Newspaper Page Text
2B
♦ WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2007
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Northside players, coaches, cheerleaders, managers and others involved with the team’s success, take a break for a photo op after the game.
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Eagle Tijuan Green runs away from Ware County defenders.
DEFEND
From page iB
“It was a great game. I
thought we were just going
to come out here and exe
cute and go home with the
win. But Ware County, I
give them credit. They play
players both ways, and they
didn’t quit without a fight.”
Green did take his share of
hits from the Gator defense,
but still came out with 149
rushing yards on 25 car
ries. He also caught a touch
down pass of six yards from
regular senior quarterback
Marques Ivory.
“They put some good licks
on me, but I kept coming,”
said Green. “I give credit
to my o-line. They worked
hard.”
Green referred to execu
tion, but that was not an
Eagle strong suit in the
first quarter that saw
three Northside turnovers.
Overall, the Eagles had four
giveaways to only one take
away, that being a big inter
ception in the 96th quarter
from junior middle lineback
er Darius Ivey.
But how does a team lose
such an important stat as
the turnover ratio and still
win? There’s always that
Eagle defense, which even
with bad field positions cre
ated by those turnovers only
allowed 102 total yards to
Dan Ragle’s Ware offense.
“That’s very unusual in a
state championship. It was
one of those things where
the defense had to keep
playing hard. It was a great
effort by our defense,” said
Nix. “We kept shooting our
selves in the foot and just
persevered. I’m very proud
of our guys.
“We did a good job doing
what we were supposed to
do (on defense). I’m proud
of our offense for hanging in
there and making, plays at
the end.”
“It makes it that much
better,” said fullback/receiv
er Brandon Jordan. “We had
some hardships inside the
game, but we knew we had
to come back and replace
what we messed up. It feels
good.”
“That interception felt so
good,” said Ivey. “I knew it
would have helped us a lot.
If I had never caught that
pass, who knows what we
would do. As long as we kept
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Eagle quarterback Marques Ivory gets a well-deserved
hug.
focused, I knew the team
would work hard.
“As coach Nix tells us every
day, you have to contribute.
Don’t lose focus, don’t lose
track. The more we keep
fighting, the more we can
get better. The reward will
come as soon as possible.”
For Northside, it was a
second straight comeback
victory in the state playoffs,
but one of different dynam
ics than the previous week
end’s effort in the Georgia
Dome in Atlanta. There, the
Eagles were down by three
touchdowns to Tucker High
at halftime but stormed back
behind the returning Ivory
to win 31-28.
But in Waycross, it wasn’t
so much coming back from a
large deficit as overcoming
that mountain of mistakes.
Ware County’s special teams
didn’t make things any eas
ier with three punts in the
first quarter that rolled, in
order, to the Eagle 15, 3 and
1 yard lines.
Northside’s first play from
scrimmage was an Ivory pass
over the middle to Kevyn
Cooper, but Ware’s defender
won the one-on-one battle
for the football on the Gator
38. The second drive lasted
three plays as Ware senior
Victor Daniels had the sec
ond pick on the Eagle 38.
The Gators got nothing
from these two turnovers,
though, as junior lineman
Abry Jones was all over the
Ware backfield. He recorded
a sack on the opening series
and got to the quarterback
trying to roll out on the third
series for a 4th-and-22.
When Northside had
to start on its 1, the drive
ended in two plays with a
ENI/Gary Hannon
fumbled snap and recovery
by Gator Jeremy Boyd on
the 7. Even then, it took a
3rd-and-goal toss to Derrick
Daniels to score a three-yard
touchdown at 28 seconds to
go-
Senior defensive end
Anthony Taylor, with a leg
trip on D. Daniels that lost
four yards on third down,
stopped Ware’s first drive
of the second quarter for a
punt, this time only to the
Eagle 42. Green, with side
to side running and surviv
ing an accidental bump into
a teammate, had a 19-yard
gain to the Gator 28. Ivory,
still without a completion,
found one when Cooper
made a lst-and-goal grab of
23 yards to the 6.
It was third down from
that spot when Ivory found
his customary pocket pro
vided by the Eagle offensive
line. With that time, he spot
ted Green over the goal and
put Northside on the board
at 3:26 until the half. Pike
tied the game with the PAT.
Leslie Jordan, a senior
cornerback, had the key stop
to end the half undercutting
Ware’s outside receiver for
only one yard.
On to the third quarter,
when backup quarterback
Joe Scott saw some imme
diate spot action and keep
ers that gained 13 yards on
an opening scoring drive.
Ware prevented a first down
as Green tried to run the
ball on third down from the
Gator 15. So Pike, fresh off
his game-winning field goal
in the Tucker game, took a
shot from the right hash and
angled the ball inside the
left post from 32 yards out
(10-7, 7:33).
SPORTS
While Ware couldn’t find
ways around Jones, who
broke up a pass, the punting
game came through again
with a boot to the Eagle 10.
Green carried the ball up
to the 38 with a run that
started out but moved back
in with blocks from tackle
Jerome Bibbins and center
Jordan Dooley. But the drive
ended on the fourth turn
over, a fumbled reception
picked up by D. Daniels.
Ware had a touchdown on
this return taken back for
an illegal block call. So from
the NS 24, Jones recorded
another sack that led to a
fourth down play at the 33.
Gator quarterback Dustin
Cox had Ivoiy-like time, and
Boyd’s over-the-shoulder
catch made for first down
on the 1. Victor Daniels, on
third down, barely broke the
plane of the goal line, but it
was enough for a 14-10 lead
at 1:22 of the third.
As the game moved into
the 96th quarter, Northside
was driving with two Ivory
first-down completions to
the Gator 22. The Eagles
punted the ball to the Ware
23 with nine minutes left,
and the Gators appeared in
good shape for a long drive
facing lst-and-5 from their
40.
Ivey and Fields stopped
the ensuring running plays,
putting Ware in a third down
passing situation that failed
with 6:14 to go.
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Northside’s Abry Jones brings down Ware County’s quarterback.
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ENI/Gary Harmon
77ie Gators - in one of the few times they were able to
catch him all night - tackle Green.
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ENI/Gary Harmon
A Ware County defender battles away an interception.
The game-winning drive
for Northside only lasted
two plays. Green, starting
from his 40, faked out his
would-be tackier for a run
to the Ware 40. He was the
quarterback - no lateral
trickery - in the shotgun,
and Bass caught the throw
on the run. Northside was
ahead for good.
At 5:04, Ivey intercepted
Cox’s throw over the middle
and returned it to the Gator
18. Green couldn’t run for
HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
the first down, but Pike set
up for a 30-yard field goal at
2:40 for what would be the
final points.
Cox had four straight
incomplete passes with
senior linebacker Khiry
Jones providing pressure.
Northside had the football
back with 2:14 to go and ran
out the remaining time.
Ivory was 9-for-16 passing
for 136 yards. Cooper was
the top receiver with five
catches for 82 yards.
ENI/Gary Harmon
ENI/Gary Harmon
ENI/Gary Harmon