HOUSE PASSES FOR 307 IN WILDCAT
VICTORY
Publication: THE
Published: 10/26/1996
Page: P1C
Headline: HOUSE PASSES FOR 307 IN WILDCAT VICTORY
Byline: RICK RYAN
Victories sure aren't
getting any easier to come by for Nitro.
But they sure aren't
getting any less satisfying, either.
Sophomore quarterback J.R.
House threw for 307 yards and three
touchdowns at Underwood Field Friday night as the Wildcats outscored
visiting DuPont 41-38.
The triumph was a landmark
in more ways than one for Nitro (7-1).
First, it clinched at least
a tie for the Mountain State Athletic
Conference Gold Division championship. It also ensures the Wildcats of
their first seven-win season since 1971 and was their first victory
over DuPont since 1989.
And it also will do no harm
to Nitro's status in the Class AAA playoff
ratings. The Wildcats came into the game ranked No. 6 in the state and
are now almost assured of a postseason berth.
It also continued a run of
close, high-scoring wins for coach Robert
Burdette's club. Previously this season, the Wildcats outpointed
George Washington 28-26, Ripley 20-18 and Scott 38-35.
"We like to make it
exciting for the fans, I guess,' House said.
The outcome was in doubt
almost until the final horn. DuPont (3-5)
trailed 14-0 at the outset, but rallied to take leads of 22-21 and
30-27 in the second half.
A 1-yard scoring burst by
fullback Lewis Tose and a two-point
conversion run by Jonathan Chic handed the Panthers a 30-27 advantage
with 11:11 left to play.
Tose had 111 yards on 17 carries and
scored a pair of TDs. Chic added
83 yards and one score on 16 rushes. DuPont sophomore Tremain
Straughter led all rushers with 113 yards on just five
attempts.
But House was at his best
when the Wildcats needed him most. After
Tose's TD, House directed the Wildcats 85
yards in eight plays for a
score and a lead they wouldn't relinquish. It came on a 26-yard hookup
with Isaac Eastwood and gave the Cats a 34-30 lead.
On that drive, House was
7-for-7 for 94 yards. The extra yardage was
prompted by a penalty on Nitro. House, in fact, completed his final 17
passes of the game. In the second half, he was 16-of-16 for 185 yards.
DuPont, which rolled up 439
yards of offense on the night, didn't get
a chance to regain the lead at that point. Confusion on the ensuing
kickoff resulted in Robbie Sigman recovering the ball
for Nitro at the
Panthers 35.
Six plays later, sophomore
Zack Collins bulled across from 1 yard out
to increase Nitro's lead to 41-30 with 4:57 left in the game.
DuPont's final score came
with 12 seconds remaining when Straughter
weaved his way 70 yards downfield on a draw play to bring the Panthers
within a TD once again. But David Kessler recovered the onside kick
for Nitro to lock up the victory.
Chris Martin, held to one
catch last week against Scott, hauled in
eight passes from House for 201 yards. Collins had nine receptions for
28 yards and carried 11 times for 40 yards.
House threw two
interceptions and was sacked once. Early in the
contest, he broke the state record for regular-season passing yardage,
which was 2,374 yards. He entered the game with 2,343 yards and is now
a little more than 300 yards shy of the state's all-game mark of 2,952
passing yards.
His total of 24 TD passes
is four short of the regular-season record
with games remaining at Herbert Hoover and Poca. The
all-games record
for scoring passes is 34, which includes playoff contests.
But the Wildcats
haven't been getting a lot of respect around the
state, probably because of their penchant for winning by small margins
against opponents with losing records.
"It doesn't matter to
us how we win,' House said. "As long as we
win.'
DuPont has now lost five straight
games.
The Panthers were able to
control the ball on Nitro early in the game,
as they ran 40 plays to the Wildcats' 18 by halftime. But the score
was tied at 14-all.
Midway through the third
quarter, that play differential reached 53 to
18.
DuPont got a lot of mileage
out of its backup backfield. Sophomore
Matt Hill spelled starter Justin Beasley at quarterback and completed
3 of 9 passes for 48 yards. Beasley was 6 of 16 for 66 yards.
And fellow soph Melvin Smith carried four times for 15 yards and
scored a touchdown on a 2-yard run in the third quarter.