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NEWTOWN – The chants of ‘It’s all over. It’s all over’ echoed through the Council Rock South stands after senior Nick Eife sacked Council Rock North quarterback Tyler Hamilton for a nine-yard loss at his team’s own 13.
“We needed that, we really did,” the Golden Hawks’ senior captain said of his sack. “We came through in the clutch. We couldn’t ask any more from our defense – we played all out. That’s the way we play, as a team.”
Two plays later, the Indians punted, and the Golden Hawks took over on the Indians’ 41 only to find themselves punting after a three-and-out.
This one was far from over.
The Indians – trailing by seven with three minutes remaining - marched from their own five all the way inside Rock South’s 10-yard line.
The Golden Hawks needed another big-time play, and this one came in the nick of time when Andrew Haviland came up with a leaping interception at the goal line to seal the win.
“I knew North passes a lot in the red zone,” Haviland said. “I studied a lot of film, and I was ready for it. I read my keys, I read pass, I got out in the flat, and I picked it off.
It was that kind of night for the Golden Hawks – everybody contributed, everyone made a big play at one point or another, and the result was an emotionally-charged 35-28 win in front of a packed house.
“This means so much,” Eife said. “It’s sweet revenge from last year, but we don’t want to talk about the past.“We’re here now, we’re in the playoffs, and that’s all that matters. This is amazing. It’s indescribable.”
Last year, the Indians took the Golden Hawks out of the playoff picture with a 20-18 win. This year, Rock South –with a playoff berth already secured– returned the favor.
“It’s a huge win,” said Rock South running back Greg Welch, who rushed for 156 yards and four touchdowns. “Last year was a big disappointment. It was great to come out here and get our revenge.”
Coach Vince Bedesem – who was on the receiving end of a celebratory dousing – lauded his team for battling adversity to finish the season with an 8-2 mark and a playoff berth.
“It’s a testament to these kids,” the Golden Hawks’ coach said. “When I leave this earth, the word team in my mind sets its sights right here on these guys because they are.
“They’re a great football team right now – a team.”
And the emphasis after this win was on team for Bedesem.
In Rock North’s locker room, coach Tom Coates was bidding an emotional farewell to his players.
“We just looked at the big picture,” the Indians’ coach said. “We told them we felt honored to have coached them. This is a group that came so far from the Father Judge game. They got better every week.
“It’s always hard to lose to your sister school, it’s always hard when there’s something on the line, but we couldn’t be prouder of them. Start to finish, these kids worked hard to get better every day.”Although the Indians came up short, they unveiled their future star in junior running back Brandon Cottom, who accumulated 292 yards and scored four touchdowns in a dazzling individual performance.
“He’s a horse,” Bedesem said. “I don’t want to be premature, but he’s a top line player. He’s got a fine future ahead of him, and the only problem is we have to do this again next year.”
The tone for this one might well have been set early when – with the Indians driving – P.J. Gallo returned an interception 54 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 Rock South lead after Rich Bruno’s extra point.
“My hat’s off to Council Rock South,” Coates said. “I thought they came in very well prepared and did a nice job right off the bat getting the defensive score.”
On the Indians’ ensuing possession, Cottom finished off a 67-yard scoring drive with a 20-yard burst up the middle for a touchdown, but a missed extra point kept the Golden Hawks on top 7-6.
Welch made his team’s first offensive possession of the night count when he raced 50 yards for a touchdown to cap a 61-yard drive. Bruno’s extra point put the Golden Hawks on top 14-6.
“He hits the seam as good as anybody I’ve seen,” Bedesem said of Welch. “Greg’s got a lot of giddy-up.”
So does Cottom, who shed one would-be tackler after another for a 47-yard run that took the ball to the Indians’ 19. Four plays later, he punched it in from one yard out to make it a 14-12 game.
The Golden Hawks had an immediate answer, and this time Welch took it in from 30 yards out to make it a 20-12 game.
“A lot of team’s linemen get more credit because of their size,” Welch said. “Our offense is run with speed in the middle of the line, and everybody did a great job tonight.”
Cottom responded with a 54-yard touchdown run that saw the gifted junior – without missing a beat – leaping over a defender on the ground.
“I was just running my hardest, and the holes were just there,” Cottom said. “The line was doing a great job of blocking. Anybody could have run through them.”
Not likely, but a missed extra point allowed the Golden Hawks to maintain a 20-18 lead.
As time expired in the half, Ryan Matusz nailed a 29-yard field goal, sending the Indians into the intermission with a 21-20 lead.
“In the locker room, everyone was just really sticking together,” Welch said. “We weren’t down about what happened with the field goal.
“We just came out and really blew them off the line.”
The Golden Hawks went on top 26-21 after Welch put the finishing touches on a 67-yard scoring drive with a nine-yard TD run. Bruno’s extra point made it a 27-21 game, and the Golden Hawks had served notice that Braxton Ambrose, who had just one carry in the opening half, would be a force in the second half.
The senior fullback, who finished with 112 yards, accounted for 27 yards on the scoring drive.
“I’d run him until his wheels fell off,” Bedesem said of Braxton. “Talk to my coaches – that’s all I keep yelling.”
The Golden Hawks appeared to be in command when Welch did a tightrope down the near sidelines on a 32-yard touchdown run that – after his successful run on a two-point conversion – gave Rock South a 35-21 lead.
Coming as no surprise, the Indians didn’t go down quietly. Back-to-back 18-yard completions from Hamilton to Matt Hatheway and Cottom were followed by a 29-yard Cottom TD run. Matusz’s extra point made it a 35-28 game with 10:57 remaining.
Neither team threatened until the Indians’ late-game drive that featured three huge Hamilton completions to Billy MacAlister (16 yards), Cottom (24 yards) and Lee Marvel (33 yards).
On second and six, Haviland came up with the huge interception, and this time, the game really was over.
“I thought we had an opportunity, and there was no doubt if we had scored I was going to go for two,” Coates said. “I had already made up my mind.”
It never came to that.
“This is great,” said Haviland, who was sidelined for last year’s Rock South game with a knee injury. “It’s the North-South game. You look forward to this every single year. It’s the last time I’ll ever get to play my rivals, my friends. It’s a great way to end.”
While the Golden Hawks improved to 8-2, the Indians fell to 6-4.
“It hurts a lot,” Cottom said. “It’s very disappointing. I thought we had it. We made some mental mistakes early in the game that led to this loss for us.
“We just have to get in the weight room and start lifting for next season.”
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 35, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 28
Council Rock South 14 6 15 0-35
Council Rock North 6 15 0 7-28
CRS-Gallo 54 interception return (Bruno kick)
CRN-Cottom 20 run (Kick failed)
CRS-Welch 50 run (Bruno kick)
CRN-Cottom 1 run (Run failed)
CRS-Welch 30 run (Kick failed)
CRN-Cottom 54 run (Pass failed)
CRN-Matusz 23 field goal
CRS-Welch 9 run (Bruno kick)
CRS-Welch 32 run (Welch run)
CRN-Cottom 29 run (Matusz kick)
CRS CRN
First Downs 14 21
Rushing Yards 286 311
Passing Yards 5 170
Total Yards 291 481
Passing (C-A-I) 1-5-1 9-19-2
Fumbles-Lost 1-1 0-0
Penalties-Yds. 9-64.5 7-54
Punts-Avg. 2-23.0 3-24.3
RUSHING:
CR South – Greg Welch, 15-156, 4 TDs; Braxton Ambrose, 14-112; Billy Fleming, 10-30; Mark Damirgian, 2-12; Keith Hickey, 1-1.
CR North – Brandon Cottom, 28-292, 4 TDs; Lee Marvel, 5-11; Ryan Campbell, 1-(-8), Tyler Hamilton, 8-(-9).
PASSING:
CR South – Billy Fleming, 1-2-5.
CR North – Tyler Hamilton, 9-19-170, 2 INTs.
RECEIVING:
CR South – Mark Damirgian, 1-5.
CR North – Brandon Cottom, 3-71; Lee Marvel, 3-53; Billy MacAlister, 1-18; Matt Hatheway, 1-16; Ty Bostain, 1-12.
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