By Jason McClure
The Herald-Dispatch
August 25, 2007 01:26 am
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HUNTINGTON — Huntington High’s football team gave every ounce of effort it had to hold on down the stretch and limit Marquel Ali and Woodrow Wilson’s high-powered offense, but in the end, the Flying Eagles would escape with a hard-earned 29-22 victory at Bob Sang Stadium.
In Zach Wilson’s head coaching debut, the Highlanders had several bright moments, but a few costly errors and the Ali factor eventually doomed the home team.
“Our defense saved us in the first half, but our offense came out very sloppy from the start,” Wilson said. “We have a lot of potential, but Beckley’s defense was able to shut down our game plan.”
Ali would prove to be the game’s X-factor. He torched the Highlanders for 165 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries. He also had significant help as Woodrow Wilson rang up 328 yards rushing on 50 carries. The Flying Eagles outgained the Highlanders 435 to 242 for the game.
Defenses dictated the start of the game with both teams punting twice. But on Woodrow Wilson’s third possession, the team would make a costly mistake. Huntington forced the Flying Eagles to commit five turnovers overall, which allowed it to stay right in the thick of things.
Flying Eagles quarterback Ryan Safford fired into a crowd where the ball would be tipped and intercepted by Chase Woodson. After a brilliant display of running, Woodson coasted into the end zone for a 53-yard touchdown with 3:50 left in the first quarter. After a botched snap, Huntington somehow scrambled for a two-point conversion and an 8-0 lead.
But the Flying Eagles were nowhere close to giving up. A stable of running backs engineered a convincing drive. Josh Pryor would score on a 10-yard run to make the score 8-7. Pryor tallied 93 yards on 13 carries for the game.
The Highlanders then responded with their biggest play of the game when quarterback C.J. Crawford fired a 54-yard touchdown pass to Dustin Young with 1:20 remaining in the second period. Huntington would take a 15-7 lead into halftime.
Huntington did a solid job containing Ali in the first half, but in the second half, the cookie began to crumble. Ali erupted for several big gains and back-to-back third-quarter touchdowns to help the Flying Eagles take a 21-15 lead.
But Huntington refused to go away, as Crawford fired a 16-yard touchdown to enable the Highlanders to go back on top 22-21 with 1:08 left in the third quarter.
Crawford finished 13-of-21 for 204 yards, with two touchdowns and one pick. His primary targets were Dustin Young and Lindsay Johnson. Young hauled in five receptions for 83 yards, while Johnson had five grabs for 76 yards.
With around seven minutes left in the game, Woodrow Wilson was driving for the go-ahead scored. But Huntington’s Michael Morton snagged an interception to shift the momentum.
With 6:06 left in the game, the Highlanders appeared to be control and driving. But Crawford lost handle of the ball and Woodrow Wilson recovered the fumble.
With a steady dose of running, the Flying Eagles inched closer and closer to the goal line. Then Ali put exclamation mark on his stellar performance by sprinting into the end zone for a 16-yard touchdown. That gave Woodrow Wilson a 29-22 lead with the successful two-point conversion.
Huntington established a last-ditch effort drive that would stall at Woodrow Wilson’s 35-yard line. The Highlanders would come out on the short end of an all-out thriller between two explosive offenses.
Woodrow wilson 29, Huntington 22
WW (1-0) 0 7 14 8 — 29
H (0-1) 8 7 7 0 — 22
First Quarter
H: Chase Wodson 53 yard interception return (Dustin Young pass from Burns)
Second Quarter
WW: Josh Pryor 10 run (Adam Cook kick)
H: Dustin Young 53 pass from C.J. Crawford (Aaron Burns kick)
Thirs Quarter
WW: Marquel Ali 13 run (Kevin Starkey run)
WW: Ali 5 run (kick failed)
H: Dustin Young 16 pass from Crawford (Burns kick)
Fourth Quarter
WW: Ali 16 run (Starkey pass to Bower)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — WW: Marquel Ali 19-165, 3 TD; Josh Pryor 13-93; Blaine Mayo 13-93; Kevin Starkey 5 (-12); Josh Williams 5-32; Tim Johnson 2-13; Ryan Stafford 4-24. H: Daniel Fuller 1-3,Willis Johnson 3-5; C.J. Crawford 5-7, Matequs Martin 1 (-2), Chase woodson 1-25
PASSING — WW: Ryan Safford 7-14-2, 107 yards; Kevin Starkey 0-4 0 yards. H: C.J. Crawford 13-21-1, 204 yards.
RECEIVING — WW: Tyler Bowyer 1-(-1), Marquel Ali 4-81. H: Dustin Young 5-83; Lindsay Johnson 5-77; Chase Woodson 2-34; Joey Christian 2-11.
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