pirate4state
12-20-2008, 02:09 AM
Carthage 3A's top 'Dogs
Bulldogs capture first state crown, 49-37, over Celina
By GABRIEL D. BROOKS
Saturday, December 20, 2008
IRVING — With the Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor looming above them in the final high school football game in Texas Stadium history, the Carthage Bulldogs did their best impression of Cowboy legend Don Meredith. They turned out the lights on Celina's championship party.
Carthage roared back from a halftime deficit, scoring 35 second-half points to defeat the Bobcats, 49-37, and claim its first football state championship in school history.
http://img.coxnewsweb.com/B/00/62/98/image_8098620.jpg
Kevin Green/News-Journal Photo
Carthage's Dwight Smith hoists the Class 3A Division II state championship trophy after the Bulldogs beat Celina 49-37 Friday at Texas Stadium in Irving. Smith rushed for 271 yards and scored five touchdowns for the Bulldogs.
Carthage running back Dwight Smith secured his Bulldog legacy, rushing 25 times for 271 yards and five touchdowns. Smith's 90-yard, fourth-quarter score put Carthage ahead 42-25 with eight minutes remaining and epitomized his season-long penchant for big plays. Smith scored on runs of 3, 50, 25, 9 and 90, finishing the season with 2,820 yards and 43 touchdowns, both school records.
The Carthage win prevented Celina from winning its Texas-record ninth state title and eighth since 1995.
Carthage's passing game provided the exclamation point. Quarterback Si'Darius Blackshire hit tight end Trevor Murphy for a 54-yard touchdown on third-and-11 with 2:38 left in the game. Blackshire was 7-for-9 for 158 yards and a score, and also ran for a touchdown. He finished his senior year as the most prolific quarterback in Carthage history, throwing for 5,187 yards and 68 touchdowns during the past two seasons.
Although Carthage's offense provided the game-breaking punch it has all season, the Bulldogs' defense bent but managed to not break most of the game, forcing two big turnovers and stopping Celina just enough to give the Carthage offense the opportunities it needed. Sophomore linebacker Kendall Thompson was dominant, recording two sacks and four tackles for loss. He also broke up a two-point conversion play late in the game.
Linebacker Kyle Deaton snagged an interception, and cornerback Jarvin Robinson jumped on a back-breaking Celina fumble late in the third. The turnover gave Carthage a short field, starting at Celina's 33-yard line.
Facing a third-and-12 on the Bobcat 35, Carthage dialed up a trick play that left Celina reeling. Blackshire hit receiver Joe Jones in the right flat before Jones threw back across the field to Blackshire, who followed a four-man wall of blockers 34 yards down the Carthage sideline to the 1. Two plays later Blackshire scored on a sneak, giving the Bulldogs a two-score lead at 35-25 with 35 seconds left in the third.
Carthage's defense pinned its ears back on the ensuing Celina possession, forcing a fourth-and-17 punt that the Bobcats killed at Carthage's 4-yard line. On second-and-4, Smith broke up the middle and ran away from Celina's secondary, giving Carthage fans the snapshot of a 90-yard, title-clinching sprint.
Murphy caught two passes for 73 yards and the score, while Robinson had two grabs for 45 yards and another run-game obliteration of a cornerback on one of Smith's touchdown runs.
Leading by three scores, Carthage's defense dropped into an umbrella and forced the Bobcats to throw the ball. Although Celina scored two more times, it drained precious clock doing so and couldn't match Carthage's big-play offense.
Carthage linebacker Caleb Pope had a sack, and defensive tackle DeShun Williams wreaked havoc all night long. Williams had several quarterback pressures, stuffed the inside running lanes and forced Celina to run off tackle.
Celina's Troy McCartney did that well, assembling a valiant effort in the loss. McCartney had 26 carries for 220 yards and four touchdowns and grabbed a touchdown pass.
Carthage outgained Celina 455-436 despite the Bobcats claiming a 56-41 advantage in offensive plays. Celina's first-half ball control kept Carthage off the field and rewarded the Bobcats with a 38-16 advantage in offensive plays and an 18-14 halftime lead.
A seven and a half-minute drive gave Celina a 3-0 lead through one quarter, but Carthage responded with a 63-yard drive as Smith capped the possession with a three-yard score for a 7-3 Bulldog lead barely a minute into the second.
Deaton intercepted Celina quarterback Cody Worrell on the next possession to give Carthage the ball. On fourth-and-1 from midfield, Blackshire faked a fullback dive and pitched wide left to Smith, who stiff-armed a defender to the ground in the backfield and turned on the jets, beating five Celina defenders with good angles down the sideline for a 50-yard touchdown. Carthage took a 14-3 lead and all the momentum with 7:01 left in the first half.
The ensuing Celina possession ended in controversy. The Bobcats drove 65 yards as McCartney dove for a four-yard score, but lost the ball in the air and Carthage recovered in the end zone. The two officials closest to the ball did not make an immediate ruling, but the referee on the opposite sideline called touchdown. A brief discussion resulted in a Celina touchdown, and the Bobcats added a two-point, swinging-gate conversion to cut the Bulldogs' lead to 14-11 with 3:30 left in the first half.
Carthage started its next possession with a short field and quickly moved the ball inside Celina's 40-yard line, but Smith was stripped from behind. Celina's Jose Romero jumped on the ball, setting up the Bobcats' 69-yard, go-ahead scoring drive.
On fourth-and-inches from the Carthage 4, Worrell rolled right, ran out of real estate, thought a split-second about running, then threw back to a wide open McCartney in the end zone with no time left, pushing Celina ahead 18-14 at halftime.
LINK (http://www.news-journal.com/sports/content/sports/stories/2008/12/20/12202008_carthagefootball.html)
Bulldogs capture first state crown, 49-37, over Celina
By GABRIEL D. BROOKS
Saturday, December 20, 2008
IRVING — With the Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor looming above them in the final high school football game in Texas Stadium history, the Carthage Bulldogs did their best impression of Cowboy legend Don Meredith. They turned out the lights on Celina's championship party.
Carthage roared back from a halftime deficit, scoring 35 second-half points to defeat the Bobcats, 49-37, and claim its first football state championship in school history.
http://img.coxnewsweb.com/B/00/62/98/image_8098620.jpg
Kevin Green/News-Journal Photo
Carthage's Dwight Smith hoists the Class 3A Division II state championship trophy after the Bulldogs beat Celina 49-37 Friday at Texas Stadium in Irving. Smith rushed for 271 yards and scored five touchdowns for the Bulldogs.
Carthage running back Dwight Smith secured his Bulldog legacy, rushing 25 times for 271 yards and five touchdowns. Smith's 90-yard, fourth-quarter score put Carthage ahead 42-25 with eight minutes remaining and epitomized his season-long penchant for big plays. Smith scored on runs of 3, 50, 25, 9 and 90, finishing the season with 2,820 yards and 43 touchdowns, both school records.
The Carthage win prevented Celina from winning its Texas-record ninth state title and eighth since 1995.
Carthage's passing game provided the exclamation point. Quarterback Si'Darius Blackshire hit tight end Trevor Murphy for a 54-yard touchdown on third-and-11 with 2:38 left in the game. Blackshire was 7-for-9 for 158 yards and a score, and also ran for a touchdown. He finished his senior year as the most prolific quarterback in Carthage history, throwing for 5,187 yards and 68 touchdowns during the past two seasons.
Although Carthage's offense provided the game-breaking punch it has all season, the Bulldogs' defense bent but managed to not break most of the game, forcing two big turnovers and stopping Celina just enough to give the Carthage offense the opportunities it needed. Sophomore linebacker Kendall Thompson was dominant, recording two sacks and four tackles for loss. He also broke up a two-point conversion play late in the game.
Linebacker Kyle Deaton snagged an interception, and cornerback Jarvin Robinson jumped on a back-breaking Celina fumble late in the third. The turnover gave Carthage a short field, starting at Celina's 33-yard line.
Facing a third-and-12 on the Bobcat 35, Carthage dialed up a trick play that left Celina reeling. Blackshire hit receiver Joe Jones in the right flat before Jones threw back across the field to Blackshire, who followed a four-man wall of blockers 34 yards down the Carthage sideline to the 1. Two plays later Blackshire scored on a sneak, giving the Bulldogs a two-score lead at 35-25 with 35 seconds left in the third.
Carthage's defense pinned its ears back on the ensuing Celina possession, forcing a fourth-and-17 punt that the Bobcats killed at Carthage's 4-yard line. On second-and-4, Smith broke up the middle and ran away from Celina's secondary, giving Carthage fans the snapshot of a 90-yard, title-clinching sprint.
Murphy caught two passes for 73 yards and the score, while Robinson had two grabs for 45 yards and another run-game obliteration of a cornerback on one of Smith's touchdown runs.
Leading by three scores, Carthage's defense dropped into an umbrella and forced the Bobcats to throw the ball. Although Celina scored two more times, it drained precious clock doing so and couldn't match Carthage's big-play offense.
Carthage linebacker Caleb Pope had a sack, and defensive tackle DeShun Williams wreaked havoc all night long. Williams had several quarterback pressures, stuffed the inside running lanes and forced Celina to run off tackle.
Celina's Troy McCartney did that well, assembling a valiant effort in the loss. McCartney had 26 carries for 220 yards and four touchdowns and grabbed a touchdown pass.
Carthage outgained Celina 455-436 despite the Bobcats claiming a 56-41 advantage in offensive plays. Celina's first-half ball control kept Carthage off the field and rewarded the Bobcats with a 38-16 advantage in offensive plays and an 18-14 halftime lead.
A seven and a half-minute drive gave Celina a 3-0 lead through one quarter, but Carthage responded with a 63-yard drive as Smith capped the possession with a three-yard score for a 7-3 Bulldog lead barely a minute into the second.
Deaton intercepted Celina quarterback Cody Worrell on the next possession to give Carthage the ball. On fourth-and-1 from midfield, Blackshire faked a fullback dive and pitched wide left to Smith, who stiff-armed a defender to the ground in the backfield and turned on the jets, beating five Celina defenders with good angles down the sideline for a 50-yard touchdown. Carthage took a 14-3 lead and all the momentum with 7:01 left in the first half.
The ensuing Celina possession ended in controversy. The Bobcats drove 65 yards as McCartney dove for a four-yard score, but lost the ball in the air and Carthage recovered in the end zone. The two officials closest to the ball did not make an immediate ruling, but the referee on the opposite sideline called touchdown. A brief discussion resulted in a Celina touchdown, and the Bobcats added a two-point, swinging-gate conversion to cut the Bulldogs' lead to 14-11 with 3:30 left in the first half.
Carthage started its next possession with a short field and quickly moved the ball inside Celina's 40-yard line, but Smith was stripped from behind. Celina's Jose Romero jumped on the ball, setting up the Bobcats' 69-yard, go-ahead scoring drive.
On fourth-and-inches from the Carthage 4, Worrell rolled right, ran out of real estate, thought a split-second about running, then threw back to a wide open McCartney in the end zone with no time left, pushing Celina ahead 18-14 at halftime.
LINK (http://www.news-journal.com/sports/content/sports/stories/2008/12/20/12202008_carthagefootball.html)