Last Friday night, McKenzie's football team appeared to be uncharacteristically out of sync while Dresden's football team seemed to be focused, intense and unstoppable. The unbeaten Lions stunned previously unbeaten McKenzie 23-20 on a night where titans clashed all over Carroll County.

Dresden's offense was its best defense on this night. The Lions, 7-0, held the ball for over 30 minutes of the allotted 48, ran 57 plays, won the battle up front and controlled the tempo. Six Rebel turnovers - four interceptions and two fumbles - aided Dresden as well as it jumped to a 23-7 lead.

But the Rebels found their range and scored 13 points in the final 3:38 to make a game of it.

The Lions rolled up 236 yards on the ground and kept the potent MHS offense off the field.

"That was part of the plan, to use our offense as our defense," said Dresden coach Craig Rogers. "We haven't played for four quarters all year, but we did tonight. We sustained some drives and came off the ball well and established the line of scrimmage."

The Lions are fresh off a 28-21 victory over Martin-Westview, a team the Lions haven't beaten since 1986, a 28-0 victory at Rotary Field in the season opener.

"This was our best win of the season," Rogers said. "But I always say our most recent win is our best."

McKenzie coach Wade Comer was visibly upset and stunned with the setback.

"We just didn't play well," said Comer. "Dresden has a good team and they'll be someone to be reckoned with."

It appeared that the Rebels were on track to their seventh straight victory. They were punishing on defense and senior John Craig Howell forced and recovered a fumble just 93 seconds into the contest.

As the game unfolded, both teams were seemingly matched well. A 69-yard pass from Chuck Bailey to Garner Goode set up the Lions' first score. With 4:07 to play in the first, Bailey called his own number and the Lions led 7-0. It was the first time since November of 2002 that McKenzie had trailed in a game. Ryan Nanney added the first of his two conversion kicks.

McKenzie answered with a nice drive of its own. McKenzie marched 70 yards in 11 plays, ending in a 15-yard TD pass from Drew Hayes to senior Daniel Duncan, the first of his record-setting three TD receptions. John Kermit Laughery booted the first of two PATs and the game was tied.

>From there, Dresden took over. It limited McKenzie to a paltry three snaps in the second quarter as the Lions controlled the tenor. Dresden held the ball for 10:44 of the second frame. The last 7:16 of the half was all Dresden's. It lumbered 65 yards in 14 plays when Nanney booted a 14-yard field goal to end the half. DHS led 10-7 at the break.

As the second half began, so did the Rebel meltdown. A fumble on the opening kickoff afforded the Lions great field position on the 24. McKenzie's defense turned away the incursion, but the momentum was short lived. Neither team scored, but the Lions forced three turnovers in the quarter, quashing any potential scoring threat. McKenzie, meanwhile, only snapped the ball five times in the third.

Early in the fourth, Dresden got the ball back and quickly turned its possession into points. After a three-play, 40-yard drive, Jordan Yeley sprinted 29 yards to the McKenzie end zone with 9:37 to play. Nanney's PAT lifted the Lions to a 17-7 advantage. Seconds later, 6-5, 300 lb. defensive lineman Justin Baker picked a pass out of the air on the Rebel 12 and crumpled immediately to the ground. That enabled running back Wyman Price to dash the remaining yardage on the next play for what appeared to be an insurmountable score. Nanney's kick missed, but the Lions were up 23-7 with 9:20 to play.

Appearances can be deceiving and the Rebel offense finally found its rhythm and nearly pulled out the game.

Hayes and his receivers led the Rebels down to the Lion 9 where an interception ended the drive. But the MHS defense stiffened again and the Rebels took over on the Lion 34, thanks to a 3-yard Lion punt.

McKenzie never ran in the fourth. It didn't have to. Hayes found junior Randy Lacey twice for 20 yards then, on fourth down, he lobbed an 11-yard scoring aerial to Duncan. The run failed but the game became much more interesting.

McKenzie forced a break when it recovered a fumble on its own 37. Two passes to junior Clint Anderson netted 25 yards and a toss to Howell added 29, and the Rebels were on the Lion 9. Hayes pitched a 9-yard scoring strike to Duncan with 1:45 to play in the game. Laughery booted the PAT, which missed, but a penalty awarded him another shot. This time he made good and the Rebels had pulled within three, 23-20.

That's as close as McKenzie would get and the Lions ran the clock out for the victory.

"We started clicking and away we went," said Comer. "It took us a while to get our rhythm, but it just took us too long to get rolling. When we did, we started moving the ball."

Five different Dresden runners carried the ball. Yeley was the top gainer for the Lions with 19 totes for 75 yards. Bruce Slusser led the Lions with five tackles. Baker was in on four stops while Price and Adam Clements had three tackles each.

"We ran hard, sustained drives and broke tackles," said Rogers. "We're blessed with a lot of good runners. Jordan (Yeley) is the fastest guy we've got, but they all run hard."

Hayes had another record-breaking night. He set the school record with 95 completions in a regular season. He moves into second place for single-season passing with 1,336 yards. Hayes was 16-39 for 222 yards with four interceptions and three touchdowns. Duncan had five catches for 59 yards, Clint Anderson had four for 51, Lacey had 4 for 60 and Howell had two catches for 42 yards. Defensively, Brad Campbell had 10 tackles, Cody Cook added nine.

The 6-1 Rebels return to Region 6-2A action this week when they travel to Chester County. The winner is assured second place and a home playoff berth. Meanwhile, Dresden and Milan will face unbeaten foes for the second straight week when they face each other at Milan's Johnnie Hale Stadium this Friday night. Kickoff for both games is 7:30.

D 7 3 0 13 23
M 7 0 0 13 20

FIRST QUARTER
D - 4:07 Chuck Bailey 1 run, Ryan Nanney kick; 3 plays, 71 yards, 1:16
M - :33 Daniel Duncan 15 pass from Drew Hayes, John Kermit Laughery kick; 10 plays, 70 yards, 4:50.
SECOND QUARTER
D - :00 Nanney 14 field goal; 14 plays, 65 yards, 7:16.
FOURTH QUARTER
D - 9:37 Jordan Yeley 29 run, Nanney kick; 3 plays, 40 yards, 1:20.
D - 9:20 Wyman Price 12 run, kick failed; 1 play, 12 yards, :17.
M - 4:45 Duncan 11 pass from Hayes, run failed; 6 plays, 34 yards, 1:07.
M - 1:45 Duncan 9 pass from Hayes, Laughery kick; 4 plays, 63 yards, :52

M D
First Downs 9 12
Yds. Rushing 8-4 51-236
Yds. Passing 222 72
Total Yds. 226 308
Total plays 45 57
Comp.-Att.-Int. 16-39-4 2-6-0
Fumbles 2-2 4-2
Red zone-scores 4-3 4-4
Third down 2-10 4-12
Fourth down 3-3 1-2
Possession 17:32 30:28
Punts-avg. 4-37 2-19
Penalties 11-45 4-20

Entering the fame with a 5-1 record and following their first victory over the Hollow Rock-Bruceton Tigers in the history of the program, the War Eagles hoped to accomplish a feat over JCS they had been unable to do since 2000. Despite their efforts and high hopes however, by game’s end, the Eagles from Jackson had been more productive offensively and took home the victory. The War Eagles had good offensive stats from Shane Depriest (142 yards) and Kevin Gentile (186 yards).

The game began with clear skies and an outside chance of rainfall, but the weather held allowing both teams the chance to play good high school football. The War Eagles won the toss and elected to receive the opening possession of the night.

The first kick went into the end zone and put the War Eagles at their own 20 yard line to begin the contest. Gentile was held for no gain and then swept by defenders for a big 34-yard gain. S. Depriest then ran off tackle for a gain of six. A pass from quarterback Chris Cannon to Jeremiah Johnson netted a first down at the Eagle 15. The War Eagles were penalized for holding and one first and 20; Cannon’s pass to Johnson was incomplete. Chancy Depriest took the ball on a double reverse and picked up seven yards, but on third down, Cannon was sacked for a loss of two. An option pass from C. Depriest to Blake Abercrombie was incomplete as JCS took over at their own 22.

The Eagles wasted little time in gaining the first touchdown of the game, despite the efforts of S. Depriest and Kelly Keen who held for a loss of one on the first play from scrimmage. However after an incomplete pass, Chris Hirschfield reached back and passed the ball to Chase Chandler who reached the end zone and scored at the 7:19 mark. The PAT by Casey Carpenter was good and the Eagles took a 7-0 lead.

The second JCS kick also resulted in a touchback. S. Depriest found running room and rushed for 57 yards before he was stopped at the JCS 23. Gentile took the ball and reached the four-yard line. From there S. Depriest pushed into the end zone to quickly answer the JCS touchdown. With 6:42 remaining in the first period, Keen’s kick was good and the game was tied at seven.

Kevin Taylor kicked off to JCS and the ball was returned to their own 30-yard line. A fumble on a halfback sweep was quickly recovered by the Eagles. Despite the efforts of Wesley Arnold, C. Depriest, Jason Lott, Taylor, and Cody Cunningham, following a 10-play drive, the Eagles’ Jonathan Rowan took the ball from the five-yard line into the end zone at the 54.6 mark to put the Eagles ahead. The PAT was good and JCS led 14-7.

C. Depriest took the kick and returned the ball to the 26. Gentile picked up 11 yards on the first play while S. Depriest took the ball for a gain of one. A lateral pass to C. Depriest from Cannon resulted in a gain of four as the first quarter concluded. Gentile took the ball on a sweep to begin the second quarter and the ball came loose. The Eagles recovered and had the ball at the War Eagle 41.

With good field position, the Eagles were ready to improve their margin to two touchdowns, but the War Eagles did not allow them to proceed without a fight. Arnold held the gain to three yards and then Johnson and S. Depriest held the advance to two. A third down pass was batted down by Taylor and the Eagles punted the ball which rolled out of bounds at the West Carroll nine.
S. Depriest picked up three yards while Gentile swept for a gain of six. Depriest was held for a loss of two and the War Eagles Ambercrombie punted the ball which was downed at the JCS 48.
This time the Eagles would not be denied improving their margin. Arnold held the first down play to a gain of nine and Taylor and Gentile held the following play to a gain of 16. With the ball on the War Eagle 27, Rowan swept right and scored at the 7:06 mark of the second period. The PAT was once again good and the Eagles led 21-7.

The War Eagles took over at their own 20 on the next offensive possession. Gentile gained nine, missing the first down by inches. S. Depriest took the ball for the first down at the 35. S. Depriest then took the ball for a first down at the JCS 30. Gentile swept for a gain of three and Depriest for two more. Facing third and five at the JCS 25, Gentile got the nod and swept for the touchdown at the 4:17 mark to narrow the margin. Keen’s PAT was good and the War Eagles now trailed 21-14.

Taylor’s next kick was downed at the JCS 13. B.J. Reyes and Gentile held the advance to 19 while Taylor held a lateral pass play to a gain of a single yard. The Eagles then gained eight and on third and one, fumbled the snap and recovered for a loss of a yard. A time-out at the 2:13 mark was followed by a fourth down attempt to convert. C. Depriest caused a loss of one and the War Eagles took over on downs at the JCS 40.

A Cannon pass to C. Depriest was incomplete. S. Depriest picked up 12 and then Gentile was held for a loss of one. The War Eagles took a time-out at the 1:29 mark. A double reverse had C. Depriest picking up eight while S. Depriest gained three. A pass to C. Depriest in the end zone was incomplete, but a pass over the middle to Abercrombie was good for 10. With first and goal at the four, JCS took a time out at the 41.5 mark. The War Eagles were then penalized for lining up in the neutral zone and faced first and goal at the nine. S. Depriest was held for a loss of one. Gentile took the ball for little gain. Cannon passed to Abercrombie in the end zone, but it was incomplete and the Eagles were penalized for roughing the passer. With a second opportunity, the War Eagles were on the four and Cannon again passed to Abercrombie in the end zone for the touchdown as the half ended. Keen’s kick was good and the score was tied as the teams went to the dressing room for intermission.

During the break, the Marching War Eagles presented their tribute to the Righteous Brothers to the home crowd.

The third quarter began with an onsides kick from Taylor, but the Eagles gained possession and began their first offensive opportunity of the second half. Gentile held the gain to 15 while Jeremy Sonnier and Johnson held the advance to a yard. Sonnier was shaken on the play leading to a brief time-out. Lott stopped the next play at the 18 with JCS having a first down. Cannon held the advance to two and a pass was good for a first down at the four. Mike Crane then took the ball into the end zone for the Eagles at the 9:43 mark. With the PAT good, JCS took the lead 28-21.

The War Eagles chances were stopped on their second play with a JCS interception and they took over at their own 45. After good defensive action from S. Depriest and Johnson however and the Eagles at the 25, a pass was intercepted by Johnson and the War Eagles began another assault at their own 28.

S. Depriest gained four, but a second down play resulted in a penalty for a personal foul on the War Eagles. Another pass was intercepted by the Eagles and three plays later, JCS scored as Adam Darby reached the end zone from the one. The PAT was good and the Eagles now led 35-21.

The War Eagles took over at their own 20 yard line. Gentile picked up five and then eight. With first and 10, Gentile gained two more. C. Depriest took the ball on the double reverse for six and Gentile gained two for the first down. Gentile gained a yard and then the first down at the JCS 35. Gentile was held for no gain. Cannon’s pass to Abercrombie was good for five as the third period ended. Gentile then gained nine and eight yards and reached the JCS 12 where S. Depriest took the ball behind good offensive line blocking and scored. The PAT was never set and the War Eagles now trailed 35-27.

The Eagles took advantage of their next possession, scoring quickly on a four-lay drive which ended with Hirschfield scoring from the 16-yard line. The PAT was good and the Eagles now led 42-27. Reyes was shaken on the drive and a brief time-out resulted early in the possession.

Gentile received the kickoff and returned the ball to the War Eagle 34. A pass to C. Depriest was good for the first down at the JCS 46. Gentile then ran for seven while S. Depriest gained two. Depriest took the ball to the 34 for the first down. A pass from Cannon to Abercrombie was incomplete. Gentile took the ball for nine yards and was shaken on the play. Depriest reached the 22 for the first down. Gentile then picked up a yard, a pass interference call on JCS put the ball at the five and a face mask penalty put the ball at the two. S. Depriest took the ball for the touchdown and the War Eagles attempted a two-point conversion, but C. Depriest was held short and the score was 42-33 JCS.

The War Eagles attempted another onsides kick, this time by Keen, and were able to recover at the 50 yard line. A pass to Abercrombie on first down was incomplete and the double reverse failed as well. On third and 10, Cannon passed the ball to C. Depriest for a gain of nine. Gentile went for the yard and reached the JCS 37. A pass to Johnson was incomplete, followed by an offsides call against the Eagles. Facing second and five, Cannon again attempted a pass to C. Depriest and although the pass was incomplete, the Eagles were again penalized for roughing the passer. With first and 10 at the JCS 18, S. Depriest moved the ball to the 13 and then a pass to Abercrombie was good. The PAT was good by Keen to narrow the margin to 42-40 at the 2:19 mark.

The War Eagles attempted yet another onsides kick, but were unsuccessful. Despite the efforts of Lott, S. Depriest and others, the Eagles reached the end zone at the 1:52 mark when Hirschfield took the ball in on a quarterback sweep from the 39. The PAT was good and the Eagles now led 49-40.

The kick to C. Depriest was taken at the War Eagle five. S. Depriest took the ball to the 20 for the first down and was then held for no gain. C. Depriest took the ball on the double reverse for a gain of 10 to the 30. S. Depriest ran for another 10 to the 40. A pass to Abercrombie resulted in a JCS interception when Abercrombie tripped. Tyler McAnally took the ball quickly into the end zone at the 9.6 mark and the PAT was good to put the Eagle up 56-40.

The War Eagles may have lost the game, but gained a foundation in coming back from a deficit, something which may be needed as they begin their final three games of the season. Following a trip to Greenfield this Friday, the War Eagles 5-2 overall, 3-0 in regional action still face games against Halls and South Fulton, both at home. The War Eagles are still on track for a regional title and with more defensive action in those final three games should have no difficulty in gaining that accomplishment. Kickoff will be at the Greenfield football field at 7:30 this Friday.

Milan basically gave the Stangs what Huntingdon had been giving other teams up until this point, big play drives for scores. While both teams had been scoring around forty points each game, this time the defensive side of each team came to the forefront with each score strongly contested. Passing yardage by the two teams was pretty equal, but the Bulldogs defense held the Stangs to less than 150 yards on the ground while the Mustangs defense allowed the Dogs almost 300 total ground yards. Neither team had a fumble and while Huntingdon’s Adam Parish was intercepted twice, Milan’s George West was intercepted only once with several close calls. Regardless, there was a sellout crowd for both squads on hand and despite the difficulty in leaving the stadium once the game concluded, the majority of those who attended remained until the game’s conclusion.

The Dogs gained the first opportunity at an offensive score, but after six plays and one first down the Bulldogs had to punt to the waiting Mustangs. The Stangs also had one first down on seven plays and facing fourth and one decided to go for the down, missing it by inches. The Bulldogs took over at their own 35-yard line. This time they would not be denied and quickly responded to the opportunity.

Brian Nellett held the first down play to no gain. After a five-yard gain, West looked for a receiver and finding none took off running before he was finally stopped at the Mustang 10. Rod Smith took the ball into the end zone on the following play and at the 4:08 mark, Sam Sullivan was perfect on the PAT to give Milan a 7-0 lead.

Phillip Weathers received the kickoff from the Bulldogs and took the ball back to the Stangs 17 yard line. Parish began the series with a pass attempt and it was intercepted by Smith for the Bulldogs and returned to the 45. With 3:50 remaining in the first quarter, the Bulldogs were again on the offensive. An incomplete pass resulted in pass interference by the Dogs. Andrew Maddox held the ground attack to five yards. A pass was deflected by Scott Hampton and the Dogs punted the ball out at the Mustang 34.

The Mustangs had another short series which concluded as the first period did. Terrance Bell picked up eight yards and Kenneth Hillsman moved up the middle for the first down, but a face mask penalty moved the ball to the Milan 48. Parish was stopped for a loss of three, Bell moved right for a gain of one and Parish was hit again for a loss of four. Facing fourth and 16, the Mustangs had a chance to discuss the situation as the chains were moved to begin the second period. Nellett came out to punt the ball and pushed the Bulldogs back to their own 12-yard line.

The Bulldogs did not seem to mind, but went to work, moving the ball steadily down the field to another score in the first half. Hillsman, Hampton, Hunter Hastings, Mark Newsome, Nellett, Desmond Townes, Maddox and Chris Donald did their best and managed to prolong the series into a 13-play drive before Ricky Goff moved the ball from the three into the end zone for the second TD of the night for Milan. Sullivan’s kick was again good and the Dogs took a 14-0 lead at the 5:36 mark of the first half.
The Bulldogs moved back to kick to the Stangs and stunned them with an onsides kick, one they recovered to gain good field advantage at the Huntingdon 48. However, the ploy was short-lived as West was intercepted by Hampton on the second play from scrimmage and Huntingdon began a series of their own from their own 48.

Bell moved up the middle for a gain of seven and then left to Milan’s 39 for the first down. Bell ran again, a pass to Hampton was incomplete and a penalty moved the ball back for 10 yards. Bell was held for a loss of five and then on a ploy of their own, Parish tossed the ball to Bell and raced down the field to receive a quick pass from Bell and he reached the end zone at the 2:56 mark to narrow the margin to 14-6. The PAT was blocked before Newsome was able to kick it.

Milan received the kick and returned the ball to its own 24. Kale Belew, Newsome, Hillsman, Hastings, Nellett, Marty Shands, Weathers and Cliff Bush made the drive burn up valuable time, but with time almost gone, Sullivan moved in to kick a 20-yard field goal with no time remaining and the Bulldogs went into the dressing room with a 17-6 advantage.

Fans for both teams were seated in the home stands and enjoyed performances from both the Marching Bulldogs and Marching Mustangs. The overflow crowd had begun arriving as the gates opened at 4:30 and by game time were two deep on the sideline and were seated on the hill beside the home stands to enjoy the game.

The second half began with the Mustangs on offense, but although they began at their own 26 where Bell was stopped on the return and Bell managed a first down run to the Milan 42, the Bulldogs defensive line stiffened and held the Stangs to only two more yards and had Nellett punting the ball down to the five-yard line. Milan took over at the 9:44 mark of the third period.
Kenneth Porter stopped the run by Smith at the 34. Penalties and a stiff defensive surge by the Stangs return possession to Huntingdon five plays later. Huntingdon regained possession at its own 40-yard line at the 8:00 mark of the third period.
This time the Stangs managed to sustain a nine play drive, but ultimately turned the ball over on downs as a fourth and four pass was incomplete.

Milan took over at their own 20 at the 3:14 mark of the third period and managed to retain possession only briefly. Hillsman, Hastings, Townes, Geans, and Porter led the defensive charge. The punt went to Kenny Rich who got a good block from Porter and returned the ball to the Mustang 35.

A motion call moved the ball back to the 30. A pass to Weathers was good for nine yards and then Bell gained good yardage, but a block in the back penalty against Huntingdon moved the ball back 20 yards. Parish was sacked for a loss of nine more and Bell regained only nine as the ball was punted into the end zone. With 31.1 remaining on the third period clock, Milan again had offensive opportunity.

As the third period ended and the fourth began, the Mustangs Hillsman, Belew, Townes, Nathan Wallace, Geans, Hampton, Weathers, and Donald led the defensive charge. Ultimately with the ball at the Huntingdon 36, West, again unable to find a receiver, tucked the ball under his arm, raced down the left sideline and reached the end zone at the 8:00 mark of the final period. The kick was good and the Bulldogs now led 24-6.
Weathers received the kick and returned the ball to the 18. Parish went to the right and was almost sacked before reversing his motion to the left where he picked up five yards. Donald was caught for a loss of five and a pass to Weathers was good for all but two of the needed yards. Donald took the ball and with a good block from Townes picked up a first down at the Milan 41. Donald then moved right for six, but a pass attempt on the next play was intercepted by Milan’s Smith and the Bulldogs took over at their own 49.

The Mustang defense allowed only a brief possession as Hastings, Stephen Wright, Weathers and Geans led the attack. With only seconds remaining, the Mustangs had a final opportunity, but picked up only a few yards before Bell broke loose for a first down as time expired on the clock to end the game. Milan won the game 24-6.

This Friday night the Mustangs will host the Riverside Panthers in a regional contest. The Panthers are 2-5 overall and 0-3 in regional action. While the Mustangs are 6-1 overall and 3-0 in regional action, they cannot afford to take the Panthers lightly. Riverside is a young squad which has found limited success this year and could prove to be a spoiler in week eight. Game time will be 7:30 at Paul Ward Stadium.

• Greenfield upends Hollow Rock-Bruceton
• Rebels still on target for playoffs
• Bethel suffers in scoring fest