NEW HOPE — There will be no playoff games for the New Hope High School football team this year, so they played Friday night’s game against Cleveland Central with playoff-like intensity.
And it was almost enough.
The Wolves marched 75 yards on 11 plays to break a third-quarter tie, then came up with two critical fourth-quarter turnovers to hold off the Trojans 20-14 and wrap up a playoff spot.
It was the fifth loss in six region games for the Trojans (4-5), but a team that gave up 268 points during last year’s 2-8 campaign had allowed just 140 with a game to go this season.
“We’ve come father than a lot of people understand, and sometimes it’s not always about football,” New Hope coach Seth Stillman said. “It’s about how we carry ourselves, how we bounce back from adversity. We try to put our kids in adverse situations every day, and they respond.
“And I’m not sure if we respond like this in prior years.”
Stillman would know, as he was the team’s defensive coordinator the past three years.
“I’m not a moral victory guy, but the way our guys played tonight … they played their tails off,” Stillman said. “They played really, really hard, and that was a good football team.”
And a big one. The Wolves have three enormous senior linemen in Breylan Sanders (6-foot-4, 380 pounds), Christopher Lanney (6-7, 375) and Markel Bell (6-9, 340) who each weighs more than anyone on the Trojans’ listed roster.
Yet there were the Trojans, bouncing back after back-to-back turnovers, motoring almost 50 yards in the closing minutes for a possible winning touchdown. Helped by a pass interference penalty, New Hope had a first down at the Cleveland Central 37 with 1:52 to go.
Two throws near the goal line went incomplete and, after a 4-yard Crowell keeper, his fourth-down pass was broken up by Wolves senior Rufus Jackson near the 10-yard line with a minute to go to end the threat.
That they had a chance at all was a tribute to the New Hope defense, who wouldn’t let Cleveland Central take advantage of critical turnovers.
Shortly after a strong kickoff return by senior J’Lynn Topps gave the Trojans the ball at the Wolves’ 39, the Trojans gave the ball back on a fumble in the red zone. Unfazed, the defense stopped the Wolves cold on second down and held them to 2 yards on third-and-4 to get the ball back to their offense.
After two negative plays and an interception, the New Hope defense again was called upon to keep the Trojans in the game. The result?
No gain, 3 yards and a 1-yard loss on consecutive plays to force another Wolves punt, giving the New Hope offense one final chance that ended with Jackson’s pass breakup.
“It was 20-14, we were knocking on the door getting ready to maybe score and win the football game,”Stillman said, reflecting on the two turnovers that stopped Trojan drives. “We could have laid down there, and we come up with two three-and-outs back to back. I couldn’t be more proud with our effort and the way we played.”
Things started well for the Trojans. On the first play of the game, Crowell faked a handoff, went up the middle and cut left for 55 yards. Three plays later, Crowell found Carson Latham open in the end zone for a 21-yard pass and a 6-0 lead just 1:29 into the game.
But after gaining 72 yards on their first series, the Trojans managed 102 the rest of the night, completing two passes after that opening touchdown.
New Hope’s second touchdown came on a rare 4-yard drive after a high snap on a Wolves’ punt attempt. The Trojans sent Crowell blasting straight ahead three times. He scored from a yard out, and when he hit Richard Guy for the 2-point conversion, it was 14-14 at the 5:35 mark of the third.
In between, Cleveland Central scored on back-to-back possessions during the second quarter, the first on a 9-yard run by Manny Tyler with 9:04 to go in the second to cap a seven-play, 54-yard drive; the second on a 3-yard run by Jamarion White on a 29-yard drive set up by a high snap on a New Hope punt attempt.
The Wolves, who did not attempt a pass, were led by White’s 160 yards on 23 carries. Tyler rushed 15 times for 102 yards. For the Trojans, Crowell rushed for 112 yards on 19 carries and threw for 62 yards on just three completions.
The Trojans will wrap up the season this week at Saltillo (2-8, 1-5).
Cleveland Central 20, New Hope 14
Cleveland Central (5-4, 4-2 5A-1) 0 14 6 0 — 20
New Hope (4-5, 1-5 5A-1) 6 0 8 0 — 14
First quarter
NH — Carson Latham 21 pass from Ty Crowell (kick failed), 10:31
Second quarter
CC — Manny Tyler 9 run (Cruz Oguz kick), 9:04
CC — Jamarion White 3 run (Oguz kick), 5:11
Third quarter
NH — Crowell 1 run (Richard Guy pass from Crowell), 5:35
CC — Myles Griffin 9 run (kick failed), :51
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 42 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 42 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
Join the Discussion