waning seconds of the first half after taking a hard hit. Scott remained unconscious for several minutes while paramedics worked to revive him. Early reports were that he suffered a severe concussion, but he was alert and moving when EMTs carried him to a local hospital.

He even gave a “thumbs up” sign to the Starr's Mill fans as he was rolled off the field on a stretcher. Scott’s CAT Scan was negative and he was released from the hospital early Saturday morning.Other players injured in what Coach Mike Earwood felt was the most physical game he had seen in eight years were Danny Newton (MCL strain), Matt Johnson (eye) and Dante Allen (ankle).

“It was a tough game and a tough loss for our players,” said Earwood. “We all wanted to continue this good season.” Earwood cited the defense for playing what he considered their finest game all year. Camden County had only amassed three first downs going into the fourth quarter. Earwood also mentioned Ben Griffin for playing an outstanding game.

The loss was the first time that Starr’s Mill had been shutout since a loss to Brookwood in the 2003 season opener.

Landmark Christian fought Bremen for a full game and two overtimes before losing 40-39. Matt Moody ran for a touchdown and threw for 331 yards and four touchdowns in the loss. The players who caught touchdown passes were Tommy Kinney, Brian Houston, Miles King and Jimmy Edens.

Congratulations to all of the local football teams for a well-played and hard-fought season.