Hampton Roads Game of Week #15: Oscar Smith Moves to 6A State Title Game With 27-20 Win Over Colonial Forge: Mitchell's Record Breaking TD Pass Comes with 10 Seconds Left in Game

As seen on recruit757.com:

Shon Mitchell sets a new record with his final pass of the day and the Tigers move on

by Jim McGrath, recruit757

OSCAR SMITH 27, COLONIAL FORGE 20

For Shon Mitchell, his 6A state semifinal game story could not have been better if a Hollywood screenwriter had penned it.

With 16 seconds left in a game tied at 20, Mitchell dropped back to pass from the Eagle 22, looked to his right and saw receiver Khalik Perry three yards behind his defender and angling toward the bright orange pylon in the back of the end zone. Mitchell’s arching pass found Perry, who caught the ball and fell backwards, securing the game winning touchdown, as Oscar Smith scored the game’s last 14 points to pull out a 27-20 win over Colonial Forge.

With the win, Oscar Smith will now face Westfield, from Chantilly, in next week’s 6A state championship, which will be played next Saturday at Armstrong Stadium on the campus of Hampton University. The Bulldogs defeated the Tigers 49-42 in last year’s title game, one which took three overtimes to decide. That game broke a perfect 13-0 season for Oscar Smith, and was followed by the departure of then-Coach Richard Morgan.

The game-winning play was set up by a Colonial Forge fumble with just over a minute left, a ball that was buried under a sea of players at the Eagle 40 before being awarded to the Tigers. On the third play, Mitchell found Perry over the middle for a 18-yard gain, to put the ball at the 22 and set up the climatic ending.

For Mitchell, his final pass of the day was historic. With his 120th career passing touchdown, the William and Mary-bound senior passed former Tiger Phillip Sims for the all-time Virginia state prep record. With the win, he will have a chance to add to the total next week, as Oscar Smith will play one more game, a state title rematch with Westfield, who earned their spot with an easy 42-12 win over South Lakes.

Storybook ending? After the game, Mitchell was asked to describe his feeling about the perfection of the finale. “Awesome,” quipped the mindful signal caller. “That’s the only word to describe it.”

It wasn’t awesome in the beginning.

There was the first quarter interception of Mitchell by Josh Sarratt, which occurred on a play from the Tiger 5 and led to Colonial Forge’s second touchdown, one which gave them a 14-7 lead late in the first quarter. There were the three other passes that landed right in the hands of Eagle defenders, only to be dropped. There was the interception to open the second half, as Sarratt once again picked off Mitchell, and returned the ball to the 12, resulting in a Jadon Redding field goal to bump the Forge lead to 20-14, and stifle the bit of momentum the Tigers had built before halftime when Keyon Watson’s two-yard touchdown burst closed the Eagle lead to 17-13.

In fact, for the first 47 minutes of the football game, the Tigers’ longest pass was the 39-yarder thrown by wide receiver Cam’Ron Kelly to Thomas Woodhouse to ignite a seven-play, 80-yard drive that culminated in Watson's touchdown.

“They were rushing three and dropping eight. That made it hard to find somebody open,” said Mitchell after the game. Speaking of the game-winning score to Perry, he noted, “All respect to Khalik on that one. He got open and made a great catch.” As far as the near interceptions went, he added, “You gotta have a short-term memory.”

Along with Perry, it was Woodhouse who made key plays. The senior receiver caught three passes for 71 yards, and the two combined for the game’s most notable special teams play. Punting from midfield, Perry blocked the Colonial Forge kick, which bounced sideways and was scooped up by Woodhouse, who scampered 40 yards for the Tigers first touchdown of the day.

“He balled it today,” said Mitchell.

Woodhouse was also diplomatic. Asked about his biggest play of the day, the senior receiver recalled another play, before talking about his teammate D’Angelo White, and then coach, Bill Dee.

“I felt for Deangelo,” said Woodhouse, talking about White, who carried four times for eight yards before leaving the game just before halftime with a knee injury. White, the Tigers leading rusher with over 1,100 yards, played in last week’s 13-0 win over Woodside, just one day after the passing of his father, and scored a crucial touchdown. “I lost my father just before last season, so I know what he’s going through,” said Woodhouse.

His thoughts moved to Coach Dee, who is leading the Tigers to the state championship game in his first season at Oscar Smith, after a storied career at Phoebus where he won four 5A state titles with the Phantoms, and then moved to coaching positions at Christopher Newport, and Old Dominion, before returning to the high school ranks this year.

“We’re not used to playing from behind, but Coach always the says the game is not over. You have to trust the process. Coach Dee came here in his first year and instilled trust in us.”

Dee was less concerned about the outcome of the South Lakes-Westfield contest, at least for today.

“I was worried about this one today. We fought to the bitter end,” said Dee who has now won 256 games at the high school ranks and will be traveling to a familiar site next Saturday, Armstrong Stadium, for next week’s state championship. “Our guys have been in these battles, and just don’t quit.

Asked if Dee’s four state titles might help the Tigers against Westfield, the team that beat them in last year’s final, Woodhouse managed a smile, one that was deserved after a hard day on the field.

“It helps.”

– Jim McGrath

COLONIAL FORGE 14, 3, 3, 0 — 20
OSCAR SMITH 7, 6, 7, 7 — 27

1st Quarter
CF – Barnum 2 run (Redding kick)
OS – Woodhouse 40 return on blocked punt (Benoit kick)
CF – Roberts 19 pass from Barnum (Redding kick)

2nd Quarter
CF – Redding 37 FG
OS – Watson 2 run (kick failed)

3rd Quarter
CF – Redding 21 FG
OS – Artis 8 run (Benoit kick)

4th Quarter
OS – Perry 22 pass from S. Mitchell (Benoit kick)

                       CF OS
First downs; 14, 13
Rushes-yards; 36-76, 26-53
Passing yards; 128, 215
Comp-att-int; 11-21-2, 15-32-2
Penalties-yards; 3-20, 10-73
Punts-avg; 4-30.7, 5-34.0
Fumbles-lost; 3-1, 1-0

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS: Rushing: Colonial Forge-Antonio McCray 15-57, Kenard McNeal 3-6, Ernesto Bowen 3-5, Liam Kauthen 1-2, Omaro Barnum 1-2, TD, Ethan Garwood 9- (-1), Josh Sarratt 3-5. Total 36 for 76. Oscar Smith – Keyon Watson 14-26, TD; Thomas Woodhouse 2-10, Keshon Artis 3-12, TD; DeAngelo White 4-8; Shon Mitchell 3-(minus 3). Total 26 for 53. Passing: Colonial Forge – Garwood 10-20-2, 109 yards, 2 INT; Barnum 1-1-0, 19 yards, TD. Oscar Smith – Mitchell 14-31-2, 176 yards, TD, 2 INT; CamRon Kelly 1-1-0, 39 yards. Receiving: Colonial Forge – Mark Roberts 4-62, TD; Mitchell Shinskie 1-19; Kareem Burgess 2-17; Zack Kindel 1-14; Sarratt 2-12; McCray 1-4. Oscar Smith – Woodhouse 3-71; Khalik Perry 4-73, TD; Watson 3-38; Kelly 4-30; White 1-3.

Northern Virginia Game of Week #14 - South Lakes Stuns Lake Braddock 40-22 in 6A North Semis; Atkins Held to 17 Yards Rushing

SOUTH LAKES 40, LAKE BRADDOCK 22

BURKE – Relying on a run defense that held Lamont Atkins to 17 yards on 12 carries, the South

Lakes Seahawks stunned Lake Braddock 40-22 in front of their home crowd. With the win, South Lakes will travel to Chantilly to face defending 6A state champion Westfield in the 6A North championship next Saturday.

The Bruins (11-2) opened in fine form, driving 80 yards on a seven-play drive that featured quarterback Ty Crabb. Crabb, who alternates on almost every play with Jack Darcy, scored first downs on runs of 23 and 11 yards, before calling his own number for a third time and bursting through the middle for a 39-yard touchdown. Jack Rawlins’ extra point gave the Bruins a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter.

South Lakes held star running back
Lamont Atkins to 17 yards in their
40-22 win over Lake Braddock in
the 6A North semifinals last Saturday.

The Seahawks did not get off to an auspicious start. Devin Miles’ first pass of the game was intercepted by Ibrahim Mansaray, who returned the ball to the South Lakes 25. However, the defense, with key plays from Andrew Funaki and Terry Jackson, held Lake Braddock, first dropping Lamont Atkins for a six-yard loss, and then sacking Crabb for another ten-yard loss on 4^th-and-11.

Down 7-0 and losing momentum, there was a chance that South Lakes could have faced the same type of Bruin whitewall that befell Hayfield last week, when Lake Braddock jumped to a 35-0 halftime lead. Not so, said junior running back Spencer Alston, whose two second half rushing touchdowns helped the Seahawks put the game away.

“(When we were down 7-0) we knew that we had to trust our defense,” said Alston, who finished with 79 rushing yards on 15 carries. “We had to punch in and keep pounding. Our defense did a good job of shutting down.”

And the Seahawks defense could not have done much better. After allowing the 79 yards to Crabb on the opening drive, the Bruins allowed just 66 more yards on the ground, and totally shut down Atkins, who entered the game with 1,869 yards and 31 rushing touchdowns.

And while the Bruins were having difficulty breaking through the line of scrimmage, South Lakes countered with its one-two punch of Alston and fellow junior Albert Mensah. Mensah led the Seahawks with 84 yards on the ground, and added his own touchdown. Not to be outdone, quarterback Miles chipped with two scores of his own on an 11 for 49 ground effort.

The Seahawks (12-1) benefitted greatly from their ability to make the big play when it mattered. One player in particular, Funaki, seemed to consistently be in the right place at the right time, especially on third down. Funaki caught two passes for first downs, both on third-and-long situations. And defensively, the senior seemed to have the knack to be where the ball was, knocking down several crucial Bruin passes and making the right stop on short yardage downs.

Asked about his innate ability to appear at the right place, Funaki was quick to credit his teammates. “On offense, it all comes from our offensive line. The other team’s defenders are focused on our running backs, Albert and Spencer, and it makes me able to make plays for Devin at quarterback. Defensively, we just press up front and that leaves me open to (stop defenders).”

Sky Lubreski had a key 33-yard interception return in the first half. However, it was Kojo Kumi who made the most crucial defensive play for Trey Taylor’s squad. Leading 26-7 to open the fourth quarter, the Bruins were forced to open up their passing game. However, Crabb’s second pass of the quarter was picked off by the junior linebacker, who returned the ball 14 yards to put South Lakes ahead by 26 points, and leave the thoughts of a comeback in the dust.

“I was in flat coverage,” said Kumi. “I wasn’t good at covering out there in the beginning of the season, but I have been working on it. I saw the ball going that way and reacted. Just caught the pass and ran it in.”

Mansaray keyed a fierce second half comeback almost single-handedly, scoring two fourth quarter touchdowns as part of an eight-reception afternoon.

SOUTH LAKES  (12-1)       6, 13, 7, 14 --40

LAKE BRADDOCK (11-2)  7, 0, 0, 15 -- 22

1^st Quarter

LB – Crabb 39 run (Rawlins kick)

SL – Mensah 2 run (kick blocked)

2^nd Quarter

SL – Miles 1 run (pass failed)

SL – Miles 9 run (Dover kick)

3^rd Quarter

SL – Alston 2 run (Dover kick)

4^th Quarter

SL – Kumi-Darfour 14 int return (Dover kick)

LB – Mansaray 18 pass (Rawlins kick)

SL – Alston 26 run (Dover kick)

LB – Mansaray 8 pass (Atkins pass)

           SL      LB

First downs;     15, 15

Rushes-yards;  42-212, 29-156

Passing yards;  82, 180

Comp-att-int;   8-11-2, 14-33-2

Penalties-yards; 6-40, 7-54

Punts-avg;     2-39, 2-40

Fumbles-lost;   1-0, 1-1

INDIVIDUAL STATS: Rushing: SL - Mensah 16-84, TD, Alston 15-79, 2 TD, Miles 11-49, 2 TD. Total 42-212. LB – Crabb 17-120, Atkins 12-17, Metheny 1-12, Darcy 3 – (-4). Total 33-145. Passing: SL – Miles 8-11, 82 yds. 2 INT, LB – Crabb 3-9, 29 yds., INT, Darcy 11-24, 151 yds. 2 TD, INT. Receiving: SL -  Alston 3-31, Funaki 2-31, Mohler 2-9, Seneca 1-11, LB – Mansaray 8-125, 2 TD, Park 4-29, Esposito 1-17, Metheny 1-9.

Virginia Peninsula Game of Week #13: 6A South 2nd Round: Woodside Grounds Out 28-9 Win Over Grassfield

WOODSIDE 28, GRASSFIELD 9

NEWPORT NEWS – Demetri Banks and Tyhier Tyler rushed for over 100 yards to lead the Wolverines to a workmanlike 28-9 victory over Grassfield in their second round 6A South playoff game at Todd Stadium.

With the win, Woodside (10-2) will travel to Chesapeake next weekend to take on top-seeded Oscar Smith, coached by longtime former Phoebus Coach Bill Dee.

The Wolverines relied heavily on their running game, tallying 365 yards on 46 carries. On the first play of Woodside’s second possession, Banks busted through the middle of the Grassfield defensive line for a 58-yard run that took the ball to the Grizzly 5. From there, the senior back finished the job, taking the next carry into the end zone.

The Wolverines were equally successful on their first drive of the second quarter, driving 88 yards on six plays. A 46-yard run by Tyler helped to set up the scoring play with Tyler rolling left and finding a wide-open Christian Walker for the 18-yard touchdown.

Grassfield (9-3) did manage one long drive just before halftime, netting 57 yards on 12 plays, and ending with a 31-yard field goal as Woodside took a 14-3 lead into halftime.

The key to Woodside’s early success was their ability to contain the Grizzly’s 1,000-yard running back Darius Hagans. Earlier this season, Hagans rushed for over 200 yards in three consecutive games. However, in the first half against the Wolverines, the 6-foot, 192 pounder could only muster 26 yards on 11 carries.

The Wolverines struck for a score on their first possession of the second half. A 39-yard pass from Tyler to Kendall Bell set up the quarterback from the 5, as Tyler broke through the middle, broke two tackles and dove into the end zone. Banks, who led Woodside rushers with 194 yards, scored his second touchdown just before the end of the third quarter.

A 17-yard touchdown pass from Justice Bigbie to Austin Wood closed the lead to 19 points early in the fourth quarter, but the Grizzlies were unable to score on their next drive, which lasted for 15 plays and gained only 37 yards before fizzling at the Woodside 44.

GRASSFIELD   0, 3, 0, 6 -- 9

WOODSIDE      7, 7, 14, 0 -- 28

1^st Quarter

W – Banks 5 run (Mitchel kick)

2^nd Quarter

W – Walker 18 pass from T. Tyler (Mitchel kick)

G – Ridenour 31 FG

3^rd Quarter

W – Tyler 5 run (Mitchel kick)

W – Banks 8 run (Mitchel kick)

4^th Quarter

G – Wood 17 pass from Bigbie (run failed)

         Grass   Wood  

First downs;    14, 20

Rushes-yards;  29-73, 46-376

Passing yards;  162, 74

Comp-att-int;   17-29-0, 5-5-0

Penalties-yards; 6-35, 3-20

Punts-avg;     4-36, 0-0

Fumbles-lost;  0-0, 2-2

Key Individual Stats: Woodside - Rushing: Demetri Banks 23-194, 2 TD, Tyhier Tyler 12-118, TD, D'onte Chesson 7-53. Passing: T. Tyler 5-5, 74 yds. TD. Receiving: Kendall Bell 1-39, Christian Walker 1-18, TD. Grassfield - Rushing: Darius Hagans 19-81. Passing: Justice Bigbie 17-29, 162 yds. TD. Receiving: Austin Wood 8-72, TD, Kharron Gilliam 4-47, Shawah Goodman 3-31, Shawndell Joyner, Jr. 2-12.