Printed in the Rocky Mountain News - 1994
Overtime victory against East gives Commanders lead
By Tiffany Trott
Special to the News
Sixth-ranked Kennedy put itself in position to secure a No. 1 seed from the Denver Prep League, defeating Denver East 13-6 in overtime Friday afternoon at All City Stadium.
Kennedy held onto first place in the league standings with an 8-yard touchdown run in overtime by tailback Shayne Blakey. He led his team in rushing with 121 yards on 28 carries.
“We made a bunch of mistakes, but our defense took over and worked fr us,” Blakey said. “Our defense finally kicked in and did what we needed in overtime.”
The defensive play of both teams was outstanding throughout the contest.
“Their defense played tough, but we knew we had to keep him (East quarterback Brian Phelan) from passing,” middle linebacker Jesus Escobedo said. “We had to flush the quarterback out of the pocket and sack him every chance we got.”
Escobedo was a key player in overtime. He sacked Phelan twice for a total loss of 17 yards and prevented a “Hail Mary” pass on the Angels’ last down from materializing.
“We came in No. 1 in the state (in scoring defense) and we wanted to keep it that way,” Escobedo said.
East coach Larry Tarver said his team’s inexperience on offense made it difficult to move the ball against the stingy Kennedy defense, which has allowed only 28 points in six games (4.4 average).
“We have a real young team; I started (offensive lineman Brandon) Jackson and (running back Sam) Lyons, who are both freshmen,” Tarver said.
Tarver said the Commanders killed them with the option play.
“Blakey just ran over everybody and we couldn’t help out offensively, but we have got to learn to take it,” Tarver said.
Kennedy struck first after East’s Lyons fumbled the ball on the Commanders’ 20. The ball was recovered by linebacker Greg Gonzales, who ran the ball back to the Kennedy 34.
With the help of a 27-yard run by Blakey and a 17-yard pass from quarterback Franco Martinez to wide receiver Greg Sewell, Kennedy took the ball to the East 2. Halfback Steve Campos ran the ball in to put Kennedy up 6-0.
East got on the board with 3:15 left in the third period with a 9-yard pass from Phelan to split end Jason Craft. The extra point was blocked.
East’s short touchdown drive started after defensive end Willie Wortham sacked Martinez and linebacker Jamil McCowain recovered the ball and ran it back 58 yards, to the Kennedy 10.
East now has to fight to earn a spot in the playoffs.
“I told my team from the beginning it didn’t matter if we took one loss or two or three, we were going to make it to the playoffs,” Tarver said.
Printed in the Rocky Mountain News - 1994
By Tiffany Trott
Special to the Rocky Mountain News
LAKEWOOD – Not many people expected Columbine to beat No. 3 Pomona — except those on the Rebels sideline.
Columbine stunned Pomona 28-20 Friday afternoon at Jefferson County Stadium in the first class 5A Jeffco League game of the season.
“(In) high school football anything can happen,” Columbine coach Andy Lowry said. “These kids have found a will to win. It’s down in that heart and we just have to keep getting it. No one expects anything.”
Even though Pomona (4-2, 0-1) gained 509 yards offense to Columbine’s 332, key defensive plays by the Rebels made the difference.
Running back Paul Boykin also was a hero for Columbine, scoring twice on long runs (78 and 73 yards) and making a key special teams play late in the game.
After taking a 28-6 third-quarter lead, Columbine held on in the final period with two goal line stands. The key play came with 5:16 left after Boykin booted a 60-yard quick kick on third-and-7 to put the Panthers back at their 32.
“We were down buried (at the 8-yard line) and I didn’t want a return so it worked out great,” Lowry said.
Boykin got Columbine of to a fast start, taking the Rebels first play from scrimmage 78 yards for a touchdown with 4 minutes gone in the game.
Boykin, who sat out last week against Highlands Ranch because he was ineligible, ran for 179 yards on 11 carries and two touchdowns to lead Columbine rushers. “Boykin had a challenge to face after sitting out last week, so he was hungry to play,” Lowry said.
Boykin struck quickly again to open the second half, bolting 73 yards for a score to give the Rebels a 21-6 lead 52 seconds into the third quarter.
After Boykin’s first TD, Pomona scored its first points of the game.
Jeremy Close scored on a 3-yard run and capped an 11-play, 84-yard drive with 3:08 left in the first half.
Columbine took only 1 minute to extend its lead to 14-6 after a 61-yard run by running back Mike Schmidt.
Columbine’s defense came up with a big play after Boykin’s burst to open the second half.
The Rebels recovered a fumble by Pomona quarterback Matt Smiley at the Panthers’ 30, and Schmidt ran the ball in on Columbine’s first play to put the Rebels ahead 28-6 with 8:58 left in the third period.
Schmidt ran for 102 yards on only four carries. But the tide started to turn with Pomona’s next possession.
Running back Scott Schaefer completed a 5-yard scoring pas to tight end Brad Gomer.
Then Columbine’s Bryan O’Neill fumbled the ball at the Rebels’ 45 and Pomona recovered. With 9 seconds left in the third period, Smiley connected with wide receiver Mike DiGiosio on a 28-yard touchdown pass to pull Pomona within eight.
But the Rebels defense held in the final period, stopping the Panthers on downs at the Columbine 6 and 12 to preserve the victory.