... |
2007
Chenango Forks Varsity Football
Game
12 vs Geneva
Blue Devils
defeat Geneva 14-13!
A nail biter like last year,
'cept this time CF moves on!
     
     
Articles courtesy of the
Binghamton Press &
Sun-Bulletin
Place mouse over photos to
read captions
Photo credits - none
Blocked PAT carries Forks
DuBois' big play puts Blue Devils in title
game
By Kevin Stevens
Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin
ROCHESTER -- Another crisp autumn weekend, another heap
of huge defensive contributions. This time, they added
up to another Chenango Forks appearance in a state
championship football game.
Telltale play of the afternoon at PAETEC Park? Oh, Jud
DuBois' block of a conversion kick with 8:15 remaining
would merit strong consideration, given that neither
side produced a point thereafter in the Blue Devils'
14-13 Class B semifinal victory over Geneva.
The decisive point, in fact, was the doing of Rob
Lumsden on successful PAT conversion following Joe
Aston's 3-yard rush for a score midway through the third
quarter. That made it 14-7 -- with a plethora of
gasp-a-minute football to follow.
On Geneva's first play from scrimmage after that TD,
defensive end Clint Cade went airborne to bat a pass
from Panthers quarterback Bobby Martin near the line of
scrimmage and set up an interception by sophomore
teammate Andrew Lewis to give the Devils possession at
Geneva's 39-yard line.
That Forks possession went nowhere and Geneva (9-3) took
over following a punt at its 17-yard line. Fifteen
plays, two penalties apiece and 4:50 later, Martin was
in the end zone on the tail end of a 10-yard option
keeper. The defending state champions were within 14-13.
The teams aligned for the extra-point try, Geneva's
Deanzae Williams assigned kicking chores.
"The first time they scored a touchdown, we had a scheme
where somebody was coming inside me and outside me, and
I almost got to it and blocked it," said DuBois, a
5-foot-10, 228-pound senior. "So next time I told our
linebacker, Shane Baron, 'You come hard, I'm going to
come through and get this one.'
"I just got there."
And so Forks had the break it needed, and set up
offensive shop after Tim Zdimal's 20-yard kickoff return
at its 24-yard line. Eight minutes, 10 seconds and a
very sound Geneva team stood between the Devils and
their sixth title-game berth in a seven-year stretch.
All went smoothly as Forks advanced the ball 46 yards on
nine plays. Then came a procedure penalty, moments later
a holding penalty, and a play after that a holding
penalty declined. That's when Forks punted from the
Panthers' 44-yard line, the football hopping across the
goal line.
Geneva had possession at the 20 with 74 seconds
remaining. That's right, Geneva, the same program that
bounced Forks at this stage a season ago with a
final-minute TD.
Back-to-back-to-back first-downs pickups had the
Panthers at Forks' 43-yard line. After Martin spiked the
football on second down from the 36, he completed
successive passes to Shamar Bridges to set up
second-and-2 at Forks' 18. Nineteen seconds remained.
On second down, after a teammate pressured Martin out of
his comfort zone, Cade lunged and took out his legs for
a 6-yard loss. On third down, DuBois and Tom Voorhis
harassed Martin across the sideline for a 2-yard loss.
Forks' season came down to a stop on fourth-and-10,
Geneva in possession at the Devils' 25-yard line. Four
seconds remained.
Martin took the snap in shotgun formation, looked to
pass, saw nothing but down-comforter Forks coverage in
the secondary, and took off on a sprint.
"All I could see was that kid keep cutting back and I
was like, 'Oh, you've got to be kidding me,' " Devils
coach Kelsey Green said.
Martin ran right, reversed field inside with a friend or
two providing resistance in the vicinity. But, at the
8-yard line, there was Forks sophomore D.J. Smith to
smack the ball carrier and bring him down in a solo
effort to prolong Forks' postseason.
Next up, a meeting against top-ranked and unbeaten Rye,
a 24-7 winner over Peru in the other semifinal, at 6
p.m. next Sunday in the Carrier Dome.
"At first, it was just scary that they kept completing
passes, getting yards, getting out of bounds and
stopping the clock," Cade said of Geneva's closing
drive. "It was just amazing how we were able to pull
together at the end and stop them."
"I think the word to describe that would be
perseverance," DuBois said. "We've been here before,
been in so many close games. We were calm, cool and
collected, kept playing football."
Forks' scores came on drives of 71 and 74 yards,
respectively, to open each half.
The first featured rushing gains of 13 and 21 yards by
Aston on the way to Jake Reynolds' 1-yard quarterback
sneak. The biggest chunk of yards picked up on the
second was an 18-yard Reynolds-to-Cade pass that
advanced the ball to Geneva's 17-yard line. Three plays
later, Aston -- despite a would-be tackler crashing in
at knee-level -- lunged across the goal line to complete
a 3-yard TD rush.
Perhaps as significant as any of it was a defensive
stand that concluded 62 seconds before halftime with
Garret Cade breaking up a fourth-down pass intended for
Jeremiah Allen in the middle of the field at the goal
line. That came a play after Voorhis leveled Martin
while in the act of passing, creating an incompletion.
Allen, rusher of 300-plus yards in two of his previous
three games, picked up 102 on 21 carries.
So, back for a 13th week of football go the unbeaten
Blue Devils. Why?
"It's quality kids," Green said. "We've been blessed
with them for a long time at Forks, and we've got them
again."
Geneva falls just short of victory
James Johnson
Rochester Democrat & Chronicle
(November 18, 2007) ? The Geneva Panthers were headed to
another win Saturday that would have stunned Chenango
Forks when the Blue Devils tackled any chance of a
repeat.
Junior quarterback Bobby Martin completed three passes
to help Geneva move to the Chenango Forks 23-yard line
late in the fourth quarter of the Class B football state
semifinal.
Martin took off on a sprint for the potential winning
score but was tackled short of the end zone, as Chenango
Forks held off Geneva to win 14-13 at PAETEC Park.
"It couldn't have gotten any more exciting," said
6-foot, 5-inch Chenango Fork receiver/defensive back
Garret Cade. "We lost to these guys with 19 seconds left
last year.
"It's great to come back here and beat them. We missed a
couple of tackles in that (2006) game. That's what it
came down to."
The Panthers went on to become state champions after
they edged Chenango Forks 26-21 during last year's state
semifinals.
This time, Chenango Forks (12-0) led 14-7 through three
quarters after short touchdown runs by Jake Reynolds and
Joe Aston, who finished with 106 yards on 23 carries.
Martin scored on a 10-yard run with 8:15 remaining to
cap a 15-play, 83-yard drive to cut the Chenango Forks
lead to one point. The Blue Devils held on to their
advantage when Jud Dubois blocked Deanzae Williams'
conversion kick attempt.
"They're one of the best programs in New York," Geneva
lineman Mike Raplee said. "They capitalized on all our
mistakes."
Chenango Forks also kept Geneva senior running back
Jeremiah Allen, who gained 102 yards on 21 carries, out
of the end zone. Allen gained 811 yards in the previous
three games.
Tyler Travis, a junior, scored the first touchdown for
Geneva (9-3) late in the first quarter.
"(No one) expected us to get back here," said Geneva
coach Dave Whitcomb
Place mouse over photos to
read captions
Photo credits - None
|
|
01 |
02 |
03 |
04 |
|
Tot |
Chenango Forks |
7 |
0 |
7 |
0 |
- |
14 |
Geneva |
7 |
0 |
0 |
6 |
- |
13 |
- CF - Jake Reynolds 1 run (Rob Lumsden kick)
- G - Tyler Travis 5 run (Deanzae Williams kick)
- CF - Joe Aston 3 run (Lumsden kick)
- G - Bobby Martin 10 run (kick blocked)
TEAM STATISTICS
Note:
Click here for enhanced stats from the NYSPHSAA
|
Geneva |
CF |
First Downs |
17 |
14 |
Rushes-Yards |
35-165 |
47-180 |
Passing Yards
Net |
69 |
77 |
Comp-Att-Int |
7-13-1 |
5-9-0 |
Total
Offense |
48-234 |
56-257 |
Punts-Ave yards |
2-31.5 |
2-31.5 |
Fumbles-Lost |
1-0 |
1-1 |
Penalties-Yards |
4-30 |
7-70 |
|
|
|
. |
INDIVIDUAL
STATISTICS
Geneva
rushing
- Jeremiah Allen 21-102
- Bobby Martin 7-45, 1 TD
- Tyler Travis 7-18, 1 TD
Chenango Forks
rushing
- Joe Aston 23-106, 1 TD
- Nick Stephens 12-40
- Tim Zdimal 5-21
- Jake Reynolds 7-13, 1 TD
Geneva
passing
- Bobby Martin: 7-for-13, 85y, 1 int.
Chenango
Forks
passing
- Jake Reynolds 5-for-9, 84y
Geneva
receiving
- Shamar Bridges 3-33
- Derrious Thomas 2-28
- Tyler Travis 1-16
- Jimmy Warner 1-8
Chenango
Forks
receiving:
- Garret Cade 2-40
- lint Cade 2-27
- Tim Zdimal 1-17
Preview
Articles
Forks defense must slow Allen
Running back gained 394 yards in last week's quarterfinal win
By Kevin Stevens
Press & Sun-Bulletin
Chenango Forks' sights are set on a sixth berth in the Class B state championship game in the last seven football seasons.
Geneva, the opponent for a 3 p.m. semifinal Saturday at Rochester's Paetec Park, has played for a state title each of the last two years -- claiming Class B supremacy last year a season after closing as Class A runner-up.
The Blue Devils are unbeaten through 11 weeks of football for the sixth time in seven years.
Geneva, beaten twice in a three-week stretch in the first half of the season, rides a six-game win streak into the contest.
The two opposed one another last Nov. 18 on the same PAETEC Park surface, where the Panthers scored a touchdown with 19 seconds remaining to pull out a 26-21 victory.
A couple of faces familiar to Forks defenders will again man positions in Geneva's offensive backfield -- one, however, in a different position than a year ago with vastly improved results.
Jeremiah Allen, a 5-foot-10, 190-pound senior, banged at Forks last year for an effective-if-not-game-changing 106 yards on 16 carries. This season he mans the tailback spot, and has turned in off-the-charts results of late.
In last week's 32-14 quarterfinal defeat of Depew, Allen established a state-tournament record with 394 rushing yards, two games after hitting up Hornell for 319 yards in a Section 5 semifinal.
Last week's output came on 36 carries and included touchdown runs of 70, 13, 11 and 14 yards.
"This kid is amazing," Forks coach Kelsey Green said. "We saw him get 250 yards in the first half against Hornell.
"He's big, strong, fast, elusive, he runs through you, around you, makes you miss and he finishes off his runs."
And so Max Ginty and Clint Cade, Jud DuBois and Jake Reynolds and the rest of those Blue Devils who teamed for that brilliant defensive showing in a 12-7 win over Cazenovia will have to be at their best come Saturday.
Oh, Geneva plays a bit of defense as well. Section 6 champion Depew called it a season on the heels of an 83-yard offensive total against the Panthers.
Of course, Forks has been this route before, encountering a standout running back in the semifinal round. Last year it was Geneva's Brian Fowler (23 carries, 137 yards); in 2005 it was Hornell's David Zapata (43-228); in '03 it was Eden's Keien Williams (44-216); in '02 it was Bath's Mark Robinson (28-158).
The Blue Devils' record in state semifinal games: 5-1.
Asked to compare Geneva's Allen with any of the hotshot backs of the past, Green mentioned Eden's Williams -- "I don't know that he's straight-out as fast, that kid was a track star," he said. "But we haven't seen (Allen) get caught when he gets out in front of people."
Should the Panthers put up a second touchdown on Saturday, they'd be the first Forks opponent to do so since Susquehanna Valley in the Oct. 20 regular-season finale. The Sabers scored 28 that day, twice the next-best total Forks has allowed this year.
"We've got to control (Allen), that first kid has to bring him down," Green said. "The 3-4 games of theirs that we've seen, that doesn't seem to happen."
Geneva has given up 20 or more points in five games, though has tightened up since allowing 32 or more three of the first five games.
Forks' leading rusher from last year's Geneva game, Joe Aston, gained 66 yards and a touchdown to go with two receptions for 34 yards in that game. He played through an ankle sprain last week.
"We came out of (the quarterfinal) a little better off than we came out of the Chenango Valley game. Joey's no worse for wear, anyway," Green said.
As for the team's attitude heading into Week 12, he said, "They're a confident bunch of kids looking forward to the next challenge."
Chenango Forks (11-0) |
|
Geneva (9-2) |
|
. |
|
PF |
Opponent |
PA |
|
PF |
Opponent |
PA |
21 |
Maine-Endwell |
0 |
|
14 |
Bishop Kearney |
12 |
28 |
Corning West |
6 |
|
45 |
Palmyra-Macedon |
34 |
15 |
Corning East |
12 |
|
24 |
Canandaigua |
36 |
28 |
Oneonta |
0 |
|
21 |
East Rochester-Gananda |
15 |
20 |
Chenango Valley |
14 |
|
22 |
Victor |
32 |
14 |
Norwich |
6 |
|
45 |
Waterloo |
7 |
29 |
Windsor |
12 |
|
48 |
Dansville |
20 |
35 |
Susquehanna Valley |
28 |
|
33 |
Attica |
6 |
34 |
Owego |
0 |
|
34 |
Hornell |
12 |
21 |
Chenango Valley |
7 |
|
28 |
Bath |
21 |
12 |
Cazenovia |
7 |
|
32 |
Depew |
14 |
257 |
|
92 |
|
346 |
|
209 |
Post-game
Article:
Fifth Quarter:
Published Tuesdays in the Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin
|
|