TD
Classic 2000 Clouds were present most of the day, but produced only some brief sprinkles. All in all, it was an excellent day for this year's Classic.
The Tennessee High Vikings (out of Bristol, TN) led off the Classic with a convincing 28-13 defeat of the Lord Botetourt Cavaliers. Next, the Varina Blue Devils, 1998 and 1999 Division 6 Runner Ups, crushed the Franklin County Eagles 34-6. Following this contest, the Starmount (NC) Rams and Lord Botetourt played the best game of the day, the score ending up tied at 28-28. The Cougars then took the field to face Tennessee High. PC took first possession at its own 35. Runs of 6 yards each by Josh Calfee and Frank Cobbs gave the Cougars a first down. The duo moved the markers again with consecutive runs, and then repeated the feat for a third time. With 1st-and-10 from the Viking 27, Calfee gained 4 yards. On the next play, QB Alan Wheeling fumbled. Adam Roop recovered back at the TH 28. An illegal procedure penalty put the Cougars in a 3rd-and-16 at the Viking 33. Wheeling went back to pass, and dumped off a screen pass right to Calfee. Josh caught the ball behind the line-of-scrimmage, followed his blockers, found room to run, and made his way up the right sideline. He was finally knocked out-of-bounds at the 11. Runs by F. Cobbs and Calfee set up 3rd-and-1 from the 2. Frank carried for the TD. John Hedge kicked the PAT, and it was 7-0 Cougars with 6:02 remaining in the half. The Vikings took possession at their own
35. A run right by Baker gained 12 yards. Three plays later, it was 4th-and-7. TH punted,
and the ball was downed at the PC 26. On first down, F. Cobbs gained 5 yards. On
the next play, Calfee ran right, cut back to the middle, then to the left sideline, where
he outraced the defensive secondary. His 69-yard gallop, plus the PAT, made it 14-0 PC
with the clock showing 3:23. The Vikings once again gained only a few yards in 3 plays, and had to punt. Alan Wheeling took the kick at the PC 30, and lost a yard on the return. The Cougars ran 3 plays before time expired in the half, with the score PC 14, TH 0.
TH took first possession in the second half at its own 35. Once again, the Vikings could do very little with 3 plays, and faced a 4th-and-8. Wheeling took the punt at the PC 30, and gained 16 yards on the return. On 1st-and-10, Wheeling kept right for 13 yards. F. Cobbs then took the option pitch left down the sideline, and streaked towards the endzone. His 41-yard romp, plus the PAT, gave the Cougars a commanding 21-0 lead, with 10:05 left in the contest. The Vikings finally achieved their second first down with a run left by No. 25. However, three plays later, TH faced 4th-and-14 at its own 41. Adam Brockmeyer broke through to block the kick. A Viking player covered the ball at the TH 42. On 3rd-and-5 from the Viking 37, Calfee's run left for 10 gave PC a first down. Wheeling then faked a handoff, and rolled left. His 15-yard scamper moved the ball down to the 12. The TH defense stiffened this time. Wheeling slipped on 3rd-and-6, losing 2 yards. Hedge's field goal expanded PC's lead to 24-0. The clock now read 5:41 to go. The Viking offense finally awakened,
scoring in 11 plays. The big plays were No. 25's 15-yard gain with the criss-cross left on
2nd-and-9 from the PC 25. Chuck Baker scored on 3rd-and-goal from the 6. The PAT was good,
cutting the Cougar lead to 24-7 with only 1:45 remaining. PC gained 5 yards on 2 plays, and faced 3rd-and-5 at the Cougar 40, with 25.6 seconds remaining. Wheeling passed for 10 to a diving Josh Bowling to move the chains. On the next play, Wheeling pitched to Bowling, who then passed deep over the middle to Greg Cobbs, who jumped up and caught the ball between two defenders at the 20. He then outran the nearest pursuer to the endzone. This score on the last play made the final Cougars 30, Vikings 7.
Unofficial stats: Reminded by the familiar voice in the press box, Cougar fans headed for the concession stand, while the team rested up for its last encounter. In the meantime, Franklin County and Starmount finished up their respective assignments with a real defensive struggle. The game ended in a scoreless tie. It was after the scheduled 7:00 starting
time when PC again took the field, this time to face Varina. The Cougars got first crack, and wasted no time. On first down, Calfee ran right, then cutback left. He made his way through prospective tacklers over to the left sideline, where he turned on the jets. His 65-yard jaunt gave the Cougars a 6-0 lead only 13 seconds into the contest. The PAT was missed wide left. The Cougar offense was looking extremely sharp at this point, having scored with every single possession but one on the day.
The Blue Devils took over at their own 35. Varina converted on 3rd-and-4 from its 41 when No. 12 gained 5 yards. A quick slant-in pass right gained 12 yards on 3rd-and-8 from the V 48. No. 12 and QB Michael Robinson gained 15 yards each on consecutive plays, giving the Blue Devils 1st-and-goal at the 10. Bruce McMullin bulled up the middle for 8 yards. Robinson then ran a QB sneak for the TD. No. 12 took a pitch right on the 2-point attempt. He looked to have been stopped short, but he fumbled into the endzone, where a Varina player fell on it. The Blue Devils led 8-6 with 6:44 left in the half. The Cougars started right back where they left off. Calfee gained 14 yards on first down. On 2nd-and-10 from the PC 49, Wheeling rolled left, and passed left to the diving Jeff King, who made a great juggling catch. F. Cobbs moved the chains with a 10-yard FB dive. On 2nd-and-8 from the Blue Devil 25, Calfee took the option pitch right for 11 yards. F. Cobbs took another FB dive for 11 yards. The Cougars were again in great shape, with 1st-and-goal at the 3. However, the PC machine suddenly slowed to a grinding halt. After Cobbs gained 2 yards and Wheeling's QB sneak came up just short of the endzone, the Cougars called a timeout with 2:37 left in the half. F. Cobbs was then stopped for a 1-yard loss. Coach Hicks disdained a chip-shot field goal, which could have given PC a 9-8 lead. Instead, he called upon Calfee. Josh took the ball right, but was met in the backfield, and lost 2 yards. The Blue Devil defense had risen to the occasion. Varina gained one first down, then QB
Robinson took a knee on 4th-and-5 as the clock ran out. Blue Devils 8, Cougars 6 at the
break. Varina took first possession to begin the second half. A 24-yard pass on 2nd-and-4 from the 41, and a penalty on the Cougars at the end of the play gave the Blue Devils 1st-and-10 at the PC 20. After an incomplete pass and a 3-yard loss on a criss-cross play, Varina faced 3rd-and-13. An attempted pass sailed out-of-bounds, and it was 4th down.
This set up a key play in the game. Jonathan Anderson intercepted Robinson's pass at the 2-yard line. It seemed like his momentum carried him into the endzone for a touchback, but the officials disagreed. Anderson should have simply batted down the pass, which would have given PC the ball at the 23. Instead, the Cougars took possession with horrible field position at the 2. Wheeling gained 10 yards on 3rd-and-7 from the 5. Two plays later, F. Cobbs took the pitch left, and fumbled while struggling for yardage. The Blue Devils recovered at the 18. Three plays later, Varina faced 4th-and-2 at the 10. The Blue Devils attempted no extra points or field goals in either game so it was not surprising that here Varina did not attempt a field goal, which would have given only a 5-point lead if successful anyway. After a Blue Devil timeout, Robinson ran the QB sneak. The officials measured, and he came up inches short. The Cougars took over at the 8 with 4:24 remaining. Wheeling ran right for 12 yards on first down. After 2 plays netted only 4 yards, Wheeling rolled left and attempted a pass for Bowling, but the ball was just beyond his reach. After a timeout, Coach Hicks decided that with only 2:44 left, to go for the first down. OT Wally McGrady caught Wheeling's screen pass, but it was smothered for a loss. Either PC had lined up in a tackle-eligible formation, or Varina simply declined the penalty. A flag was thrown, but then picked up. The Blue Devils took over at the 19. Two
plays later, No. 12 carried right for 15 yards and a TD, giving Varina a 14-6 lead.
Robinson's attempted pass on the 2-point conversion fell incomplete, and the Cougars were
still in range of tying the game, with a mere 1:39 left. On 1st-and-10 from the PC 35, Wheeling pitched to Bowling, who passed deep for F. Cobbs. The pass was out of Cobbs' reach, and fell incomplete. After Hale gained 2 yards, an illegal procedure penalty put the Cougars back for a 3rd-and-13 from the 32. Wheeling faked a handoff, and dropped back to pass. Being pressured, he scrambled left, to the middle, and then right. He wisely went out-of-bounds at the PC 47, both gaining a first down, and stopping the clock. There were only 29.6 seconds remaining in this hard-fought contest. After a Cougar timeout and an incomplete pass, F. Cobbs carried the criss-cross right for 13 yards. Wheeling grounded the ball to stop the clock with 11.8 seconds left, and the ball resting on the Blue Devil 40. Wheeling rolled left on the next play, but was sacked before he had any chance of finding a receiver open. The clock ran out, ending the game with Varina winning 14-6.
Unofficial stats: Combined stats: All in all, the Cougars looked very impressive. A difference could be noticed, even only a week after the scrimmage. Calfee was super, and Frank Cobbs was a workhorse. Wheeling was a little off on some passes, but he will no doubt get sharper as the season progresses. He had some notable keepers and scrambles. His mobility gives the offense an extra dimension. The defense looks improved compared to last year's, although defending the pass is still a concern. |
