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Crusaders' Hopes Run Out

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By MATTHEW POSTINS, Tribune correspondent

Published: December 9, 2007

Updated: 12/09/2007 12:22 am

ORLANDO - Tampa Catholic's defense held out as long as it could against Madison County's potent running game.

But when Cowboys running back Chris Thompson took a pitch, found a crease up the gut of the Crusaders' defense and sprinted 56 yards for a touchdown late in the third quarter, he took Tampa Catholic's hopes of a state title with him.

Thompson's run gave the Cowboys (13-1) a two-touchdown lead and eventually a 28-7 Class 2A state championship game victory against the Crusaders at the Florida Citrus Bowl on Saturday night.

The Crusaders' first trip to a state championship game ended slowly as the No. 2 Cowboys took control of the contest late in the first half and never relented.

"Bottom line is against a wing-T team of that caliber we needed to jump up and make one more stop and maybe get up another score, and that would take them out of their comfort zone," Tampa Catholic coach Bob Henriquez said. "Once they got the lead, it's a slow death with that."

The Cowboys had a 14-7 lead entering the third quarter, but the Crusaders' defense was able to force two straight stops to keep it a one-score game. Even then, though, it seemed like a matter of time before the Cowboys broke the Crusaders (11-3).

At the end of the third quarter, it happened. Thompson took a pitch and started what looked like a sweep play to the right. But a crease opened up the middle of the Crusaders' defense and Thompson cut back. He accelerated through the hole for the touchdown, part of his 203 rushing yards on the night.

The slow death turned into a death blow as the Cowboys were able to run the football effectively and the Crusaders weren't. Madison County rushed for 386 yards and held the ball for more than 31 minutes. Tampa Catholic rushed for only 11 yards on 15 carries and held the ball for 16:53. The Crusaders had only 100 total yards for the game.

"I think that was the key thing, not being able to run the football," Crusaders quarterback Christian Green said.

Henriquez said he knew his offensive line was at a size disadvantage against a larger Madison County 3-4 defensive front. So he employed short passing routes in the flat to counter the Cowboys' desire to pack the middle and blitz Green.

For a while, it worked. The Crusaders used great field position, plus their own physical defense, which limited the Cowboys to 20 yards in the first quarter, to build a 7-0 lead early in the second quarter.

Green floated a fade pass to Joe Joiner in the corner of the end zone for a 7-yard touchdown with 11:18 left. At the time the play was controversial. The Cowboys defender hit the ball and Joiner made a great play to make the catch. But replays made it unclear if either of Joiner's feet were on the ground as he caught it going out of bounds.

"I'm not sure if he caught it or not," Henriquez said. "Thankfully there's no way to replay challenge in high school."

It didn't matter. The stop Henriquez believed the Crusaders needed on the next drive never came. Thompson dashed for a 49-yard touchdown run with 8:27 left in the half to tie the game. On their next possession, the Cowboys took the lead on Chris Akins' 45-yard touchdown run with 52 seconds left in the half.

And the slow death Henriquez feared began.

"The first quarter our defense showed up and did its work," Crusaders defensive end Marco Mendoza said. "We were doing great offensively, too. But it seemed as the game went on everything just dropped off."

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