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Chiefs Rally To Beat Indians

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By NICK WILLIAMS

The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 4, 2008

Updated: 10/04/2008 12:36 am

GIBSONTON - At the half, Chamberlain's offense had yet to find the end zone and had recorded two first downs and 69 total yards, boosted by a 45-yard pass as time expired.

Its defense was frustrated, stranded on the field as East Bay's rushing attack used up 19 minutes of clock to set up two field goals.

Chamberlain made the necessary adjustments, however, and scored 21 unanswered points in the second half to beat East Bay 21-6.

The Chiefs (5-0) scored on the second play of the second half when senior running back Kenny Allen burst through a cluster of players for a 59-yard run, and never looked back. Allen finished with 136 yards off seven carries and one fumble while senior quarterback Dontae Aycock threw for 110 yards with two touchdowns, both to senior Anthony Williams, on plays of 40 and 18 yards.

"We couldn't come out in the second half like we did in the first half," said Aycock, who also rushed for 59 yards on 11 carries. "We just had to erase everything from our minds and go into the second half with a clear head."

East Bay (3-2) appeared on its way to an upset after controlling the ball and stopping Chamberlain's offense in the first half. The Indians used a 15-play, 11 minute, 30 second drive starting in the first quarter and carrying into the second to set up a 45-yard field goal by Forrest Meredith. After a 40-yard interception return by senior D.J. Allen, East Bay went on a four minute, 10-play drive, highlighted by an 18-yard fake punt pass from fullback Chaz Burrows to Jordan Archie, to set up another field goal by Meredith for a 6-0 lead.

"We knew it was going to be a story of two halves," East Bay coach Brian Thornton said. "The only reason we knew we had that six-point lead was because our offense controlled the ball. We had the 19 minutes to their five minutes. We couldn't move the ball in the first half like we did in the second half."

Chamberlain's defense figured out how to stop East Bay's option and pitch plays and along with a few false starts on offense, which turned third-and-short opportunities to third-and-long, the Indians were unable to find the red zone again. It held Burrows, one of the area's leading rushers, to 37 yards on 12 carries.

"We had nine guys playing run and we didn't respect their pass at all," Chamberlain coach Billy Turner said. "In the first half, we didn't do the assignments as good as we did in the second half. In the second half, we flew to where we needed to be every single time."

East Bay sophomore quarterback Fred Porter finished with 30 yards rushing off nine carries and completed two passes for 21 yards.

E - FG Meredith 25

C - Allen 59 run (Pullaro kick)

C - A.Williams 40 pass from Aycock (Pullaro kick)

C - A.Williams 18 pass from Aycock (Pullaro kick)

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