GAME 12:  Sulligent 25, St. James 11

Scott Allman was quite the "devilish" workhorse, carrying the ball 40 times for 229 yards and 3 touchdowns, as he led the Sulligent Blue Devils to a second round 25 - 11 playoff victory over the homestanding St. James Trojans.

In a game where there was drizzle almost continuously through the game, with several pockets of wind and steady rain mixed in, the teams combined surprisingly for only four fumbles.  However, both fumbles St. James lost were promptly converted into touchdowns.  The Trojans got off to a quick start with Jake McMillan returning the opening kickoff 30 yards, but three rushes netted only 7 yards.  A penalty hindered Sulligent's opening drive, and they punted without a first down as well.  An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and a sack left the Trojans in a fourth and 26 which resulted in a short punt the Blue Devils gathered in at the Trojan 39.  Allman's 14 yard run on second down produced the initial first down of the game, and two plays later he carried for 16 yards down to the 3.  Two more runs of 2 and 1 yards had Sulligent on the scoreboard first.  Austin Brown's extra point gave Sulligent a 7 - 0 lead with less than four minutes remaining in the opening quarter.

St. James began moving the ball on the next drive, with Jason Smith leading off with a 12 yard run and later an 8 yard run for a second first down.  Fullback Michael Reid took a handoff up the middle for 26 yards.  Three plays later, St. James had first and goal on the Blue Devil 5.  However, a penalty, the change of quarters, and a loss on third down stopped the momentum of the drive, but Lee Hassell came in a drilled a 29 yard field goal to cut the lead to 7 - 3 early in the second quarter.

Just as the rain became heavier, the Trojans forced a fumble on the ensuing kickoff return and recovered on the Blue Devil 40.  However, a 12 yard run on fourth down which would have kept the drive alive was negated by a clipping penalty, and a delay of game penalty afterwards forced a punt into the endzone.

Sulligent again failed to move the ball, and the next punt was nearly blocked, although it managed to travel 45 yards despite being deflected.  On first down, a Devil stripped the wet ball from the Trojan ball carrier while being tackled after a nice 11 yard run, and Sulligent regained possession at its own 44.  They would capitalize, as Allman carried five straight times, for 4, 17, 5, minus 1, and 31 yards for the touchdown.  The extra point snap was bobbled and the kick failed, but the Blue Devils had a two-possession lead late in the second quarter.

The Trojans managed one first down, but decided to punt from midfield during the heaviest rain of the evening, allowing Sulligent to run out the first half clock.

St. James risked a surprising onside kick to start the second half, and was successful, recovering on the Devil 46.  However, on second down, one of the few passes attempted on the rainy night was intercepted by Brown at the 37.  From there, it took Sulligent only one play to increase the lead on the feet of Allman again.  His third touchdown, this one of 63 yards, was followed by another failed extra point kick, but the lead was suddenly 16, although still early in the third quarter.

The Trojans picked up two first downs on the next drive, but punted again into the endzone.  However, the defense stiffened, and four plays later the Sulligent punter bobbled his snap.  Despite nearly making a first down on a desperation run, St. James took possession at the Sulligent 27, and they took full advantage.  A six play drive featured a McMillan run of 5 yards sandwiched by Smith runs of 3, 6, 4, 5, and 4 for the touchdown.  Down by 10 points, the coaches called for a two point conversion, and Craig Bowman kept the ball on a wide sweep successfully for the two points.  The Trojans were down only 19 - 11, with 14 minutes remaining in the game.

Sulligent took over on their own 38, and decided to go on fourth and 1 from their own 47 after the previous punting debacle.  However, an offensive encroachment penalty, perhaps aided by generous noise from the Trojan sideline, forced a punt which Lee Hassell returned 19 yards on the first play of the fourth quarter.

Michael Reid's second big run of the night moved the ball down to the Devil 32, and Smith's 11 yard run two plays later had the Trojans threatening on the Sulligent 20.
However, two plays later, a fumbled snap was fallen upon by Sulligent.  On first down, the fresh legs of split end Brian Carter took the handoff on a 42 yard run and field position quickly changed.  St. James did force another fourth down and two later, but this time the Trojans were guilty of encroachment, giving Sulligent a free first down, and they did not waste the opportunity.  Two plays later, quarterback Brown called his own number for an 18 yard touchdown run.  After a penalty, Sulligent tried a two point conversion, which failed, but they were back up by a two touchdown margin with just over 5 minutes remaining.

A pooch kickoff was fallen on at the Trojan 37.  A 14 yard run by McMillan and the only completed pass (to a member of the same team) of the game, a 34 yard catch and run from Bowman to Reid, advanced the ball to the Devil 15 in less than 30 seconds.  However, a sack eventually led to a fourth down and 12, which was so nearly converted on a fine run by Hassell of 11 yards, but the ball was turned over at the 6 yard line with exactly 3 minutes remaining.  St. James had all three of their timeouts left, but the Blue Devils converted three first downs on their end of the field and were able to run out the clock with a road playoff victory, ending the Trojans' first season of more than 11 games in over a decade.

SIDELINE STATISTICS - GAME TWELVE

ST JAMES:      RUSHING:  54 carries  244 yards  1 TD  (4.52 yards per carry)

                          7   Smith         28 / 123   (1 TD)     35   Reid                4 / 41       19   McMillan       10 / 30
                          2   Bowman     10 /  19                   63   McIntyre         2 / 20       11   Hassell            1 / 11

                        PASSING:    1 completion   6 attempts  1 INT  34 yards  0 TDs   (1 sack, - 9 yards)

                          2   Bowman     1 - 5 - 1     34 yards   (1 sack, - 9 yards)
                          7   Smith          0 - 1 - 0

                        RECEIVING:

                        35   Reid            1 / 34

                        TOTAL YARDS:  259

                        KICKS:  XP  0 / 0                FG  1 / 1  (29 made)
                        2 POINT CONVERSIONS:  1 / 1

                        KICKOFFS:  3  (44,14,33)                       PUNTS:  5  (25,36,44,41,54)
                        KO RETURNS:  4  (30,17,21,0fc)            PUNT RETURNS:  1  (19)
                        FIRST DOWNS:  15  (14 rushing, 1 passing)
                        FUMBLES:   2, lost 2
                        TURNOVER MARGIN:  - 2
                        PENALTIES:   5 / 42
                        TIME OF POSSESSION:  27:30

SULLIGENT:   RUSHING   40 attempts  319 yards  4 TDs  (7.98 yards per carry)
                        PASSING      0 completions  1 attempt  0 INTs
                        TOTAL YARDS:  319                             
 
                        KICKS:  XP  1 / 3                FG  0 / 0
                        2 POINT CONVERSIONS:  0 / 1
                        KICKOFFS:  5 (52,44,46,39,28)                PUNTS:  3  (49,31,40)
                        KO RETURNS:  2  (24F,11)                     PUNT RETURNS:  0
                        INTERCEPTION RETURNS:  1 (0)
                        FIRST DOWNS:  9   (9 rushing)
                        FUMBLES:  2, lost 1
                        PENALTIES:  6 / 30 yards
                        TIME OF POSSESSION:  20:30