The "Wall's" Peninsula Game of the Week - Bethel Rains on Denbigh's 50th Homecoming With 27-9 Win

NEWPORT NEWS -- The Denbigh Patriots celebrated their 50^th Homecoming in royal fashion on Friday.  But it was the Bethel Bruins who left Todd Stadium with the crowning win, 27-9.

Bethel RB DeAndre Gillis #22

With the victory, Bethel improved to 5-4 and fastened its hold on the #5 seed in the 5A South (East) rankings. Denbigh dropped to 4-4 and may lose its fourth seed in the 4A East (Tidewater).

The Bruins capitalized on a strong running game, which gained 246 yards on 46 carries. Leading the way was Janaz Jordan. Jordan, at 6’3”, 255 lbs., entered the game with only 15 carries for 39 yards on the season. But the fullback bruised for four carries and 46 yards on the Bruins’ initial drive, including the six-yard touchdown run to give Bethel its first score. Jordan finished the game with 120 yards and two touchdowns.

The Patriots opened the game with an 11-play, 61-yard drive, capped by a 22-yard field goal from Gerardo Aguilar. But after the initial Patriot score, Bethel ran off 27 unanswered points.

In the second quarter, Bethel started winning the battle of field position, and after a 16-yard punt return from T.C. Chisley, found itself with first down on the Denbigh 34. The Bruins worked the ball down to the 15, but found itself with fourth-and-2 from the Denbigh 7. Chisley attempted a quarterback sneak, but kept his legs moving underneath him and bulldozed into the end zone, giving the visitors a 14-3 lead, which they took into halftime.

Late in the third quarter, Chisley found Marcus Pegues streaking down the left sideline and hit the receiver in mid-stride for a 35-yard touchdown. Ironically, it was Bethel’s only pass completion of the evening.

Denbigh’s Shaquan Jones snuck into the end zone on a one-yard run as time ran out .

BETHEL –   7, 7, 13, 0 -- 27

DENBIGH -  3, 0, 0, 6 -- 9

First quarter

D – Aguilar 22 FG

B – J. Jordan 6 run (Vassilakopoulos kick)

Second quarter

B – Chisley 6 run (Vassilakopoulos kick)

Third quarter

B – J. Jordan 24 run (kick failed)

B – Pegues 35 pass from Chisley (Vassilakopoulos kick)

Fourth quarter

D – S. Jones 1 run (game ended – no XP)

                    Beth  Denb

First downs;    10, 10

Rushes-yards;  46-246, 33-85

Passing yards;   35, 77

Comp-att-int;   1-2-0, 10-25-0

Penalties-yards; 11-77, 4-26

Punts-avg;      6-30, 4-32

Fumbles-lost;   2-2, 0-0

The "Wall's" Game of the Week - Bethel at Denbigh, Fri. 10/22, 7 PM - Todd Stadium (prediction included)

As shown on Recruit757.com - http://www.recruit757.com/playoff-position-stake-bethel-denbigh-clash/

Bethel (4-4) vs. Denbigh (4-3), Friday 7:00, Todd Stadium (Newport News)

Bethel QB/WR/DB T.C. Chisley (Photo: Sam Mizelle/recruit757)

Amid the noise and festivities surrounding Denbigh’s 50^th Homecoming celebration, an important football game with playoff implications will be played at Todd Stadium on Friday night.

Bethel, which needed two fourth quarter “pick-six” returns to escape Todd last week with a 24-6 win over Menchville, will travel back to Newport News to face a sturdy Denbigh squad, one which took Woodside to the brink before faltering 14-9.

This game should be low scoring and could go to either team. The Bruins, who led Woodside at halftime 13-6 two weeks ago, is recovering from a sluggish offensive effort last week. Bethel completed only three of 16 passes, and trailed the winless Monarchs 6-3 early in the fourth quarter before two interceptions, by T.C. Chisley and Jordan Hill, were returned for touchdowns, which gave the Bruins some breathing room.

The Bruins quarterback situation has been a rotating wheel all week, and it is uncertain who will start on Friday. Coach William Beverley split time between Navarro Price and Lekendrell Lowther earlier this year, but last week saw a new starter – Chisley, who completed three of seven passes for seven yards, before giving way to Lowther. Bethel converted seven of 14 throws against Menchville, but for a paltry 55 yards. The ground game was adequate, with 144 yards on 37 carries. Still, the Bruins scoring average is a tad below 16 ppg, ranking eighth in the Peninsula District.

Fortunately, the Bethel defense has held tight, allowing 106.9 yards per outing.

Denbigh’s close loss to Woodside was tough for Coach Marcellus Harris’ team, but shows that the Patriots, who entered the game with a 4-2 mark, are truly a playoff contender.

The Denbigh defense gave Wolverine quarterback Tyhier Tyler fits last week, holding the fleet footed QB to two yards rushing. As a whole, the Patriots outgained Woodside 181-164, which is a credit to the defensive unit.

Quarterback L.J. Taylor remains the linchpin to the Patriot offense. Taylor was busy against Woodside, throwing 28 passes, and completing 15 for 144 yards.

Bethel, currently fifth in the 5A South (East) rankings, needs a win to retain any hopes of a home playoff game, while Denbigh, fourth in the 4A East (Tidewater) section, will probably not catch third seed Kings Fork, but needs the victory to hold off challenges from Smithfield and Grafton in order to secure a home playoff contest.

Prediction -- Denbigh 20, Bethel 14 (OT) 

The "Wall's" Peninsula Game of the Week #3 - Woodside Holds Off Scrappy Denbigh 14-9

NEWPORT NEWS  -- For the second straight week, a D’Angelo Chesson defensive play was the key to a Woodside victory.

Woodside's Tamir Walker rushed for 97 yards, but
the Denbigh defense allowed only 164 to the
usually powerful Wolverine offense.

Chesson, who returned both an interception and fumble for touchdowns last week against Bethel, recovered a crucial fumble in the game’s final two minutes to help Woodside to a 14-9 win over Denbigh.

Woodside (5-2, 5-1 Peninsula) took a 14-3 lead early in the fourth quarter.  After running eight straight plays, Tyhier Tyler threw a high dart, which Chesson leaped and caught in the end zone for a 13-yard touchdown.

However, the Patriots responded. After a fumble recovery, L.J. Taylor found freshman Kevin Anderson for a 28-yard gain. Then, from the Wolverine 13, Taylor connected with Keyshawn Chisholm, whose touchdown cut the lead to five points.

The two-point conversion failed, negating the option of a field goal being able to tie the game in regulation.

But Woodside failed to move the ball on their next possession, forcing a punt, which Denbigh returned to its own 45 with 1:40 to play.

However, lined up in the shotgun, the first snap from center sailed over Taylor’s head, and Chesson rushed in to dive on the loose ball and make sure that Taylor could not grab it back.  From there, the Wolverines were able to run out the clock.

The game lived up to its billing as a defensive slugfest between rival schools. The Denbigh defense set the tone on Woodside’s first possession. They held the Wolverines to zero yards on their first three plays, but were then penalized for roughing the punter, giving Woodside a fresh set of downs. But Woodside lost eight yards on their next three plays and was forced to punt.

The Patriots were able to neutralize the high octane Woodside offense, which totaled only 84 yards in the first half, with a mere 31 rushing yards on 21 carries. For the game, the Wolverines offense, which entered the game leading the Peninsula District in yardage, was held to 164 yards.

The game got chippy at times. Woodside was whistled for a late hit out of bounds on Denbigh quarterback Taylor, who played for the Wolverines last year, while the officials called several facemask and illegal tackle calls.

With the loss, Denbigh fell to 4-3, 4-2 in the district. However, with Grafton’s loss to Warhill last night, they make take sole possession of the fourth seed in 4A East (Tidewater) when the new VHSL rankings are released early next week.

WOODSIDE – 0, 6, 0, 8 --14

DENBIGH  -    0, 0, 3, 6 – 9

Second quarter

W - Lee 4 pass from T. Tyler (kick failed)

Third quarter

D – Aguilar 28 FG

Fourth quarter

W – Chesson 13 pass from T. Tyler (Walker run)

D – Chisholm 13 pass from Taylor (run failed)

                    Wood  Denb

First downs;    13, 12

Rushes-yards;  47-97, 28-37

Passing yards;   67, 144

Comp-att-int;   7-12-0, 15-28-0

Penalties-yards; 5-30, 10-100

Punts-avg;     3-29, 3-28

Fumbles-lost;   2-1, 1-1

The "Wall's" Peninsula Game of the Week #2 - Bethel Holds Off Scrappy Menchville 24-6

NEWPORT NEWS – In the opening game, the Bethel Bruins overcame a scare by winless Menchville, before scoring twice in the fourth quarter on successive interception returns, to pull out a 24-6 win.

Menchville (0-7, 0-6 Peninsula) carried a 6-3 lead into the fourth quarter. But a tipped Monarch pass was caught in midair by Terry Chisley, who rambled 63 yards for the game changing score.

After a 15-yard run from Torey Guilford started the next Monarch drive, yet another pass was caught in the flat by Bethel’s Jordan Hill, who returned it 38 yards for a touchdown.

DeAndre Gillis plowed through the middle for a two-yard score to seal the game for the Bruins.

Bethel (4-4, 4-3 Peninsula) opened the scoring. A Menchville fumble, deep in their territory, was recovered by Hill at the Monarch 13. The drive stalled, but a 25-yard FG by John Vassilakopoulos but the first three points on the board for the Bruins.

The Menchville offense struggled mightily in the game, netting minus 62 rushing yards. But midway through the second quarter, and facing 2^nd-and-14, Shamar Butts, who replaced Anthony Wyatt at quarterback, threw a 10-yard dart over the middle to Denahri Hairston. Hairston, using a nifty inside spin, opened a lane in the middle of the field, which he sprinted through for a 65-yard score, which gave Menchville a lead that they would hold for almost two more quarters.

Hairston finished with three catches for 102 yards.

BETHEL          –  3, 0, 0, 21 -- 24

MENCHVILLE  - 0, 6, 0, 0 -- 6

First quarter

B – Vassilakopoulos 25 FG

Second quarter

M – Hairston 65 pass from Butts (kick failed)

Fourth quarter

B – Chisley 63 int return (Vassilakopoulos kick)

B – J. Hill 38 int return (Vassilakopoulos kick)

B – Gillis 2 run (Vassilakopoulos kick)

                    Beth   Mench

First downs;    12, 5

Rushes-yards;  37-144, 24- (-62)

Passing yards;   55, 130

Comp-att-int;   7-14-1, 6-23-3

Penalties-yards; 8-76, 9-65

Punts-avg;      5-22, 6-39

Fumbles-lost;   2-2, 1-1

The "Wall's" Peninsula Game of the Week #1 - Warhill Upsets Grafton 17-0 For First Win of Season

JAMES CITY - – The Warhill Lions ran to the left, right and through the center of a stunned Grafton defense to win their first game of the season, with an impressive 17-0 shutout of the favored Clippers.

With the win, Warhill moves to 1-5, while Grafton dropped to 4-3 and at least temporarily lost their fourth seed in the 4A East (Tidewater) rankings, dropping to sixth in the VHSL rankings released on Monday.

It was obvious from the early going that the Lions were going to focus on their two featured backs – Collin Bright and Bryce Koob. On Warhill’s first drive, an 11-play, 75 yard effort, Koob and Bright split eight carries, and Bright finished the drive with a six-yard sweep to the right for a touchdown.

After a pitch by Grafton was dropped and recovered by Warhill, Bright struck again. On the first play, from the Clipper 29, the senior back went right with the jet sweep, and Bright outran the Clipper defenders to the end zone for his second score.

Fletcher Whalen added a 23-yard field goal in the middle of the second quarter, and Warhill took a 17-0 lead into intermission. At the half, the Lions had carried 33 times for 218 yards with Bright (16-121, 2 TD’s) and Koob (14-80) shouldering the load. On defense, Warhill held Grafton to just 12 yards rushing on 12 carries in the first half.

The Lions defensive onslaught continued into the second half. For the game, Grafton rushed for only 35 yards on 21 carries, with a final total of 104 yards. Even the Clippers’ ace kicker, Reed King, had one field goal attempt blocked. For the game, Grafton also only completed three of 16 passes.

On the other side, Warhill ran the ball at will, totaling 362 yards on 66 carries. Bright finished with 176 yards on 29 carries, while Koob tallied 148 on 28.

GRAFTON –  0, 0, 0, 0 -- 0

WARHILL  - 14, 3, 0, 0 -- 17

First quarter

W – Bright 6 run (Whalen kick) 6:28

W – Bright 29 run (Whalen kick) 5:39

Second quarter

W – Whalen 23 FG

                    Gr   War

First downs;    6, 21

Rushes-yards;  21-35, 66-357

Passing yards;   69, 0

Comp-att-int;   3-16-2, 0-3-1

Penalties-yards; 5-58, 7-55

Punts-avg;      3-40, 0-0

Fumbles-lost;   1-1, 0-0