By BOB MILLER
Daily Herald Sports Editor
— Bellwood-Antis nearly turned an upset over backyard rival Tyrone on August 29, 1997. The Golden Eagles were forced to put together two final-quarter scoring drives to edge the Blue Devils 27-20 at Bellwood Memorial Stadium.
— Down 20-7 in the second quarter, #5 state-ranked Tyrone slowly came back scoring once in the waning moments of the first half and then twice in the fourth quarter, including the winning TD with just 21 seconds on the clock.
— B-A jumped out to a 6-0 advantage for coach John Hayes, when big senior lineman Vinnie Torsell scooped up a Tyrone fumble and rumbled 75 yards for the first score of the game with just under three minutes played in the opening quarter.
— On their next possession following the Torsell TD, the Blue Devils marched 68 yards for another score. Jeremy Guyer, who rushed for 80 yards on 16 carries had gains of 28 and 17 yards and Matt Miller completed a 10-yard pass connection to fullback Don Lingenfelter. Guyer punched it in from the two to make the score 12-0. Miller completed seven of 16 passes for 119 yards.
— Jamal Owens burst 53 yards for a TD to slice the B-A lead to 12-7 with Scott Gummo’s PAT, but the Blue Devils came right back to restore their two-TD lead.
— Jim Gwinn kicked B-A into overdrive with a 25-yard scamper on third down. Miller completed a 19-yard pass to Lingenfelter and Guyer scooted for a pickup of 12, before smashing in for the one-yard TD. Miller and Lingenfelter combined for the two-point conversion on a pass play to give B-A the lead 20-7.
— Tyrone closed to 20-14 at the half and it stayed that way until the Eagles scored twice in the final four minutes to win the contest.
— Opening the 1986 season at Gray Field, Bellwood-Antis held the Golden Eagle offense pretty much in check on August 29, except for one third-period play that turned the outcome of the game in TyroneÕs favor 7-0.
— On that play, Tyrone senior halfback Roger Branstetter, slipped out of several tackle attempts and scooted 40 yards for the only touchdown of the game to complete a six-play march for the Eagles. Tim Stringer booted the PAT to make the score 7-0 midway through the third quarter.
— B-A scatback Jack Dorminy led all runners with 88 yards on 20 carries, while Tyrone was led by fullback Harvey Norris with 64 yards on 22 carries and Branstetter added 60 on just four carries.
— Tyrone rolled to the BA-5 in the first quarter, but came away empty when Blue Devil Chris Moore smothered a fourth-down play for a five-yard loss and the Blue Devil defense took the ball away. Tyrone held Bellwood-Antis and moved right back down the field to the BA-13. This time, it was Bob Schmittle picking off a deflected Tyrone pass and racing 41 yards to get B-A out of a deep hole again.
— Following that steal, Dorminy led the Blue Devils to the T-10, but the Eagles stuffed that series with a Branstetter interception after five runs by Dorminy, including a 17-yarder that moved the pigskin to the 10-yard stripe.
— Bellwood-Antis crossed midfield three more times following the Branstetter TD, but could penetrate no closer than the Tyrone-25, where a costly holding penalty and three incomplete passes ended the most serious threat for John Hayes’ Blue Devils.
— Fresh from three straight successful seasons under coach Jim Gardner (8-3 in 1977, 8-3 in 1978 and 9-2 in 1979), new head coach John Hayes took over only a month before fall practice began at Bellwood in the Fall of 1980.
— Steve Walker, a slight 6-0, 160 pound junior answered the call by rushing for 128 yards on 17 carries in his first varsity start to lead Bellwood-Antis to a 14-9 win over Penns Valley on August 29, 1980.
— Walker scored what proved to be the winning margin with a clutch seven-yard touchdown burst on a fourth down and five to go call midway through the fourth quarter.
— Walker provided the offensive punch and Dave Clark, Dan Wolf and Doug Detterbeck spearheaded a defensive effort that kept the much-bigger Rams in check after a second-quarter scoring drive had given Penns Valley the early lead.
— Todd Bookhamer bulled in from a foot away to cap a 47-yard march the very first time the Blue Devils ran the ball and senior letterman Dave DiRoma booted both extra points.
— Penns Valley came right back on the next series following the B-A score, but Wolf led a defensive stand that denied the Rams the endzone on three straight cracks from inside the BA-5. Penns Valley did kick a 25-yard field goal on fourth down, but the momentum was definitely with the Blue Devils.
— Penns Valley tried to come back following Walker’s final quarter TD, but Jim Dorminy stole a Ram pass and sprinted 56 yards with the interception to stop a Ram threat. Then on the final possession of the game, Penns Valley surrendered the ball near midfield when Clark and Detterbeck dropped the Ram quarterback for a sack behind the line of scrimmage on a fourth down play.
Comentários