|
Titans outlast French Camp in OT |
|
Saturday, 19 September 2009 |
By MATTHEW STEVENS
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
CRAWFORD – East Oktibbeha eclipsed its win total of last year with its second victory of 2009 in a 6-0 overtime thriller over French Camp.
The Titans (2-2, 1-1) remained undefeated at home after tailback Marlon Fair took a direct snap in for a 2-yard touchdown in overtime for the only score all night.
“We knew we had four plays to get it in that end zone and good thing it happened on that second one,” East Oktibbeha head coach Anthony King said.
French Camp was the team that insisted it play in a consistent downpour on a completely muddy field at East Oktibbeha.
That decision will be one they might have second guessed themselves on as they made the long bus ride from Crawford Friday.
East Oktibbeha’s coaching staff and administration was trying to get the game postponed to Saturday afternoon but the Wildcats’ squad didn’t want to make the 90-minute drive again in less than 24 hours.
The Titans’ field conditions were exemplified by French Camp sophomore kicker Denny Johnson slipping while attempting the opening kickoff and the ball going less than a yard. Every punt and incomplete pass plugged a couple of inches in the ground.
“We knew it would be wet out there,” King said. “I just told the kids to go out in the mud and have some fun.”
East Oktibbeha was unable to mount any offensive attack in the first half and lost starting quarterback Chris Hunter to injury early in the game. King made a strategic adjustment to put Fair in the shotgun and run the wildcat formation with the junior racking up 31 yards rushing in the final 24 minutes.
“It worked out mighty fine (because) Marlon and (junior) Lexi Edwards ran the ball hard,” King said. “I told the team to man up and find a hole where there wasn’t one.”
Edwards, a converted fullback, ended the game with a team-high 66 yards rushing on 18 carries.
French Camp (1-2, 0-2) got the ball first in overtime but quarterback Jesse Hosket fumbled the snap on the first play and Titans defensive end Mario Bradford jumped on the loose ball.
“We got to find a way to score some points on offense (because) the defense is playing really well all season and that was the case tonight,” French Camp head coach Nathan Wright said. “You just can’t end every game you play with goose eggs.”
Hosket, an eighth-grade signal caller, fumbled the ball late in regulation when the Wildcats were on a nine-play drive deep into East Oktibbeha territory. Over the last two region games, French Camp has been outscored 33-0 after putting up 47 points in its season-opening win over Montgomery County.
“They just had a little more energy than we did tonight and it showed in the last part of the game,” Wright said.
Bradford made Hosket’s evening a complete nightmare as the junior pass rusher ended the game with nine tackles and three sacks.
“Every time we needed a big play from our defense, we’d get a sack or turnover,” King said.
The Titans’ problems with mental miscues showed up again early in the game as Hunter was picked off by freshman defensive back Aro Nebk in the first quarter. Hunter was held without a completion throughout the game.
“I think penalties and turnovers killed us again because every time we got some momentum we’d find a way to go backwards,” King said. “The difference tonight was we found a way to overcome those mistakes.”
East Oktibbeha will try to go for its first two-game winning streak in two years and first road win of 2009 next week when it travels to Noxapater.
|
|
Last Updated ( Sunday, 20 September 2009 )
|
