The Streak is now... OVER!
by Ardent Cougar

BOX SCORE

Fans of both teams filled Salem Stadium to see two of the best teams in Virginia clash. They were not disappointed. The Cougars proved to be the stronger team, and did what 29 previous opponents could not do - defeat the Salem Spartans. 

The Spartans won the toss, and deferred.  Nic Schmitt boomed the ball into the endzone, and PC started at its own 20. 

Josh Calfee swept right for 5 yards on 1st down.  QB Alan Wheeling must have been slightly nervous, as he fumbled (and recovered) two snaps in a row.  The plays lost a collective yard, making it 4th-and-6.  Brandon Hamblin’s punt was returned by Keith Schwizer for 3 yards to the Spartan 47. 

Manuel Lewis, Salem’s 281-pound, hard-to-tackle-when-he-has-momentum RB, gained 10 yards and 18 yards for first downs on consecutive carries.  On 1st-and-10 from the Cougar 25, Lewis gained 2 yards. 

The next play turned the momentum around.  QB David Christianson rolled left, and passed near the sideline for Schmitt.  The ball was overthrown, and Alan Wheeling picked it off at the 10.  He returned it up the sideline to the PC 42. 

Frank Cobbs began what was to be a spectacular offensive night for him with a 13 yard FB dive.  Calfee gained no yardage on the next play, but Salem was called for an incidental facemask, giving the Cougars a 1st-and-5 at the Spartan 40.  Calfee gained 4 yards, then Cobbs ran for 9 yards and a first down at the 27.  Cobbs then ran the FB dive play for 8 yards.  Calfee then ran right, and cutback up the middle for 10.  It was 1st-and-goal at the 9. 

Cobbs took the FB dive play in for the score.  John Hedge added the PAT. 7-0 Cougars with 5:28 remaining in the opening quarter. 

Jeremie Shelor took Hedge’s kickoff at the 2, after mishandling the ball.  He returned it to the Salem 11.  Three plays gained only 5 yards.  Schmitt’s punt rolled dead at the Cougar 42, where PC’s previous drive had begun. 

The Cougars duplicated the result of that first scoring drive.  Calfee’s 15-yard run on 2nd-and-6 gave PC a first down at the Salem 39. 

Cobbs ran the FB dive, found a big hole, and cut left.  He outraced the Spartan secondary, and found paydirt.  His second score, and the PAT, made it 14-0 with the clock reading 2:14. 

Shelor returned the kickoff 20 yards to the 25.  Cobbs tackled Roger Waddell for a 4-yard loss on first down.  Christianson was then trapped in an “Adam sandwich”, as both Adam Brockmeyer (blitzing through the middle, timing the snap count perfectly) and Adam Roop (coming around left end) sacked him as he attempted to roll right.  The draw play to Lewis on 3rd-and-19 was stopped for a mere 2-yard gain. 

Wheeling took the punt at the Cougar 42, and was stopped for no gain on the return.  Cobbs gained a yard on 1st-and-10, as the quarter ended.
 

On 2nd-and-9, Calfee gained 6 yards.  He then gained 8 yards, moving the chains.  The Cougars were in Spartan territory again, at the 44. 

Cobbs took the FB dive play up the middle, found another big hole, and surged ahead.  His third touchdown of the night threatened to blow this “FFE Super 7 Showdown” wide open.  Hedge’s PAT increased the margin to 21.  The Spartans had exactly 11:00 before halftime to stem the tide. 

Spencer Christley took the kickoff from the 10 to the Salem 19. 

You don’t win 29 consecutive games by giving up, and the Spartans certainly didn’t.  On 2nd-and-10, Christianson made a quick pass left to Shelor, who caught the ball at the 26.  He broke a tackle, and made it to midfield before Cobbs ran him down.  After a short gain and an incomplete pass, Salem converted a key 3rd-and-8 when Christianson rolled right, and found Sean Hefner.  He made his way down to the PC 31. 

Lewis gained 9 yards on first down, then got a yard on the next play, moving the chains.  Christianson rolled left and completed a pass to Keith Rochford, who got down to the 12.  Lewis then easily bulled his way in from the right side.  Schmitt’s PAT cut the lead down to 14, with 7:38 left until the break. 

Schmitt boomed the kickoff into the endzone for a touchback.  Calfee gained 4 yards on 1st-and-10. 

The next play put the Cougars in the hole for this drive.  Wheeling faked a handoff left, and kept right.  The play that worked for a touchdown against the Hilltoppers last week did not fool the Spartans, and Wheeling was tackled for a 3-yard loss.  Salem must have been expecting Coach Hicks to not take a chance in this situation, as the Spartan defense held Cobbs to a 4-yard gain on the FB dive.

Hamblin’s punt was taken at the Salem 33 by Schwizer, and returned for 5 yards. 

On 2nd-and-10, Waddell ran left, broke a tackle in the backfield, and made his way all the way to the Cougar 28 before Wheeling and David Hale brought him down.  After a 3-yard QB scramble and a delay of game penalty, Christianson rolled right and threw for Hefner at the goalline.  The pass was incomplete, but Wheeling was called for a controversial interference penalty on the play.  This gave Salem 1st-and-10 at the 15 with 4:02 showing on the clock. 

Lewis gained 3 yards on first down.  Christianson dropped back to pass, then scrambled down to the 6.  On 3rd-and-1, Lewis made his way down to the 3.  On 1st-and-goal, Lewis went in untouched.  The PAT made the score 21-14 with 2:07 left before halftime.  The home crowd was alive, having seen their team make a real game of it, after nearly getting blown away early. 

Schmitt’s kicked was downed in the endzone for another touchback.  After a couple of small gains, Cobbs got the Cougars out of the hole with an 8-yard run left with the option pitch.  Cobbs gained 9 yards on first down. Calfee then ran left, found a hole, burst through it, and made his way to the Spartan 48. 

The Cougars called a timeout with 3 seconds left.  A second timeout was called after the Spartans showed their defensive setup.  Cobbs then took the FB dive right, nearly breaking it.  He was tackled out of bounds at the Salem 30 as the half ended. 

The Cougars had started fast, only to see the Spartans nearly catch up.  This game was living up to its billing. 

Salem got the first possession of the second half.  The Spartans got good field position when Schmitt took Hedge’s kickoff at the 6, and returned 25 yards up to the 31. 

On 2nd-and-10, Christianson rolled left, and found Schmitt open.  He made his way into Cougar territory at the 47.  On 2nd-and-7, Roop blitzed and sacked Christianson for a 7-yard loss.  Christianson pass deep right on 3rd-and-14 was incomplete.

Schmitt’s punt was downed at the PC 15. 
 

Up to this point, the Cougars had not been able to do much without having good starting field position.  At least a solid drive, if not a score, was necessary here to regain the momentum. 

Calfee gained 4 yards, then Cobbs ran for one yard, setting up a key 3rd-and-5. 

Wheeling faked a handoff to Cobbs, ran left, and cutback up the middle.  His 6-yard keeper maintained possession for PC. 

Calfee stiff-armed his way to a 4-yard gain on first down, then moved the chains by running left for 7 yards.  Cobbs gained 8, 14, and 3 yards on consecutive carries.  Calfee gained 4 yards on a 2nd-and-7 sweep left.  Cobbs was held to a one yard gain on the next play, making it 4th-and-2 at the Spartan 33.  The Cougars called a timeout with 4:18 left in the third quarter. 

Coach Hicks decided that it was too close to punt, and too far away for a field goal try.  So, he thought it best to go for the first down. 

Cobbs took the option pitch left, got a key block from Calfee on Reico Jordan, and kept the drive alive with a 6-yard gain.  His 5-yard dive, followed by Calfee’s 4-yard sweep right, made it 3rd-and-1 at the 18.  Cobbs then ran left for 4 yards, and the chains once again moved.  He gained 5 yards on the next play down to the 9.  Salem was penalized for a facemask on the play, moving the ball down to the 5. 

Cobbs gained 2 yards on both first and second down. After the second down play, Calfee was seen limping off of the field with what looked to be a leg cramp.  PC called timeout with 29 seconds to go in the quarter. 

With their backs against the wall, the Spartans did their best to keep the Cougars out of the endzone.  Wheeling’s looked as if he might have broken the plane with his QB sneak, but the officials signaled that he was just short.  It was 4th down at the 1/2-yard line.  The two teams changed ends, as the quarter ended. 

Any Cougar fan who watched last year’s thrilling win over Cave Spring could see an eerie similarity to this situation.  In that game the Knights, up 28-21 in the 4th quarter,  spurned a chip shot field goal for one more shot at the endzone.  The Cougars stuffed the QB sneak, drove 99 1/2 yards to tie the game, then won in overtime.  Coach Hicks might have given that game a passing thought here. 

If it did enter his mind, he was not deterred.  He decided to trust his offensive line, which had opened so many nice holes for Cobbs all game. 

Cobbs took the FB dive in for the score, his fourth touchdown of the night.  Hedge’s PAT gave the Cougars breathing room at 28-14.

Hedge’s squib kickoff hit upman Kirby Hamilton at the 35, where the Spartans fell on the ball. 

A quick pass right to Hefner was held to a 1-yard gain, as Roop hit him, joined by Brockmeyer and Wheeling.  Gordon Cross knocked down Christianson’s pass attempt on 2nd-and-9. 

Down by 14, and facing 3rd-and-9, Salem needed a key play to keep this crucial drive alive.  Christianson rolled right and found Hefner at the 50.  He made it to the PC 43 before being tackled by Antione Meadows. 

Christley bobbled the option pitch right, but was able to fall on it at the Salem 48.  Christianson rolled right and passed to Hefner, who got to the Cougar 36.  This set up another key play, 3rd-and-3. 
 

Lewis went off tackle left for 4 yards, and a first down at the 32.

After an incomplete pass, Christianson found Hefner on a crossing pattern over the middle.  Hefner caught the ball at the 15, and eluded the one defender in his way.  The PAT closed the gap to 7 points again. With the clock reading 8:31, there was still plenty of football to be played. 

Calfee downed the strong-legged Schmitt’s kickoff in the endzone.  The Cougars would once again start deep in their own territory. 

Calfee took the sweep left, found a hole, and burst through it.  He was finally knocked out of bounds at the PC 46.  This immediately gave the Cougars much needed breathing room. 

Cobbs gained 9 yards on yet another FB dive.  He then ran off tackle right for 4.  Calfee’s sweep left gained only 1 yard, as Christley tackled him from behind.  The ball was now resting on the Spartan 40. 

That was close enough for Cobbs.  He burst off tackle right, found open spaces, and kept right on going, until he had scored his 5th touchdown of the night.  PC had answered Salem in less than 2 minutes.  Hedge’s PAT put the lead back at 14.  The Spartans had 6:32 left to try to erase a two-touchdown deficit. 

Schmitt took the kickoff at the 1, and made his way up to the 22.  Waddell was thrown for a 2-yard loss.  Christianson rolled left, then scrambled up to the 30.  A quick pass left to Rochford on 3rd-and-3 gained 6.  Christianson scrambled for 6 yards. Christianson’s 2nd-and-4 pass went off of the fingertips of Hefner at the PC 47.  Meadows broke up a pass for Hefner on the next play, leaving Salem with a last gasp 4th-and-4. 

Christianson dropped back, and passed over the middle for Hefner.  The pass was just a bit low, and the Cougars took over at the Spartan 42 with 3:34 left in this marquee matchup. 

Cobbs gained 2 first downs and 23 yards on 5 straight runs.  Calfee swept left for 6 yards.  Cobbs ran off tackle left for 7, making it 1st-and-goal at the 6.  Although there was time left for one more play, Coach Hicks decided to have mercy on his worthy adversary on the other sidelline.  The final seconds ticked off, and Cougar players, cheerleaders, and a few fans, celebrated on the field. 

“In the second quarter, they were driving and scored 14 straight points.  Then the defense held,” said Wheeling.  “We stuck together as a team.  The best way to describe this team is ‘one for all and all for one.’” 

“The defense stepped it up in the second half and stayed strong,” said Calfee. 

Commenting on the Cougar pass defense, Antoine Meadows said: “I was supposed to cover the tight end drag and the [flanker] curl route.  But he [the tight end] was not coming over so Coach Landreth told me to cover the curl quicker.  That really made a difference.  They quit throwing it once I had it covered.” 

“Team intensity was up tonight, like it was all week in practice.  But we didn’t want to over estimate them, get too excited and play nervous,” said Frank Cobbs.  When asked about this year’s Cougar team chemistry, he said, “I’ve never had this kind of feel about a team.  Its a big family.  We’re not down on one another, we stay optimistic.”

BOX SCORE

Interviews by Jeff Wolfe
Photos by Steven Marcus