|
|||||||||||||
Printer-Friendly
Email this Story
Post a Comment (0)
Panthers complete W.Va. football sweep
Click for a look at Potomac Falls' season so far: Is this the year of the Panther?
The Potomac Falls Panthers were the big cats on a damp, humid Friday night in Sterling, defeating the Jefferson County (W.Va.) Cougars 31-14 to complete their early-season sweep of Eastern Panhandle schools and run their record to 3-0.
Potomac Falls used a steady diet of Michael Baker runs, and the right arm and both legs of quarterback Gregory Woodlief, to carry a 24-0 advantage into halftime.
"The offensive line is doing a great job of not only protection, but of plowing off the ball and creating running space," Baker said.
His quarterback agreed.
"I think they [offensive line] take pride in what they do this year," Woodlief said. "We didn't have that last year. I think that's just going to take us to another level."
Woodlief, who also served as punter, defensive back and punt returner in his spare time, completed 8 of 12 passes for 90 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. He also ran for 94 yards, providing the home side's first touchdown with a pretty run in which he faked a hand-off to Baker, sprinted off right tackle, shed the arms of a defender and did a tiptoe dance down the sideline for the last 15 yards of a 29-yard score.
Baker amassed 150 yards on 16 carries, ripping off three scampers of 29 yards or more, and failing to make the line of scrimmage just once. He found the end zone twice: Once on a five-yard burst up the middle and again three minutes later, accepting a sideline pass from Woodlief and dropping a defender to his knees with a fancy move before scooting 15 yards to paydirt.
Chad McMichael caught four passes for 38 yards and a touchdown. Chris Pelto gained 31 yards on two receptions.
Though he was shut out in the receiving column, Tarrell Owens made several key downfield blocks to add to Baker's long runs.
"The receivers are doing a great job blocking down the field, setting up the big runs," Baker praised.
Woodlief grinned.
"The receivers have to do up-downs for not blocking," he said, referring to a particularly distasteful practice drill.
The game was won in the first half, as the Panther defense gang-tackled Jefferson ballcarriers to limit the Cougars to 68 yards of offense before halftime. Jefferson's big, athletic quarterback, Brandon Hyler, completed one pass to a teammate and one pass to an opponent (Woodlief) in six first-half attempts.
"Heck of a job," Potomac Falls coach Scott Woodlief said of his defense's pursuit to the football. "It was just an overall team effort."
After halftime, Hyler came out of the locker room throwing, going 9 of 15 for 138 yards and a touchdown in the game's final 24 minutes. He also got loose for a bulldozing 43-yard run in the third quarter to wipe the Cougars' goose egg off the scoreboard. Hyler finished with 114 yards on the ground.
"We tried to blitz to his face. We sent some stuff on the outside to where we thought he was going to throw the football," said Scott Woodlief, mentioning that his staff had studied Hyler's tendencies and noticed that much of his success on the ground was in running to his left. "He's a great runner."
After a bye week, Potomac Falls will welcome another 3-0 squad, the Heritage Pride, to Panther Stadium for both teams' Dulles District opener Sept. 26.
You must be logged in to post a comment.