Nevermind the fact that there were players in this game who were newly-born infants the last time St. Stephens defeated Hickory on the football field. I've discovered something really weird...Did you know that in 1993, the year that Saint managed a 21-7 win over the Red Tornadoes, there was also bloody conflict in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia? That year the conflict involved not South Ossetia but the other separatist enclave within Georgia's boundaries: Abkhazia. Russian troops intervened in that conflict, as well. Let's hope that the peace process continues over there. We don't need any more trouble here at home!
But seriously folks...
Despite the history-making loss to the Indians, there were some bright spots for the Red Tornadoes. The best thing about the game was seeing Rakim Barrett and Kyshell Geter churning out 100-yard performances. I'm not sure why Tyshon Chisholm wasn't used more on offense but I'm not going to second-guess the coaches on that one.
The passing game was, on the whole, pretty good. The pick-6 that gave Saint its first touchdown was just bizarre and I'm sure Kevin would love to have that one back. Interceptions returned for touchdowns happen from time to time. Heck, Mikey Shook almost returned the favor with his interception that got us close to the goal line. Take away the pick-6 from Caleb Peterson (who had a career night against us) and it's tied, 21-21. Each offense scored three touchdowns.
Overall, Hickory actually dominated the stats .
I would also like to point out that the 3rd-down call in the fourth quarter was a good one. Despite what the idiot line judge said, the pass was complete to Trevin Parks and would have been a first down. I was standing right there and he clearly caught the ball, had control of it, and was beginning to advance on the goal line when the Indians caught up with him and knocked the ball loose. It was a catch and a fumble out of bounds, period. The linesman blew it and stubbornly refused to even consider that he might have been out of position and simply made a bad call. Nope, he had to go all BCRS on the coaches, which is a shame.
The odds are pretty good that Hickory scores a touchdown if that pass play had stood. Then the coaches would have had the option of kicking for the tie or, maybe, going for the win with a 2-point conversion. Now we'll never know. But for the people who want to say it was bad playcalling on Coach Worley's part, I have to disagree with them. It was a good call not only because the catch was made and should have been a first down but also because it's a play that we have run successfully in previous games this season...and scored touchdowns with it!
Regarding the areas where I think the team has struggled (O-line, defense, special teams) I have to give passing marks to the O-line and the defense. It's hard to be negative about the blockers when you have a pair of backs who each get 100+ yards on the ground and a quarterback who was one blown call by a ref away from another 100-yard passing performance.
Other than the three scoring drives by the Indians our defense shut 'em down for the most part. It was either feast or famine for Saint's offense. The key to their success was the ability to convert on third down. They got the yards when they needed them the most. That's the sign of a pretty good ballclub, which St. Stephens is.
Special teams was still a little shaky but the impressive thing was not that our guys did poorly but that St. Stephens' kicker, Brandon Hall, pulled off a great impression of Ryan Succop. Every kickoff went into the end zone for a touchback, forcing Hickory to march 80 yards every time. That's what our opponents used to have to deal with on a regular basis. Luckily both Hall and Peterson (and Patrick Jenkins and Graham McRary) will be gone after this season.
This loss reminds me of the shock I felt when we lost to East Burke in the 2003 season opener. It was shocking for two reasons, actually. First, everybody knew that the Red Tornadoes were going to be very good. So it was surprising for them to lose coming out of the gate. Second, the Cavaliers hadn't beaten Hickory since 1991. Was it the end of the world? It felt like it a little bit that night. But it didn't prevent the Red Tornadoes from compiling a 10-3 record and a trip to the second round of the playoffs. The only thing that really stood in Hickory's way that year was the eventual 3AA state champion Crest Chargers. The loss to East Burke was aggravating for a brief moment...and then the Red Tornadoes got down to business. I expect them to do something similar this week against Maiden.
Here come your Red Tornadoes!
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