Oct. 29, 2010
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Sand Rock finishes '10 with 35-14 win over Panthers By Scott Wright NOTE: After reading, please leave your comments in the space provided at the end of this article. SPRING GARDEN — Just like last year, the Sand Rock football team missed a trip to the Class 2A state playoffs. But also just like in 2009, Russell Jacoway’s Wildcats finished the season with a win over the Class 1A Panthers.Rookie head coach John McKay had no answer for Jacoway, whose offense got hot early despite the fall chill. By the final whistle, temperatures were in the 40s and Jacoway had racked up his 206th career win, 35-14. Sand Rock (5-5) took the opening kickoff and drove right down the field. Working from the spread offense beginning at his own 35-yard line, quarterback Cody Beck expertly mixed the run and pass before tossing the final 17 yards to a leaping Skylar Blankenship in the corner of the end zone. Beck’s point-after made the score 7-0 with just under nine minutes remaining in the first quarter. Forrest Livingston returned the ensuing kickoff to his own 49-yard line and the Panthers (3-7) took advantage of the shortened field. Aided by a 15-yard facemask penalty, the Spring Garden offense pounded the ball down into the red zone, with Caleb Morris covering the final seven yards with 4:44 left in the first. Craig Jones nailed the PAT to tie the score at 7-7. Still in the first quarter, Sand Rock made the score 14-7 on an eight-yard keeper by Beck. The 12-play drive was highlighted by a pair of pass completions to Brannon Burt, one for 13 yards and another for 25. Beck, who left the game in the third quarter and did not return, finished the night 7 of 11 passing for 100 yards and a touchdown. Shortly after the Wildcats held Spring Garden on fourth down deep in Sand Rock territory, junior running back Chad Thompson extended the lead to 21-7 with a 59-yard run. Another failed Panther fourth-down conversion try minutes later gave Sand Rock the ball near midfield, and the Wildcats took no time taking advantage of another miscue. After receiving the handoff from Beck, Dylan Langley swept around left end for a 38-yard score. Beck’s PAT was good. After forcing a third turnover on downs, the Wildcats closed out the first half scoring when Beck bounded in from the 4-yard line with a minute remaining to push the score to 35-7. Spring Garden’s offense showed signs of life on the opening drive of the second half, only to stall at midfield. From there, the second half got sloppy as Jacoway and McKay began shuttling younger players onto the field in an attempt to gain experience for 2011. Penalty flags flew throughout, and the damp field and cold air combined to create several turnovers by both teams. Freshman running back Will Ivey closed out the scoring when he slipped into the end zone for Spring Garden in the game's final seconds. |