Game Time Blog

By DAVE UTNIK

Good evening and welcome to the special Under the Lights Friday night Bermuda Grass edition of the Game Time Blog.

TONIGHT’S GAME: Battlefield (2-0) at Osbourn Park (1-0)

KICKOFF: 7:30 p.m.

PREVIEW: Greetings from the beautifully renovated press box at Osbourn Park High School, where the much-beloved Bermuda Grass is a glowing shade of green. This is a much-anticipated rematch of last year’s Northwest Region Division 6 championship game with both teams coming in with unbeaten records. The Bobcats are coming off victories against Lake Taylor and Potomac, while the host Yellow Jackets rallied from a 13-point deficit to defeat Stafford 27-13.

WHERE’S BO? Battlefield is off to a good start without 2009 Northwest Region player of the year Bo Revell, who is now a freshman at William & Mary. The Bobcats have used a pair of quarterbacks in the early going with senior Devon Greene and sophomore Ryan Swingle.

WHERES DOMINIQUE? Osbourn Park is looking for its second victory following the transfer of star quarterback Dominique Terrell to rival Osbourn. It’s almost as if the grass was truly greener across town.

AND HERE WE GO: It took about 30 seconds for Osbourn Park to take the lead as running back Gary Jackson broke through the line of scrimmage and sprinted 76 yards for a touchdown. The Jackets promptly called time out and then missed the extra point, so it’s 6-0 OP.

CLICHE ALERT: Apparently at OP there is a saying that goes, “Once a Jacket, Always a Jacket.“ Is that also true for Dominque Terrell?

DREADED GLITCH, PART 1: It appears that the renovated press box came with the same old scoreboard equipment. The scoreboard power is out so the time is being kept on the field.

SUCCESS: The scoreboard is working once again. Now, the OP staff just needs to figure out how to reset the clock, which is stuck at 7:50. It must be opening night. Either that or the Jackets will probably want to spray for Gremlins.

RANDOM UPDATE: While the teams are busy trading punts - 4 so far—let’s take a moment to celebrate the 3 million viewers who tuned into the premier of “Hellcats” on the CW. There is something to be said for the cross-over power of Disney Channel stars.

BOBCATS ON THE MOVE: After a 46-yard completion from Devon Greene to Turner Meeks (followed by a face mask penalty), the Bobcats have the ball 1st and goal at the 3.

END OF FIRST QUARTER: OP 6, Battlefield 0.

SCORE UPDATE: Devon Green’s quarterback sneak from the 1 puts the Bobcats on the scoreboard, which is fully functional now with a running clock and everything. With the PAT, it’s Battlefield 7, Osbourn Park 6. 11:56 remaining in the 2nd Q.

LEAN AND GREENE: Devon Greene may not be a little bit country and a little bit rock and roll, but he does have an intriguing mix of Bo Revell and Dominique Terrell talent. While nobody on this year’s team has Revell’s arm, Greene has done an effective job with the passing game (5 of 8 for 85 yards) and has shown an innate ability to scramble.

SCORING UPDATE: Greene just led the Bobcats on a 48-yard drive that ended with a 25-yard field goal by Jason Hoepker. Battlefield 10, Osbourn Park 6.  11 seconds left in the first half.

HALFTIME: BATTLEFIELD 10, OP 6.

DISNEY MAGIC: The OP band just performed a glorious halftime show featuring music from Disney’s Fantasmic. The band came up big!

STAT-O-MATIC: Battlefield has 131 total yards at the half. OP has 116 with 76 of those coming on running back Gary Jackson’s TD run.

ON THE MOVE: The Bobcats have found their quarterback. Senior Devon Greene has firmly established himself as the starter with an impressive first half. And he’s not done yet. Battlefield is already in field goal range on its first possession of the third quarter. But the Cats aren’t going to settle for three if they can help it.

ACTION JACKSON: Nagee Jackson’s 5 yard TD run capped a 13-play, 73-yard drive that used up more than seven minutes on the clock. It’s 17-6 Battlefield. Greene is playing with the poise and confidence of a veteran. It’s hard to tell that this is his third varsity game running the first-string offense.

IT’S BEGINNING TO LOOK A BIT LIKE A BLOWOUT: Bobcats senior Anthony Lopez intercepted an OP pass at the 38 and returned it to the 10, setting up a 1st and goal.

SCORE UPDATE: Battlefield is well on its way to a 3-0 start. Greene pushed it across the goal line on a sneak, making the score 24-6. Naturally, Jackets’ coaches in the press box are blaming the officials for the lopsided score. One even mused that this must be the same officiating crew that “cheated” OP out of last year’s regional playoffs. Of course, there could be another reason or two that the Jackets are about to be 1-6 against Battlefield since 2005.

BRIGHT SPOT UPDATE: Osbourn Park fans have one thing to be excited about. Gary Jackson has rushed for 105 yards on 11 carries, including the 76-yard TD run that opened the game. Since then, the Bobcats have rolled off 24 consecutive points. That’s had more to do with Devon Greene than the refs.

ARE WE IN SMALLVILLE? Look up in the air. It’s a bird, it’s a plane. It’s Anthony Lopez? The Bobcats super defensive back just picked off his second pass of the game. Was that a cape someone just wrapped around his shoulders on the sideline?

WELL PLACED PUNT: Battlefield’s Jason Hoepker just dropped a punt at the 2-yard line. It’s definitely the Bobcats’ night. There are two minutes remaining.

SCORE UPDATE: The Yellow Jackets drove 99 yards and scored on a Damien Nicholson 17-yard touchdown pass from QB Denthan Dukes. The two-point conversion failed. It’s now 24-12. The scoreboard clock is not working again so the official time is being kept on the field.

FINAL SCORE: BATTLEFIELD 24, OSBOURN PARK 12.