UNIVERSITY SCHOOLS NITRO
Publication: THE
Published: 09/22/2001
Page: 1B
Headline: UNIVERSITY SCHOOLS NITRO
Byline: DAVE HICKMAN
dphickman1@aol.com
Well, the Hawks shot all right, but the Wildcats didn't shoot back. Unless, of course, one counts shots to the foot.
Nitro (1-4) never really had much of a chance against No. 2 University (5-0).
By halftime of their 41-0 loss, the Wildcats had given away what few
opportunities they could muster. A dropped touchdown pass and a botched punt
preceded two of University's four first-half scores, and a 28-0 deficit all but
closed the book on this one.
Still, had Nitro made - or, in the case of the fumbled snap on the punt, not
made - just a play or two here and there, the suspense might have lasted a
little longer.
"When things like that happen, I think it takes the wind out of their sails
a little bit," said Nitro coach Robert "Little" Burdette.
"We were close to making some plays early. And had we made some of them, I
don't know that it would have changed the outcome much, but we might have had a
little bit of a chance."
But every time Nitro didn't make a play, University did. For instance:
s A Nitro wide receiver dropped a near-certain 85-yard
touchdown pass early in the second quarter with University leading 7-0. That
was on third down. On fourth down, the Wildcats couldn't get a punt off
and University had the ball at the Nitro 8. It took tailback Brady Jackson one play to score his second touchdown of the night and make
it 14-0.
s A few moments later, Nitro had the ball at the
Hawks' 42 and was ready to gamble on a fourth-down play. A wide receiver jumped
offsides and the Wildcats were forced to punt.
University's Ben Bradley returned it 59 yards to set up a 23-yard Eric Bacaj-to-Jay Forsythe TD pass and it was 21-0.
s And then, late in the half, Nitro had a first down at the University 35, but
a sack by Andy Emery - he would have four others before the night was over -
foiled that. And with 17 seconds to play, Bacaj hit
Dan DiGiovine on a short pass over the middle that
turned into a 66-yard score.
Toss in a 98-yard interception return by Forsythe late in the game as Nitro was
primed to avert a shutout and it was that kind of a close-but-no-cigar night
that turned into a rout.
Again, not that it would have changed things, but the whole night could have
been much more interesting.
"We could have made it closer, but the fact is they just beat us,"
Burdette said. "They beat us up front, they beat us on the back, they beat us on the side. They beat us everywhere."
University coach John Kelley had seen scores from Nitro's first four games -
scores like 58-34, 65-22 and 43-29 - and figured his team might have to
outscore Nitro. As it turns out, the Hawks had enough in the first quarter
because of the play of Emery and his defensive teammates, who allowed Nitro to
run 72 plays - thanks in great part to four University turnovers in the third
quarter alone - but held the Wildcats to less than 3 yards per play on
those 72 plays.
"Defense wins championships. Defense wins football games," said
Kelley, whose team has now given up three touchdowns in five games. "The
only thing the offense needs to do is score a point more than we give up. We're
not interested in [big offensive] stats. We're not like the other team in
town."
For the uninitiated, that would be a shot at crosstown
rival and defending state champion
In the end, the 72 plays Nitro ran and the five University turnovers helped
balance the final statistics. University held just a 238-209 edge in total
offense. Nitro tailback Chris McGhee carried 26 times for 86 yards and also
recovered three of University's four lost fumbles.