Stanley Smart’s touchdown run with 9:42 remaining Friday night provided fourth-ranked Benedictine with the last of four lead changes in a 30-27 victory over fifthranked Ware County inside Memorial Stadium.
Three of the lead changes came in a 1:13 stretch early in the fourth quarter as the Cadets (3-2 overall 1-0 Region 1AAAA) captured what may have been the region championship game against the Gators (5-1, 01).
“This was two great programs battling it out,” said Ware County head coach Jason Strickland. “I was proud of the defensive effort — they made play. I just can’t say enough about those guys.
“Offensively, injuries and sickness limited us as to what we could do. Our limited pieces dictated play calls and what we (coaches) felt comfortable with.”
Trailing 21-16 entering the final 12 minutes, BC scored on Smart’s (20 carries, 57 yards) first touchdown of the night, a one-yard plunge, capping a 13-play, 65-yard drive spanning the final 3:38 of the third quarter and first 1:05 of the fourth.
Smart, one of the top junior running backs in the nation, carried three times in the series with the touchdown coming with 10:55 to play for a 22-21 lead. Senior quarterback Stephen Cannon (15-of-26, 265 yards), a Texas Tech commit, completed 3-of-4 passes with the last covering 25 yards to Joshua Washington (three catches, 111 yards) to the Ware County one. Cannon’s pass on the twopoint conversion fell incomplete.
The lead lasted all of 17 seconds. Ja’Mario Rice returned the ensuing kick 97 yards streaking up the middle of the field before cutting back right on an angle to the front pylon on the Cadets’ side of the field. The touchdown giving the Gators a 27-22 lead was the third of the night for Rice (four catches, 83 yards), who hauled in scoring passes of 48 yards and 34 yards from quarterback Isaiah White (8-of-14, 142 yards).
Ware County opted for the two-point conversion. White’s pass to Tayshaun Franklin was batted away at the left front pylon by a BC defender.
The Cadets needed just three plays and 56 seconds for the final touchdown. Benedictine moved 80 yards wit the big play a 67-yard catch-and-run by Washington on a hitch route. Cannon hooked up with tight end Bennett Conaway on a bootleg left pass for the two-point conversion and a 30-27 lead with 9:42 remaining.
The Gators’ last scoring chance came on its final possession after the defensive unit forced a threeand- out.
With the ball resting at the Ware County 30 and 5:45 on the clock, White connected with Gunter Fore (two receptions, 44 yards) for a 41-yard gain on the first play moving the ball to the Cadets’ 29. A pass interference call on the next play against BC on a pass to Rice inside the 10 advanced the ball to the Benedictine 14.
Ware County would get no closer. Following a run by Franklin (11 carries, 25 yards) for no gain, an errant snap sailed past White for a loss of seven yards.
A third down pass fell incomplete when two Gator receivers collided. Jeffrey Gonzalez’s gametying 39-yard field goal attempt was pulled right of the upright leaving Ware County in a threepoint hole with 3:14 remaining.
Benedictine was able to run out the clock with the Gators out of timeouts.
“I can’t say enough about our defensive effort,” Strickland said. “They did everything they could to give us a chance to win. We limited their big horses, but the difference was Cannon’s legs (14 carries, 56 yards).
Ware County built its 21-16 halftime lead getting three touchdown passes from White. The second half was a different story as Benedictine controlled the tempo as multiple offensive weapons went down for the Gators.
“We went into halftime with one healthy wide receiver and both running backs (Jamir Boyd, Franklin) nicked up,” said Strickland. “Those two gutted it out in the second half. We (coaches) did everything we could with who we had.
“Defensively we played our guts out. We’ve got a lot of guys banged up that need evaluating. We’ll see who can play and who can’t next Thursday in Pooler (vs. New Hampstead). We’ve got a short week to get ready.”
Ware County ran just 14 plays over the final 24 minutes gaining 32 yards. Meanwhile, the Cadets snapped the ball 32 of their 67 plays in the final two periods gaining 191 yards and held a four minute time of possession advantage (14:03 to 9:57) in the second half.
Benedictine opened the game with a 13-play drive of 48 yards moving from its own 20 to the Gators’ 32 before stalling. Parker Lewis drilled a 49-yard field goal with room to spare capping the 5:31 possession and a 3-0 lead with 6:29 remaining in the opening period.
The Gators quickly responded in 2:11 driving 65 yards in five plays. After garnering a first down on 10-yard run by Franklin, Ware County faced thirdand-9 at the BC 48.
White found Rice on a drag route underneath the linebackers headed towards the Ware County sideline. Rice cut upfield and split two defenders cutting back inside and finishing the run untouched until near the goal line. The Gonzalez PAT gave the Gators a 7-3 lead with 4:18 on the first quarter clock.
The Cadets’ next possession looked very similar to their first moving from the BC 20 to the Ware County 31 before stalling. The 48-yard Lewis field goal attempt was wide left.
The Gators caught a huge break on the second play of the second period following a 54-yard punt by Gonzalez. The Cadets’ Smart was stripped of the ball with Masiyer McCoy pouncing on the pigskin at the Benedictine 10.
Facing third-and-11, White dropped a pass to Ja’Londi O’Hara, who toetapped his feet inside the boundary in the back of the end zone. Gonzalez was true with the PAT for a 14-3 advantage with 10:07 left in the half.
The 11-point margin was quickly sliced to four in 15 seconds when Eron Mallard sprinted 96 yards up the BC sideline for an answering touchdown. Lewis split the uprights closing the deficit to 14-10 with 9:52 showing on the clock.
Ware County followed with a six-play, 65-yard drive covering 2:49 to regain an 11-point advantage. The Gators overcame a holding penalty and was gifted a first down via an unsportsmanlike penalty against Benedictine after a fourth-and-13 stop.
With the ball resting at the Cadets’ 34, White lofted a pass on a corner route to Rice, who outjumped and outwrestled the ball away from a BC defender for the score. Gonzalez was true with the PAT for a 21-10 lead with 6:50 in the half.
After an exchange of punts over the next two series, Benedictine put together an 11-play, 95-yard possession eating up 3:30 off the clock. A 61-yard punt by Gonzalez flipped the field position against the Cadets.
BC picked up five first downs and never faced a third down play picking up 56 passing yards as Cannon went 5-for-5. The final one was a sixyard toss to Notre Dame commit Bubba Frazier (five receptions, 48 yards) with :48.7 left until intermission. Lewis doinked the PAT off the left upright leaving the score at 21-16.
