Hawks headed to state title game

Published: November 30, 2008

GRETNA — In a game that featured more than 1,000 yards of total offense, the outcome of Saturday’s Group A Division 2 semifinal was determined by a critical defensive stop.

With the defending state champion Gretna Hawks clinging to a 5-point lead in the final seconds, senior lineman D.J. Stone and junior linebacker Steven Payne dragged Essex quarterback Lyndon Garner down at the 11-yard line on fourth down with nine seconds remaining, preserving the Hawks’ dramatic 45-40 victory over the Trojans.

“We had to get to the ball as fast as we could,” Payne said. “That’s what we did.” 

Gretna (12-1) will play for its fourth state crown in six years when it faces Floyd County (13-0) next Saturday afternoon in Salem. Essex finished its season with an 12-1 record.

“It wasn’t pretty a lot today,” said Hawks coach Chris Thurman. “But when it counted, our kids rose up and made plays.”

The Trojans, who had erased a 19-point first half deficit to lead by seven before Gretna rallied in the fourth quarter, had one last chance to win when they recovered a fumble at their own 43-yard line with 4:10 remaining. Essex drove 42 yards on 10 plays and reached the Hawks’ 15 with 16 seconds to go.

Facing a fourth-and-10, Garner looked toward the end zone and, finding no one open, took off running. Stone and Payne converged in the middle of the field to make the stop. The Gretna offense took over and senior quarterback Jayme Barksdale took a knee, then raced toward the sideline with the ball in the air as time expired and his teammates poured onto the field.

“I just remember Coach (Thurman) saying, ‘this is your senior year, it’s your last time on this field, leave it all on the field,’ Stone said. “It was all or nothing; it was go hard or go home. And we’re not going home.”

For most of the first half, the Hawks played as if they wouldn’t need any last-minute heroics. On their opening drive, Barksdale carried four times for 67 yards, including a 2-yard touchdown run that put Gretna out in front at the 8:30 mark of the first quarter. The extra point attempt was blocked.

Moments later, Ted Jennings picked off a Garner pass and returned it 18 yards. On the ensuing play, the Hawks scored on an 8-yard run by Andre Dickerson. Gretna’s conversion run failed, leaving the score at 12-0.

The Hawks struggled all afternoon on PAT conversions, going just 3-for-7. Two kicks were blocked and two run attempts failed.

Essex got on the board when Garner found Devante Baker down the left sideline for a 67-yard touchdown pass with 5:19 remaining in the opening period.
Following a 4-yard touchdown run by Barksdale, Garner and Danzell Gaines hooked up for a 32-yard scoring strike that pulled the Trojans within 19-14.

Gretna answered on the ensuing kickoff. Dickerson caught the ball on his own 11, raced toward the left sideline, found a hole in the coverage and scampered 89 yards for a score that gave the Hawks a 12-point advantage.

With just over five minutes remaining before halftime, Barksdale connected with Jennings on a 40-yard touchdown pass that gave Gretna its largest lead of the afternoon, 33-14. But Essex scored twice in the next four minutes to pull within six points before halftime. Mequel Phillips found the end zone from six yards out and Chuck Samuel broke free on a 48-yard scoring run.

The Trojans went ahead for the first time on Samuel’s 27-yard run at the 5:41 mark of the third quarter. Then, on its next possession, Essex extended its lead to 40-33 on a 4-yard run by Garner. The Hawks blocked the extra-point attempt to stay within seven points.

As the period wound down, Thurman gambled on a fourth-and-three from his own 40. Barksdale drove up the middle for a 17-yard gain, and on the next play, he hit Commillious Waller with a 43-yard scoring pass. The extra point drifted wide to the right, leaving the Trojans with a 40-39 edge.

“We needed momentum at that time in the game,” Thurman said of the fourth-down call, “and I was willing to give up that field position to try to get the momentum back. Football’s a game of momentum, and when you don’t have it, you have to gamble sometimes to get it back. And that’s really what I was thinking.”

Barksdale put Gretna ahead to stay, racing 42 yards down the left sideline to make it 45-40 with 9:24 on the clock.

Barksdale compiled 400 yards of offense on Saturday, rushing 21 times for 183 yards and three touchdowns while completing 8-of-15 passes for 217 yards and two scores. Through 13 games, he has accounted for 3,570 yards and 51 touchdowns overall.

Essex and Gretna combined for 1,048 yards of offense. The Trojans finished with 579 yards, including 320 on the ground, while Gretna produced 469 yards.

“I don’t ever doubt my kids,” Thurman said. “I know if they can figure out a way to win, they’ll do it. As far as close games (go), if you get to this time of year, you’re going to play the best teams in the state, and that is for sure one of them right down there.”