Forget “snatching victory from the jaws of defeat”, Dinwiddie senior CB Pierre Hawkes prefers to jar it loose with a bone-crushing hit. That’s just how he “rolls”…
Let’s set the stage…
Trailing 49-48 in overtime, Meadowbrook decided to go for the 2-pont conversion and the win. With heavy pressure coming off the edge, Meadowbrook QB Desmond Coble faded back and tried to loft a pass into the end zone to RB Domico Phillips - who had slipped out of the backfield uncovered. Just as it looked as though the ball would land in Phillips’ hands, Hawkes broke on the football and delivered a bruising hit that he (and all of his teammates) will likely remember for a long time.
When the ball hit the ground to seal the win, the celebration began both on the field and in the stands as the Generals escaped with a 49-48 victory that clinched both the Central District championship and the #1 seed in next week’s Division 5 Playoffs.
Dinwiddie Coach Billy Mills was amazed at the efforts of the players on both sides, “Just a great game to be a part of. Neither team deserved to lose that game.”
Early on, things were rough for the Generals as their offense struggled to find a rhythm. Left with a short field twice, Meadowbrook took advantage jumping out to a 14-0 lead.
Momentum shifted back to the Generals midway through the 2nd quarter when senior CB Brandon Parson stepped up and intercepted a pass along the Meadowbrook sideline. The Generals got an even bigger swing of momentum four plays later when QB Adam Morgan busted open a run on 4th-and-2 for a 38-yard touchdown. Wrapped up by several Meadowbrook defenders, Morgan kept fighting for extra yards and eventually burst out into the open field for the score.
The “never-say-die” attitude Morgan displayed on the scamper set the tone for how the Generals would play the rest of the night. “Everything changed after Adam broke that run”, said Coach Mills, “It just gave our kids a boost of confidence.”
Not to be outdone, the Monarchs would quickly answer with another score on a Jevonn Worsham 14-yard TD run to make it 21-7.
With just 2 1/2 minutes left before the half, the Generals needed a score and responded with an 8-play 70-yard touchdown drive. Keying the drive were two Morgan passes - one for 33 yards down the middle to Terron Adams and another for 22 yards to Sam Haskins. With 5 seconds left on the clock and no timeouts, the Generals again put the ball in Morgan’s hands as he plunged across the goal line from a yard out just 1.3 seconds before the half to close the gap to 21-14.
Early in the 2nd half it was apparent the Dinwiddie defense was ready to step things up to help the Generals even the score. A 3-and-out on the first drive set the tone and when Bradley Johnson stepped in front of a pass on the next drive, it gave the Generals offense a short field to work with. Two plays later, Morgan hit WR Quintaze Jackson between two defenders in the endzone to knot the score at 21.
Another 3-and-out by the fired-up defense, along with a 20-yard punt return by Jerrell White set the Generals up at the Meadowbrook 33 yard line. Morgan would rumble for 16 yards on the first play and then find White on a corner route in the back of the end zone from 17 yards out to give the Generals their first lead of the night at 28-21.
Meadowbrook again answered with a 6-play 80 yard drive of their own, with the majority of the yards coming on a 3rd-and-11 play where Coble scrambled around in the backfield and launched a 47-yard bomb to WR Chris Carter. Coble would find paydirt 3 plays later on a 6-yard TD run of his own to tie it back up at 28.
There again with the answer for the Generals was Jerrell White, who broke loose on the ensuing kickoff for 40 yards out to the Meadowbrook 43 yard line. A few plays later, Morgan would hook up with White for another TD - this time from 14 yards out - to give Dinwiddie a 35-28 lead.
Coble once again moved the Monarchs down the field into Dinwiddie territory, only to see things sputter out thanks to a big 4th down stop by the Dinwiddie defense.
With their offense rolling along, the Generals looked to move down the field to tack on another score. WR Sam Haskins did his part when he took a 2-yard screen pass and turned it into a 50-yard gain deep into Meadowbrook territory. Only a touchdown-saving tackle by Coble prevented Haskins from going the distance. It wouldn’t matter as Morgan would rip off a 33-yard run on 1st and 25 following a Dinwiddie penalty to set up a 1-yard Mark Beville TD run to bump the lead to 42-14.
Again, Coble and his Monarch teammates were quick to respond. Using his legs and arm, Coble led Meadowbrook down the field and cut the Dinwiddie lead to 42-35 when he found Chris Carter in the end zone from 22 yards out.
Electing not to try an onside kick, Meadowbrook kicked deep to Morgan who took the ball out to the 30 yard line, where a costly late hit moved the Generals out to the 45. It wouldn’t hurt the Monarchs, as a Morgan INT on the first play from scrimmage would give them the football back with a chance to score to tie the game.
Coble took over one more time for the Monarchs, buying time with his feet to find open receivers down the field. When he pranced in from 9 yards out with 1:13 left on the clock, he tied the game at 42 and left bewildered Dinwiddie fans wondering how their team had blown a 14-point lead.
Armed with a high-powered offense and a strong-legged kicker, the Generals knew they still had more than enough time to win the game. White snatched a Morgan pass on first down for a 24-yard gain to move the Generals across midfield and into Meadowbrook territory. A 31-yard strike deep down the middle of the field to Terron Adams set Dinwiddie up at the 10-yard line with less than 30 seconds left in the game.
A 3-yard Morgan run put the Generals on the 7-yard line with 23 seconds to go. Following a timeout, Morgan faked a run and then found White wide open on the “jump pass” (made famous by University of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow) for what appeared to be the go-ahead score. However, an offensive pass interference call on the play negated the score and moved the Generals back to their 22 yard line.
The Generals used the next play to center the ball on the field to set up a field goal attempt by senior Chad Jones.
After 2 timeouts and a series of penalties, Jones finally attempted the kick. Unfortunately for him, a Meadowbrook player came free through the line of scrimmage and got his hand on the football and sent the game to overtime.
The Generals took the ball first and scored two plays later when White caught his 3rd TD of the night on a 10-yard slant from Morgan. Jones booted the kick right down the middle to give the Generals a 49-42 lead. Meadowbrook also scored on their second play when Coble scrambled and found Brett Rooney for the score. That set up the final 2-point conversion and the defensive heroics of Hawkes and the rest of the Dinwiddie defense.
This Friday Night classic was highlighted by the terrific QB play on both sides of the ball. Morgan had another strong night completing 20 of 33 passes for 283 yards and 4 TDs. He also carried the ball 21 times for 153 yards and 2 TDs. For the Monarchs, it was Coble who made things go. He dazzled all night, going 13-23 for 207 yards and 3 TDs while also rushing 16 times for 128 yards and 2 scores.
Morgan spread the ball out to a trio of Dinwiddie WR’s. Leading the way was White who finished with 6 catches for 84 yards and 3 TDs. Adams made 7 catches for 86 yards, and Haskins finished with 5 catches for 93 yards.
Despite the last-second loss, Meadowbrook (8-2) still managed to make the Division 6 Playoffs. With the win Dinwiddie (9-1) now enters the Division 5 Playoffs as the #1 seed and will play Douglas Freeman this Friday night, November 14th at Dinwiddie High School. Kickoff is set for 7:30 pm.
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