ABERDEEN — The Aberdeen High School football team’s quest for a home playoff berth in the Class 3A playoffs took a few unusual twists Friday in a 42-20 victory against Winona.
Locked in a three-way tie with Kemper County and Winona for second place in Region 4, Aberdeen’s focus should have been on the Tigers.
But a disgruntled parent in the home stands, who was upset because his son didn’t start after missing several practices last week, diverted attention from the field for the better part of the first half before school officials and law enforcement finally stepped in and “muzzled” the individual in question.
After a disastrous loss last week to region leader Louisville and trailing Winona 14-0 in a must-win matchup, Aberdeen regained its focus to pull within 14-8 with a little less than five minutes left in the second quarter. The Bulldogs then outscored the Tigers 34-6 in the second half en route to the victory.
“In the first half, we let something happen that shouldn’t have happened, but the problem was eventually addressed,” Aberdeen coach Mark Bray.
Once the off-the-field distraction was alleviated, what made the win even more amazing was the manner in which it was accomplished. Blessed with a dual-threat, four-year starter at quarterback with a capable backup and no less than four quality receivers, Aberdeen’s forte this season has been a quick-strike air attack that has racked up more than 1,660 yards — an average of 15.8 per pass completion and 184.6 per game.
Uncharacteristically, the win came as a result of a relentless, clock-eating ground attack led by tailback Donte Carter and quarterback Josh Williams, who combined for 250 yards rushing — almost 100 yards above the Bulldogs’ per-game average.
“Early on, they (Winona) were backing a couple of their defenders out of the box to stop the pass by covering our trip-side with four players and we kept throwing into their coverage,” Bray said.
As a result, three of the Bulldogs’ first six passes were incomplete, while two others lost 2 yards each.
“Once we picked up on it, it came down to our five offensive linemen blocking their five defenders, so we just started running right at them,” Bray said. “Our offensive line did a great job blocking their five up front, and Josh (Williams) and Donte (Carter) played great.”
Winona coach Joey Tompkins wasn’t caught off guard by Aberdeen’s change in strategy. The Tigers’ just couldn’t stop the Bulldogs’ ground game.
“Basically, we shut down what he (Aberdeen coach Mark Bray) wanted to do,” Tompkins said. “All the game tapes we had showed he wanted to throw the ball, and we were prepared to stop the pass.
“That’s not to say we didn’t work on the run game, it’s just we’re better at stopping the pass. We’re not real strong up front, and when he decided to run the ball we just couldn’t stop it.”
Leading 14-0 after D.C. Olton’s 4-yard touchdown run in the first quarter and his tackle-breaking 12-yard burst on the first play of the second quarter (along with Reed Rushing’s extra points), Winona missed a golden opportunity on its next possession when quarterback Mario Hill fumbled after a 14-yard pickup to the Aberdeen 30-yard line.
Aberdeen’s B.J. Williams returned the fumble to the Tigers’ 47. Carter was then called on five-straight running plays to move the ball for a first down at the Winona 12. A holding penalty against the Bulldogs pushed the ball back to the 21, but Josh Williams hooked up with wide receiver Jerrick Orr for a 14-yard gain to the 7. A half-the-distance penalty for a face-mask infraction on the play moved the ball inside the 4, and Carter bulled his way in for the score. Williams added the two-point conversion on a keeper to cut the deficit to 14-8 with a little less than five minutes left in the half.
“The fumble recovery was a big play for them,” Tompkins said. “We take it in there and we have a 21-0 lead and it’s a totally different ballgame.”
Starting at its 10, Winona answered with a late 70-yard march to reach the Aberdeen 20 with seconds left in the half. But defensive backs Orr and Tyreke Gates broke up back-to-back passes in the end zone to deny the Tigers’ scoring opportunity.
Aberdeen took its first lead, 16-14, with 4 minutes, 44 seconds left in the third quarter when Carter capped a 10-play, 78-yard drive with a 4-yard touchdown run and Tae Carothers added the conversion on a pass from Williams. Nine of the 10 plays came on the ground. Carter had 30 of the yards on six carries.
Undaunted, Winona regained the lead, 20-16, following a four-play, 63-yard march that featured a 25-yard scamper by Hill and a 33-yard run by Olton to set up his 11-yard touchdown with 2:10 left in the third period.
But Aberdeen took the lead for good seconds later when Williams and Gates hooked up for a 53-yard gainer to the Tigers’ 4. It set up Carter’s third touchdown. Williams added the conversion on a keeper and Aberdeen claimed a 24-20 lead with 1:44 left in the third quarter.
An ensuing Winona three-and-out gave Aberdeen possession at its 20. The Bulldogs responded with an 11-play march that featured one pass, a 14-yard reception by Gates. Carter picked up 25 yards on five carries and Williams accounted for 40 yards rushing. The last carry was from 13 yards and gave the Bulldogs a 30-20 lead with 7:36 to play.
The Bulldogs then turned what could have been a disaster into yet another score when Demarea Dobbins’ kickoff turned into an onside kick that was recovered at the Winona 49 by an alert Damain Curry.
“I ’bout died when that happened, but we told the kids coach (Eric) Spann called it,” Bray said tongue-in-cheek.
Seven plays later, all of which came on the ground, Williams ran through at least three tacklers and side-stepped several others for a back-breaking 31-yard run and a 36-20 advantage with 4:19 left in the fourth quarter.
Thirty-seven seconds later, Gates stepped in front of receiver Chavez Hill at the Tigers’ 35 for an interception that he returned for a touchdown that capped the scoring.
After rushing for 76 yards in the first half, Aberdeen ran for 180 yards down the stretch to finish with a season-high 256 yards. Carter paced the attack with a season-best 128 yards on 25 carries. Williams ran for 122 yards on 15 carries.
“We had a good week of practice, and we knew we had to pick the tempo up,” Carter said. “The offensive line did a great job opening holes.”
Winona rushed for 144 yards the first half, 84 of which was credited to Olton, but the Tigers gained 86 yards in the final two quarters.
Olton, who entered the game with 350 yards rushing, finished with 136 yards on 12 carries and three scores. Hill had 12 carries for 71 yards.
“Both those backs were pretty good,” Bray said.
Williams was 6-for-9 for 86 yards for Aberdeen, while Hill was 2 of 11 for 49 yards for Winona.
Aberdeen (7-3, 3-1) will travel to South Pontotoc (2-8, 0-4) next week looking to secure second place in the division, while Winona will play host to Kemper County, a 31-24 loser to Louisville on Friday.
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