AISA: Edgewood shocks Macon East
Edgewood’s Gabe LeMaster fights off the tackle of Jacob Wilson in the Wildcats’ win over Macon East on Thursday. (Tim Gayle)
By TIM GAYLE
CECIL -- When the Macon East Academy offense methodically drove down the field for the first lead in the game, then forced a punt on Edgewood’s next possession midway through the fourth quarter, it was a script the Wildcats knew all too well.
But in an injury-plagued season that has had more disappointments than rewards, the Wildcats came up with a defensive stop of their own and followed up with a late touchdown to edge the Knights 35-34 in a hotly contested region matchup at Macon East Academy on Thursday night.
“We could’ve folded up, said we played hard, tip our hats and let’s go play next week,” Edgewood coach Chad Michael said. “But we’ve got a great senior group. They believed what we were doing. We probably had seven guys that didn’t come off the field tonight, playing offense and defense, but they were awesome that last drive. They found a little extra.”
The last drive he was referring to was an 85-yard drive in which the Wildcats converted a third-and-20 play with a 60-yard pass from Austin Champion to Gabe LeMaster. Four plays later, Champion scrambled up the right side of the field for 16 yards and a touchdown with 31 seconds left to put the Wildcats back on top.
“He made a great read there,” Michael said. “We were trying to single up Gabe there and get him on a slant and go. They played (LeMaster) over the top (with a safety) really well. It gave (Champion) a chance to get out of the pocket. It was a senior making a play.”
Champion was 14 of 23 for 282 yards, throwing six passes to Bradley Boone for 103 yards in the first half and five passes to LeMaster for 154 yards in the second half, but Edgewood’s final touchdown was accomplished by his feet.
“The safety dropped over the top,” Champion said. “Gabe, he tried to get free, he’s been doing great all night but the safety dropped over the top and I saw the grass, so I just ran.”
A stunned Macon East squad paused briefly to collect themselves, then started a march of their own. Gabe Spencer’s 44-yard kickoff return and a quick pass from Deonte Powell to Brandon Wilkins put the ball on the Edgewood 37 as the seconds ticked off the clock. Powell clocked the ball to stop the clock, then launched a Hail Mary to the end zone.
“Me and Sanders Manning both went up for it and we both tipped it up and one of their guys caught it in the back of the end zone,” Champion said. “That sucked for sure, but luckily we still came out on top.”
The ball fell into Thaddeus McKinney’s hands for a touchdown as time expired, setting off a brief but exuberant celebration among the Knights in the end zone. Officials responded by issuing two penalties against the Knights, naming two players who removed their helmets in the celebration.
“You don’t make that call, no matter what, in a ballgame,” Macon East coach Glynn Lott said. “If you want to be the center of attention, you don’t referee.”
Now with the ball spotted 30 yards up the field, Macon East had no choice but to try a two-point conversion. This time, Champion intercepted Powell’s heave.
“You never want to see a game end that way,” Michael said. “I feel for them. You don’t want to see a hard-fought game end like that, but the referees thought that was what they needed to call.”
The game was a bitter disappointment for a Macon East squad that had only lost one game -- to AAA power Lee-Scott -- this season but a nice rebound for an Edgewood team that had struggled through disappointments with injuries hampering its offense and a defense that has struggled at times.
“We met on Sunday and challenged our guys,” Michael said. “If you believe in the plan, if you believe the work you’re going to put in this week, we’ll win this game. They believed in each other, they believed in the plan. I’m super proud of our guys for beating Macon East because they are such a great team, so well coached, very talented.”
It started with a deliberate offensive attack that worked the clock between plays, holding Macon East to just eight offensive possessions in the game in an effort to keep its defense from being exposed.
“They wanted to shorten the game and they did,” Lott said. “We had it three times in the first half. It took us out of rhythm a little bit, but it makes you put a little pressure on yourself. You feel like you’ve got to do a little more, but we never made a (defensive) stop.
“They didn’t do one thing different. They played their game, lined up and whipped us. We couldn’t cover.”
Macon East’s defense struggled with inconsistency all night, allowing the Wildcats to convert 8 of 10 third-down plays into first downs. Six of those conversions came on third and six or longer.
“We don’t trust our keys,” Lott said. “That’s what I told them, we don’t trust what we do.”
Despite the defensive breakdowns, the Knights fought back and grabbed the lead with 8:10 remaining on a 2-yard run by Gabe Spencer, who finished the night with 194 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries. Dalton Nickles added the extra point for a 28-27 lead.
After forcing a Wildcat punt, the Knights marched to the Wildcat 16-yard line with three minutes remaining. Forcing fourth and two, Spencer was stopped a yard short by Wes Reeves to set up the Wildcats’ game-winning drive.
“Coach Michael studies film a lot,” Champion said. “He came up with a great game plan and we went out there and trusted in the game plan and executed it. This was the best (win) of the year, for sure. We played hard, everybody did their jobs, we executed and came out on top.”
Defensively for Edgewood, Bryson Boone and Michael McLing each had eight tackles, followed by Brock Whitt, Reeves and Parker Shaw with six each.
Dalton Nickles led Macon East with 14 tackles.
Edgewood (3-4) suddenly went from fighting for a playoff spot to hosting a first-round game, provided the Wildcats can win next week’s region game at home against Hooper.
“This is a big region game, obviously,” Champion said. “We have Hooper at home and that’ll be our last region game, so hopefully with this momentum we can go in there and take care of business with them, get a good seed in the playoffs and hopefully make a run.”
Chambers leads the region at 3-0, followed by Edgewood at 2-1, Macon East at 1-1, Abbeville Christian at 1-2 and Hooper at 0-2.
“It’s a region game so it’s a huge game for us, no matter who it is,” Michael said. “But to see our guys, what they’ve gone through this year …. these guys deserved it, for the hard work they’ve put in. They deserved the ball to bounce their way once.”
Macon East (5-2) will remain home next week against Chambers.