Nelsonville-York edges Athens for TVC title
Posted: Saturday, October 30, 2010 3:18 am
By JASON ARKLEY Messenger staff writer
NELSONVILLE — With their backs against the wall, the Buckeyes did what they usually do. They simply found a way to win the ballgame.
Daniel Kline ripped away a jump-ball for a 29-yard touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter for the game-tying touchdown, and Nathan Dean booted home the decisive PAT kick that followed, to lift Nelsonville-York past visiting Athens 28-27 in a classic Friday night at Boston Field.
The win gave the Buckeyes (8-2, 5-0 Tri-Valley Conference Ohio Division) sole possession of the league championship, and ensured they would hold on to the Doc Kroner Trophy for another season. Athens (5-5, 3-2 TVC-Ohio) was denied a share of the league crown and dropped its seventh straight to its in-county rival.
Athens managed to stuff Nelsonville-York most of the second half, and raked in chunks of yardage with its own ground game. Athens had a pair of 100-yard rushers against the best defense in the league and the ‘Dogs even cashed in a punt return and a kick-off return for a pair of special teams touchdowns.
But when it mattered most, the Buckeyes came up with just enough plays to win.
“Shows a lot of character out of our kids, and heart. That’s about all I can say,†said N-Y head coach Dave Boston Jr. “They’ve believed in themselves all year. They felt they could get it done and certainly they did.â€
Just like the previous two years, the Bulldogs were oh-so-close to knocking off Nelsonville-York. Athens pulled ahead 27-21 with 3:13 remaining after DeVon Sharp scored on a sensational 40-yard punt return. Sharp hauled in the boot and drove hard to the right side, then quickly reversed course and wound his way all the way back to the left sideline. From there he raced untouched to the end zone to give Athens a 25-21 lead.
Sharp, the de facto quarterback most of the night in Athens’ ‘WildDog’ offense, then punched in the two-point conversion on a keeper.
But the Buckeyes, held to just 14 yards and one first down in the second half up until that point, had another chance. And they took full advantage.
After a squib kickoff gave N-Y the ball on their own 45-yard line, quarterback Nathan Dean directed a heave down the left sideline to rangy receiver Kline. Kline elevated and made the grab over Skylar Schwarzel for a 29-yard gain.
On the very next snap, Dean dialed up the same play. This time Kline wrestled the ball away from Nick Stanley on another jump-ball play at the goal line and fell into the end zone with possession of the ball. The two plays took just 29 seconds.
Dean, who hit 8 of 20 passes for 136 yards and three touchdowns on the night, said there was no pressure despite the late deficit and a possible playoff berth slipping out of reach.
“My dad (N-Y offensive coordinator Earich Dean) just told me to calm down and relax and that I had been preparing for this my whole life,†Nathan Dean said. “I knew what I had to do. I knew my primary receiver was Daniel.
“When (Kline) is 6-foot-4 and has good speed, you got to take advantage of that.â€
Both the long pass plays came when Athens’ shutdown cornerback Ian Dixon wasn’t on the field. Dixon had blanketed Kline, the Buckeyes’ leading receiver, throughout and had held him to without a catch for the first 45 minutes. With Dixon off the field, Kline made two leaping grabs to save the day for N-Y.
“I don’t know. I don’t know,†Athens coach Ryan Adams said when asked why Dixon was off the field during the two crucial plays. “I was certainly questioning that and didn’t get an answer at the time. My guess is he was winded. But I don’t have an answer for you.â€
The Buckeyes noticed and took their shot.
“After the first long pass, I figured he would be back in,†Nathan Dean said. “But they brought in another kid to guard him and I knew Daniel could go up over him too. So I just let it go.â€
The Bulldogs, now down 28-27, still had a shot. Dixon was back on the field for the offensive series and reeled off a 25-yard gain on a sweep. Two Chris Russell runs moved the ball to the N-Y 17 with just over a minute remaining.
But then Sharp, straining and twisting for extra yards, fumbled on the next play. The Buckeyes’ Isaiah Andrews gobbled up the loose ball with 55.8 seconds left. Athens, with no time outs remaining, could only watch as N-Y kneeled the ball twice to close the game out.
“Our guys played some spectacular football tonight. Every one of those guys in our locker room is a warrior and they played their tails off for four straight quarters,†Adams said.
“We did everything we needed to do to win that football game tonight,†he added. “Unfortunately some things came up a little bit short — a few calls could have gone one way or the other — but that’s high school football.â€
Dustin Young rushed for 105 yards and scored early on, and Dillon Knippa snagged three passes for 57 yards and two touchdowns for Nelsonville-York. The Buckeyes looked to land an early knockout punch as they scored on their first two possessions.
Knippa’s 26-yard touchdown catch from Dean capped a 62-yard drive to start the game, and Young scored on a five-yard scamper just minutes later to finish off an 82-yard possession as the Buckeyes forged a 14-0 lead with 5:44 left in the first quarter.
As it turned out, the Bulldogs were just getting warmed up. Sharp was brilliant throughout — he rushed for 142 yards, threw for 65 and scored two touchdowns — and through a variety of keeps, fakes and option pitches revved the WildDog offense into high gear. Sharp’s five-yard scoring run got Athens on the board late in the first, and then Chris Russell — who rushed for 114 yards — added a five-yard touchdown to bring Athens to within 14-13 with 4:46 left in the first half.
The Buckeyes, thanks to a 23-yard Athens penalty and then a 19-yard punt, managed to sneak in another score before the half. Dean hit Knippa for a 24-yard gain down the middle, scrambled for another 18 yards and finished off the quick drive with a 7-yard touchdown toss to Knippa. Dean added the PAT kick to make it 21-13 with just 33.6 seconds left in the half.
Dixon, who rushed for 71 yards on just seven carries, struck back immediately. On the ensuing kickoff, Dixon found a pile in the middle of the field, then bounced outside to open space. He turned on the jets and cruised for the 83-yard kickoff return touchdown. The two-point try failed, and Athens trailed 21-19 at the break.
The second half quickly became a field position battle. Nelsonville-York started at or inside its own 10-yard line on three of its five second-half possessions.
But Athens couldn’t break through. The Bulldogs had a first-and-10 inside the N-Y 32-yard line four times in the second half, but saw two possessions end in turnovers, another end on a failed four-down try and punted once from the Buckeye 39.
“It was one of those cases where we bent a lot all night,†Boston said. “Our defense came alive and turned them back. We bent but didn’t break.â€
Athens didn’t complete a pass in the second half and senior quarterback Trey Harris, who spelled Sharp at times in a more conventional offensive look, was 0-for-5 passing and sacked twice. But with Sharp in the WildDog, the Buckeyes often had no answer.
“Athens moved the football on us like nobody had all year. They played a great football game and kept us off-balance all night long,†Boston said.
It was the last high school game for Athens’ 13 seniors, including captains Dixon, Harris and two-way lineman standout Joe Germano. The Bulldogs had a pair of one-point losses in league play, two one-score losses in the non-conference schedule and were displaced from their home field after a storm ripped through The Plains in mid-September.
Adams, though, isn’t thinking about what might have been. He’s proud of the resolve his team showed throughout.
“Our team played with enough courage and vigor to get that win tonight,†he said. “We’ve done that all year.â€
The Buckeyes’ 12 seniors will get at least one more game. Nelsonville-York clinched a spot in the Division V, Region 19 playoffs with the win. The official pairings will be released by the Ohio High School Athletic Association on Sunday.
