8 Oct 09
The oncoming storm front was headed into West Tennessee and the weather reports called for serious storms and possible lightning around game time on Friday night at Wright Field. In an attempt to get ahead of the weather curve and reduce some serious wear and tear on the turf, the Waverly Tigers and Camden Lions tied up on Thursday night to settle the annual Battle for the Bridge. Camden's Homecoming Parade and pep rally on the Court Square went off that afternoon without a hitch...and also without the team...but the real question on everyone's mind: Will the 2009 Lions show up on Thursday night to take on the Tigers?
Camden took the football first and Patrick Hassell teamed with Derek Easley deep to wait on the Waverly (W) kick. The Tigers didn't really want either of them to have a chance at a big return, so Kyle Blackburn fielded the high short kick perfectly and drove forward to the CHS 42 where the Lions offense would start.
Michael Gaskin under center, takes the snap from Trevor Latendresse, and gives it to Devon White. Devon slants right, sees a seam that Marcus Nobles and Dakota Summers made and dives forward to the 50! Devon again, 2 more. Maurice Whitfield sprints around right end, steps over one Tiger and has a first down at the W 36. Derek Easley is in motion to the left, it's a power sweep and Derek is spun down after a big gain...but a holding flag moves it back to the W 47, 1st and 21. Kendrick Hudson takes Michael's pitch around right end for a gain of 5. An incomplete pass stops the clock at 8:50, 3rd and 16. Trevor has the shotgun snap back to Gaskin, he spots Patrick Hassell slanting from the left; it's complete for a gain of 5. 4th and 9 at the W36 and the Lions are going for it. Gaskin rolls right looking downfield, nothing open and the backfield is getting crowded. Two huge blocks by Ethan Melton and Jordan Murphy open up a path and Michael is gone around left end to the W15! Whitfield behind Blake Riley and Dakota Summers, he is hit but keeps driving and carries two Blue Men to the 11! Devon behind Jordan and Ethan for a gain of 5. Devon again, this time Trevor and Jacob Sharum give him a seam and it's a 1st and goal at the 3! Murf and Ethan open a huge hole on the left side and Maurice sprints thru for the score! 5:56 left on the 1st quarter clock as Dee Dunlap snaps it, Michael sets it up and Tanner Hudson bangs it thru the sticks to give Camden a 7-0 lead after an 11-play scoring drive! Great start, offense!
Dakota Summers bangs the ball down the middle and Cody Beal teams with Jackson Burns to fold the returner over at the 24! Sean Flores meets a Tiger run at left end after only 5. They jump, move ‘em back 5. A Wavo pass is complete down the right sideline for a good gain, and a personal foul penalty on Camden gives them an even better first down at the W39. Tyler Plant and Kyle Blackburn converge on their runner and throw him back, no gain. They jump again, -5. An incomplete pass adds up to 3rd and 15, but the next one connects down their right sideline. Derek and Blake Riley wrestle him down immediately, 4th and 12 and the Tigers are set to punt. Line it up...time out Waverly. Go again, the punt is away and Derek Easley signals the fair catch at the CHS 41. Good series, Defense!
Michael just misses the fingertips of Patrick over the middle, incomplete. Michael sells the fake handoff to Patrick going inside and gives it to Derek headed in behind LJ and Dakota, go! Gain of 9 with the ball at midfield! Flinch flag on us, -5. Derek again around right end, administers a straight arm to a needy Blue Man and has a 1st down WAY down at their 27! Gaskin to Whitfield looks good, but one hand low in his wheels stops him after a gain of 6, time out Lions with 1:22 left in the quarter. Devon behind Ethan and Trevor, big hole, 1st down at the 15! Devon up the middle, caught by a herd of Tigers, doesn't stop pushing and turns it into a 2nd and 1 at the 5! Great effort! Devon is in ‘dozer mode following Murf and Ethan, big pile moves our way and the ref says "Touchdown!" Tanner adds one more and with 17.5 seconds left in the 1st quarter, Camden is up 14-0.
Dakota delivers a low deep spinner to the goal line and they return it up the middle. Jackson leads the stop at the 30 and the Black and Gold defense is on the field. Their QB runs into the middle to end the quarter with a gain of 2. They try a slant off right end and their QB never sees Kyle who grabs the pass for the interception at the Wavo 39! Camden ball!
Camden's drive is stalled due in part to two costly penalties and a QB sack and Michael's punt is downed at the 11 yard line. Waverly's first pass is almost intercepted by Kendrick! LJ sacks their QB with a Dakota finish for a loss of 4 at the W47. Kendrick breaks up another pass and the Tigers are in a 4th and 14, where's the punter. It takes a Blue Man bounce to the Camden 49-1/2, and the Lions offense is ready to Git er Done.
Devon slants in behind Ethan and Jordan, big push and a 1st down at the Waverly 39! Maurice tries the same spot and is in their backfield, adds a cut and spins down at their 26 - - 1st down! Whitfield again around right end, big bang, but he is inside the 20 to make it 2nd and 3. Fumble, Michael covers it at the 23. Maurice plus about 13 Lions and a Tuba player have the student body left going on, Whitfield has the left corner and a 1st down at the 11! Michael keeps behind the middle of the line for a gain of 3. Maurice around left end, runs over a Tiger at the goal line and is in for the score! The kick just misses and with 3:27 left in the half, it's Camden 20, Waverly 0.
Dakota sends the high spinner right and their returner runs the left sideline until Tyler, Kyle and Cody ding him at the W33. The Tiggers assemble an 8-play drive that gives up at the 15 with an incomplete pass and the Lions take over on downs. Great stop, defense! Trae White carries on the sweep around left end, blends in an outside move to make one miss, then just runs over a Tiger and has a 1st down at our 31! Michael runs one; time out Lions, then Jackson Burns has a carry for a gain of 6. Trae finishes the first half with a gain of 6 and the Lions trot their 20-0 score into the field house.
The Waverly band didn't perform...or even come to the short notice Thursday game. Their cheerleaders couldn't make it either, so the CHS Marching Band performed their half time show and received an ovation from the appreciative crowd. The Homecoming Float competition results were announced: 1st place - Juniors, 2nd place - Sophomores, 3rd place - Seniors and 4th place - Freshmen. Congrats to all for the hard work that was invested in the floats!
Dakota made it back out to the field to remind the striped wonders that he was supposed to kick it off and they agreed. He nails a deep kick that is over the head of the returner and about the time he gets a handle on it and get's started, Jackson and Sean descend to make a stop at the 15 yard line! Great stop kick off team!
Waverly moves backwards for three plays and punts the ball to midfield where Patrick calls for the fair catch. A Wavo Tiger hits him anyways and that flag moves the ball down to the blue 35. Maurice cuts around right end, kicks it and runs all the way to the 15...but a holding call makes it 1st and 8 at the W33. A screen pass to the left sideline is incomplete, but ruled a fumble and Waverly recovers at their 34. The Tigers connect 9-plays that grind dead at the 15 (again) with a 1-hop incompletion and the Lions take over with 5:49 left in the 3rd! Great stop defense!
Camden's drive is 9-plays that end with a Wavo recovery of our fumble at their 43 with 1:10 left in the 3rd. A holding call on them and a completed pass results in 2nd and 10 plus the end of the 3rd. They start the 4th with two incomplete passes then line up for the punt. It's a fake, the pass is away, Michael Gaskin delivers a big hit just as the ball is there and it falls incomplete! Camden ball at the W40!
The double hand off has Derek loose around right end for a gain of 5. Maurice runs the dive behind Blake Riley and Murf for the 1st at the 24 with some punishing big hits on the Blue Man Group. Maurice again behind Dakota, gain of 9. Devon tripped up, no gain. Maurice slants toward right end, is hit, but keeps churnin' and has a 1st down at the 10! Devon up the middle for one. Devon again, this time behind Maurice and Jacob Sharum around right end to the 5 yard line. Whitfield follows Sharum, adds a cut in the hole and scores! Lions set up to go for the 2-point conversion play, Maurice has it on the right end sweep, jumps over a Tiger and with 7:28 left to play, it's Lions 28, Tigers 0.
Dakota's kick is a spinning drive down the middle. Derek and Kyle drop the runner at the 29. Waverly's offense runs 7-plays before they set up a center screen and throw it to Trevor Latendresse! He grabs the interception and the Lions have the ball and a 1st down at their own 35 with 4:57 left to play!
Trae White dives into the middle for 3. Jackson Burns takes the stretch handoff around right end for a gain of 4. Trae on the sweep around right end where he is snagged by the facemask and that just makes him...score! He adds a cut inside, cuts back to the right sideline and out runs everyone to the endzone. Penalty declined, Tanner strategically applies his high velocity left toe and the Lions have it at 35-0!
Dakota sends a deep squib kick down the left side that rolls under one Tigger before Kendrick Hudson drops him at the 11! Waverly starts with a flag at the snap (-5), a pass completion for Cody and Brian King stop, and a Cody Beal sack for a loss of one. An incomplete pass has the punter back on the field, we down it to end it, game over, Lions win 35-0!
Some stats of interest:
First downs: CHS-17, W-10
Rushing (#, yards): CHS-55/364, W-16/47
Passing (yards): CHS-6, W-129
Completions/Att/Int: CHS-1/4/0, W-14/29/2
Fumbles (#, lost): CHS2/2, W-0
Penalties (#,yards): CHS-8/70, W-6/45
Rushing leader:
Maurice Whitfield: 19 carries for 136 yards
Leading Tacklers:
Kyle Blackburn: 10 total tackles, 2 solo, 1 int, 1 batted pass
Larry Jamison: 6 total tackles, 1 sack
Tyler Plant: 5 total tackles, 2 solo
Talking with Head Football Coach Kevin Ward after the game:
"A good Thursday night win for us, considering the circumstances, playing a day early, trying to beat the weather. We didn't play well, too many turnovers, missed assignments, didn't pass protect very well, shot ourselves in the foot with penalties, there were so many things that went wrong that we should have controlled. A good team fights thru those things and finds a way to win, and we were able to do that tonight!"
On the "scouting report" on Waverly's pass oriented offense:
"We knew they threw it a lot, thought they would try to throw it over our secondary some. Their receivers ran good slant patterns, caught us out of position some. We were real concerned about their screens, and we didn't do a good job of getting a pass rush on them so they had some success. We had to "rob Peter to pay Paul" as they say: Waverly has always hurt us with screens, so that slowed our pass rush. We still need some work, but the shutout was great to see."
On the shutout and CHS defensive performance:
"We were able to stop them inside the 20 twice, but we gave them turnovers; we just can't do that and make any kind of a run in the playoffs. Proud of the shutout, defense is playing good, they have played well all year! Front four are getting after the ball, linebackers are flying to the ball, secondary has done a really good job of breaking on the football, making open field tackles...knock on wood, we just haven't given up a lot of points this year. The team we put out on the field is scrappy, coachable, they do what they are coached to do, and they have fun! Coach (Shawn) McDowell is doing a good job of breaking our opponents down, giving us a good game plan, getting kids in positions to make plays and our team is responding to that."
On the "things" that will be worked on this week in practice:
"We have a LOT to work on. It's not so much the physical side, it is mental. Playing a day early, you could see the shock when the decision was made; they had to get into "game day" mode from the neck up. They weren't ready to play when they got here tonight. I am glad we were able to get the game in, but we do have a lot to work on. We will do some scouting this weekend, see next week's team live maybe, and see if we can't put together another good game plan."
On the shortened Homecoming festivities:
"I apologized to everyone about the change; the team wasn't able to be in the Parade and Pep Rally and I know that is something our Seniors will miss. We just felt this was the best decision for the program this week. Special thanks to Coach Graves for agreeing to play the game tonight on short notice. I know there was a Class Reunion that was supposed to meet at the game Friday night, I am sorry that was affected as well. We tried to beat the weather, play on a good surface and not get the game interrupted by lightning or even have to come back and play it on Saturday. It was the best solution we could come up with."
On the Camden fans coming out on a Thursday night:
"We had a great crowd! The spirit Monday and Tuesday was good in the school, the student body was into Homecoming and we appreciate all that got involved this year. We had a lot of our fans turn out and I hope they will travel with us next week to Ashland City."
On next week's road game against the Cheatham County Cubs:
"Back on the road again, don't really know much about them, never been there before. I've never played them and best I can tell, Camden has never played them. Cody Finley is their head coach, everything I know about him, he will have his team ready to play, they are well coached and a physical team. We will exchange tape with them in the morning, work up a game plan and go see if we can play better. For two straight weeks, we haven't played well. From a coaching standpoint, that isn't a positive thing. We need to be playing our best ball this time of year. I will take responsibility for that, we will work to have a good week of practice and see if we can figure out why we can't put it all together. "
Let's all get our road clothes on Friday night and follow the team to Ashland City for an important District 11AA game against Cheatham County!
Go Lions!
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lion.news@whitestoneservices.com.