Sep 6, 2008
Raleigh
When Middle Creek defensive end Brandon Aaron was asked what he was more impressed with, how well the Mustangs’ defense played in Friday’s 24-8 win at Sanderson or how well the offense moved the ball despite the sloppy conditions Friday night, he took all of a nanosecond to come up with an answer.
“I’m going to say defense,” said Aaron, who punctuated his unit’s effort by sacking Sanderson quarterback Jeff Massey on the game’s final play.
While the Mustangs’ offense sputtered early, their defense kept them in the game. They held Sanderson to 193 yards of offense, forced three turnovers and didn’t allow a touchdown (Sanderson scored on a safety and a punt return). In fact, the Spartans didn’t even enter the red zone until midway through the fourth quarter. Sanderson (2-1) averaged 26.0 points and 276.0 yards in its first two games.
Aaron’s prideful feelings weren’t just boastful on behalf of the defense. His teammates on the other side of the ball agreed they were the difference.
“The defense stepped up and played a heck of a game,” said Middle Creek receiver Tre Nesbit (six receptions, 104 yards, one touchdown).
But the offense eventually found its groove. The Mustangs (1-2) piled up 387 yards (241 passing, 146 rushing) and scored a season-high 24 points.
How the offensive finished was a far cry from how it started. On its first offensive possession, the Mustangs were hit with three penalties (two holding, one illegal procedure) and had a fumble that led to fourth and 38. Special teams then misfired by sending the snap over punter Matt Frongello’s head and out of the end zone for a safety.
Middle Creek’s next offensive series started with an illegal procedure and finished with two straight sacks before they punted away on fourth and 19.
“We’ve been battling that over the first three weeks just trying not to shoot ourselves in the foot,” said Middle Creek coach Sean Crocker. “The defense really kept us in it until the offense got clicking.”
And that happened midway through the second quarter.
Starting from their own 23-yard line, Nesbit had receptions of 33 and 16 yards to start the drive, then Stephen Sladek ran four times for 23 yards, including a 1-yard touchdown run, to give the Mustangs the lead. Quarterback Garrett Leatham passed to Nesbit for the two-point conversion, giving Middle Creek an 8-2 lead with 3:41 left in the first half.
After the Spartans went three and out on the next series, the Mustangs took over at their own 35-yard line with 1:56 left in the half. They marched down the field and Nesbit hauled in a 29-yard reception and was tackled at the 2-yard line with six seconds left in the half. On the next play, Leatham hit Nesbit on a short slant for a touchdown, and Frongello’s extra point was good, giving the Mustangs a 15-2 lead going into the break.
“I had an argument on that play call,” Leatham said. “The play call was all slants. I wanted a bootleg to the right, and I could throw it or run it. But we ended up going with all slants, and I saw Tre wide open and I hit him. It was a big momentum changer.”
The Mustangs got the ball to start the second half and went ahead 18-2 when Frongello drilled a 43-yard field goal through the driving rain.
Sanderson cut it to 18-8 when Matt James returned a punt 59 yards for a touchdown, but that was about the only highlight for the Spartans.
“We had a chance early on to make some plays and we didn’t,” said Sanderson coach Jason Tindal. “Our team wasn’t prepared. This was a coaching debacle on my part. I’ve got to evaluate everything we’re doing from our pregame entrance to the Monday practice script. We’re making too many mistakes, and a good coaching staff doesn’t put a product on the field that makes those mistakes. I take full accountability for this game.”
The Mustangs put the game out of reach when Sladek put the finishing touches on his superb night. The junior tailback scored his second touchdown from one yard out to put the game away with 4:20 remaining. He finished with 133 yards on 23 carries.
On the ensuing possession, Middle Creek linebacker Britt Cherry recovered a Sanderson fumble, and the Spartans got the ball back in the final minute, the Mustangs finishing their complete game with Aaron’s sack to end the game.
“I have to admit, the defense did step it up this week,” Leatham said. “But we did have some good plays on offense.”
Contact Tim Candon at tcandon@wral.com.
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