By Gary Fauber
Assistant Sports Editor
Tue, May 13 2008
—
Shady Spring was oh so close to getting started on the positive note coach Vince Culicerto wanted to see.
Unfortunately, Greenbrier West had one last gasp.
Quarterback David Thomas’ 1-yard touchdown sneak helped give the Class A No. 3 Cavaliers a 12-7 victory over the host Tigers Friday night in both teams’ season opener at H.B. Thomas Field.
The Tigers trailed most of the night, until Eric Lucas’ 5-yard touchdown put Shady ahead 7-6 with 6:12 left. But West, behind workhorse tailback Brian Gray, went methodical to the tune of an 11-play drive. The key came on third-and-five at the Shady 19, when Gray broke loose for an 18-yard gain to set up Thomas’ eventual game-winner with 1:10 to go.
“Our kids just sucked it up on that last drive,” Cavaliers coach Lewis McClung said. “They took us on their shoulders and were not going to let us lose.”
Shady (0-1) took a shot at a final comeback and made things interesting.
Senior quarterback Josh Collins, who had a nightmarish first half, directed the Tigers well on their final drive. He threw completions of 15 yards to Lucas and 13 yards to Matt Brooks on the series, the latter giving Shady first-and-10 at West’s 20-yard line.
But with nine seconds left on the clock, the Cavaliers had Collins’ options covered. He tucked the ball and ran for a seven-yard gain, but was stopped well short of the sideline. The final second ticked off the clock before the Tigers were able to call a timeout.
“I was wanting him to throw it into the corner, but they had Brooks covered,” Culicerto said. “(Collins) did a good job moving us down the field. He should have known to tuck it and go or toss it up for the jump ball. When there’s no time on the clock, you’ve got to do it.”
West’s long drive on the previous possession also played a part in the final play. With his team unable to stop the Cavaliers’ running attack, Culicerto called a timeout — Shady’s second of the half — to give the defense a break.
In hindsight, he wonders if he should have held off.
“At one point in time I second-guessed myself ... I could have had two left,” Culicerto said. “It might have made a difference, but I thought we were so tired that I tried to give them a little extra breather.”
Shady killed itself with four turnovers in the first half — including Cavalier linebacker Jarrod King’s fumble recovery at the Tiger 35 on the first offensive play of the night. West turned the mistake into six points, a 1-yard sneak by Thomas with 6:56 left in the first quarter.
Collins threw three interceptions in the first half. Two of them were by Andrew Camp and the other by Thomas. The Cavs failed to turn any of them into points, but they took the ball out of the Tigers’ hands.
Gray finished with 130 yards on 34 carries for West (1-0), which outgained Shady 228-147. The Cavs moved the ball most of the night, but had trouble finishing drives. Between their touchdowns, the Cavs punted seven times, had a turnover on downs and had their final drive of the first half stall inside the Shady 10.
“I thought our defense played exceptionally well,” McClung said. “And I thought our offense did what they needed to do to win. I wouldn’t say we played great offensively, but we did what we needed to do, when we needed to do it.”
Greenbrier West travels to Richwood next Friday.
Collins completed 7 of 17 passes for 114 yards for the Tigers, who host Class AA No. 3 James Monroe next Friday.
“We can’t shake this monkey off our backs,” Culicerto said. “I think once we do we’ll take off. We just can’t get it done.”
— E-mail:
gfauber@register-herald.com
Greenbrier West 12, Shady Spring 7
GW (1-0) 6 0 0 6 — 12
SS (0-1) 0 0 0 7 — 7
First Quarter
GW: David Thomas 1 run (kick failed), 6:56.
Fourth Quarter
SS: Eric Lucas 5 run (Walter Patton kick), 6:12.
GW: Thomas 1 run (kick failed), 1:10.
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — GW: Brian Gray 34-130, Kenneth Holland 8-42, Thomas 11-22, Jordan Dameron 2-1, Randy Ferrill 1-0, Andrew Camp 1-0. SS: Dustin Syvertson 11-17, Lucas 4-18, Travis Mullins 2-10, Patton 2-3, Josh Collins 7-(-12).
PASSING — GW: Thomas 2-7-0-33. SS: Collins 7-17-3-114.
RECEIVING — GW: Adam Griffith 1-23, Nate Breckenridge 1-10. SS: Matt Brooks 3-69, Lucas 2-24, Mullins 2-21.
TURNOVERS — GW: Jarrod King (FR), Camp (2 INT), Thomas (INT). SS: none.
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