Game Time Blog

Welcome to the News & Messenger Friday Night Football Game Time Blog.

By DAVE UTNIK

60 minutes to kickoff…

Game: Hylton Bulldogs vs. Woodbridge Vikings

Kickoff: 7:30 p.m.

PREVIEW

> STAYING FOCUSED: The Woodbridge Vikings could easily be distracted with their head coach, Keith King, still on paid administrative leave. But they have somehow remained focused on football. Last week, the Vikings destroyed a bad Forest Park team and are on pace to lead all area public schools in scoring thanks mainly to place kicker Chris Drisko, who leads the team with 28 points on four field goals and 28 PATs. Quarterback Frank Buckley has thrown for 733 yards and 11 touchdowns, while do-it-all senior Collin Frazer has emerged as a star kick returner, wide receiver and safety.

> IN THE RED ZONE: This is where things will really get interesting. The Vikings have the area’s most diverse and explosive offense—averaging 41 points per game—and Hylton prides itself on playing defense. The Bulldogs, despite their losing record, are a solid defensive squad, yielding only 74 points—third in the area behind Battlefield and Osbourn Park this fall.

> HAPPY ANNIVERSARY: Tonight marks the five-year anniversary of Hylton’s last win at Woodbridge, Oct. 9, 2004.

> CATCH ME IF YOU CAN: Hylton senior Andrew Coleman is the Cardinal District’s leading pass catcher with 15 receptions, including two that have gone for touchdowns. Woodbridge’s Darius Smith and three Potomac players, Christian Ocasio, Jake Williams and David Riley are next with 14 catches each. 

> UPDATE: STARTING LINEUPS

Woodbridge offense
12 QB Frank Buckley
23 RB Zayd Hamilton
52 FB Abraham Quarcoo
75 LT Anthony Earl
72 LG Jordan Hairston
71 C John St. Amant
74 RG Mike Leathers
56 RT Rommel Burks
2 WR Darius Smith
5 WR Collin Frazer
7 WR Dwight Wilkins

Woodbridge defense
75 DT Anthony Earl
53 DE Joe Berveel
56 DT Rommel Burks
23 LB Zayd Hamilton
27 LB Diego Mejia
26 LB Darius Parson
52 LB Abraham Quarcoo
2 CB Darius Smith
20 CB Logan Farrar
5   FS Collin Frazer
54 SS Darryl Haley

Woodbridge Special Teams
14 K/P Chris Drisko
5 KR Jarrel Phillips
30 PR/KR Collin Frazer

Hylton offense
1 WR Andre Coleman
11 WR Jasper Willis
34 TE Winston Riddle
77 T Dennis Bailey
63 G Joe Grassilli
50 C Ali Aslam
60 G Joe Lopez
74 T Daniel Amedekey
32 RB Christian Harris
5 RB Jabari Neeley
10 QB Jabari Dukes

Hylton Defense
66 DE Curtis Dixon
72 DT Derrick Sanders
78 DT William Moten
55 DE Waseem Bhatti
22 LB Rex Willis
44 LB Greg Robinson
32 LB Christian Harris
5 LB Jabari Neeley
2 DB Tyler Dickerson
9 DB Kevin Kisiedu
6 DB A.J. Grady

Hylton special teams
12 K/P Manny Rodriguez

7:28 p.m. UPDATE Coin toss (insert drum roll here): The captains are on the field. Hylton wins the toss and elects to kick off. Let’s get this party started.

7:30 p.m. KICKOFF: The opening kickoff is returned to the 40 yard line and on first down Frank Buckley hooks up with Darius Smith for a 27-yard completion. First and 10 Vikes at the Bulldogs 33. Oh my.

7:31 p.m. TOUCHDOWN: Okay, that didn’t take long. Three plays, six points. Darius Smith hauls down a 36-yard reception. Buckley’s found him twice for 64 total yards already. Despite a blocked PAT, the Bulldogs have their work cut out for them, even with that vaunted defense. 

7:34 p.m. A.J. Grady returns Woodbridge’s kickoff to the 47 yard line. Nice field position for Hylton. Yet, for some reason, they are using a timeout. Maybe Lou Sorrentino is digging deep into the playbook on first down. Nah, that wasn’t it, Andre Coleman ran the ball for a 4-yard gain. You don’t really need a timeout for that.

7:38 p.m. That great field position resulted in absolutely nothing, except a punt and Collin Frazer just returned it 64 yards to the Bulldogs’ 12. Only the big run that got the crowd all excited was just wiped out by a holding penalty. Oops. So it’s first down at the Woodbridge 40 instead.

7:43 p.m.FUMBLE. A long reception had the Vikings on the move until receiver Michael Ford lost the ball at the 31. Hylton recovered, keeping the Woodbridge lead at 6-0 as the Bulldogs take over.

7:45 p.m. Another wasted possession for Hylton. The Bulldogs still don’t have a first down. Two possessions, two punts.

7:47 p.m.BUCKLEY BONUS: The Vikings’ QB is 3 of 4 for 89 yards. There’s still 5 minutes left in the 1st quarter. He’s on pace for a 400 yard game, though that probably won’t happen.

7:52 p.m. Hylton QB Jabari Dukes, on the other hand, is 0 for 3 and the Bulldogs are now punting for the third time.

7:55 p.m. BUCKLEY BONUS, PART 2: Completion to Darius Parson down the sideline for 24-yard gain. He’s got 113 passing yards on the night. It’s still the first quarter. Buckle up for safety folks. This is going to be a wild ride. It’s 1st and 10 at the Hylton 46.

7:58 p.m.Given Buckley’s huge numbers, the Hylton defense is actually doing a pretty good job of limiting the damage. The Bulldogs just shut down another potential drive, forcing the Vikings to punt.

7:59 p.m.There it is, the first Dukes’ completion of the night and the first Hylton first down—this one to Jasper Willis for a 14-yard gain. That’s a lot of firsts for one play.

8:01 p.m. END FIRST QUARTER: Woodbridge 6, Hylton 0

8:02 p.m. It appears Dukes is getting warmed up. He just hit Jabari Neeley for a 39-yard catch and run that the Bulldogs back carried into the end zone. Touchdown Hylton. With a missed extra point, we’re tied. Woodbridge 6, Hylton 6. Things are getting very interesting in Lake Ridge.

8:10 p.m. The momentum is beginning to shift in the Bulldogs’ favor. They are being rewarded for all those defensive stops and are on the move. Neely just turned the corner and raced 48 yards to the 5 yard line. Hylton has first and goal with a chance to take the lead.

8:11 p.m. TOUCHDOWN. Junior running back Michael Hunter on a second effort. He’s in the end zone for a 5-yard score. There’s 7:32 remaining in the half. Suddenly, an upset is brewing in Lake Ridge. Hylton 13, Woodbridge 6.  That was Hunter’s second carry of the night.

8:16 p.m. Buckley is trying to rally the troops. He’s got the Vikings in forward motion at the Hylton 43. He’s completed passes to six different receivers tonight. How will that tough Bulldogs D respond this time? Stay tuned. There is some serious drama here at the school for the fine and performing arts.

8:19 p.m. These Dawgs are tough. They’ve stopped Woodbridge again. And now the offense is attempting to run out the clock. Tick, tick, tick… Michael Hunter is becoming the go-to back with Jaleel Dukes sidelined with an injury and Hylton is approaching midfield as the clock winds down to 2:48.

8:24 p.m. It wasn’t quite mission accomplished, but the Bulldogs did use up about three minutes on that possession. With a punt, the Vikings have 1:46 to go 75 yards if they want to have the lead at halftime.

8:26 p.m.That isn’t going to happen. Not against this mighty Hylton DEFENSE. They’re conceding yards but not much in points. And the Dawgs are going to lead at halftime. 

8:29 p.m. HALFTIME: HYLTON 13, WOODBRIDGE 6

UPDATE: Statistical leaders:
Woodbridge—Passing, Buckley 10-16-0, 132 yards; Receiving, Frazer 3-68, Parson 2-22, Ford 1-26. The Vikings have 14 rushing yards. 
Hylton—Rushing, Neeley 8-62; Hunter 5-10; Passing, Dukes 2-8-0, 63 yards; Receiving, Neeley 1-39, Willis 1-14.

8:54 p.m. The third quarter is under way and the Vikings are threatening to forge a tie behind the running prowess of Jaylen Avent, who had only 12 yards in the first half. Woodbridge went right down the field on its first possession of the second half with Darius Parson busting through the line for a 29-yard touchdown run. Alas, Chris Drisko has missed another extra point. So it’s HYLTON 13, WOODBRIDGE 12.

8:55 p.m. The Vikings drive took 6 plays and covered 71 yards, all on the ground.

8:56 p.m. TANGENT There’s that awful “Ice Cream and Cake” song again. I’m not actually sure it can even be referred to as a song. It’s dreadful noise and has no redeeming value in society. Does every high school event have to include that horrible garbage? It sets the music industry back a hundred years. Just wondering, cuz everyone plays it and I have no idea why. It’s that bad. Really. Remember the annoying Macarana and Achy Breaky Heart? This is worse. Way worse. Make it stop. Please.

9:06 p.m. Okay, back to the action. There really wasn’t much of anything happening on the field. I think all the players were stupified by “Ice Cream and Cake”. Now the Vikings seem to have recovered and are threatening to score again. Interestingly, they have yet to throw a second half pass. Seven plays, all runs. 1st and 10 on the 18. That’s almost field goal range, except that Drisko is 0 for 2 on PATS—one blocked and one missed—so they might want to go for the end zone.

9:11 p.m.Another Vikings’ run, another first down. It’s 1st and goal at the 5. Woodbridge is on the verge of taking the lead. Yep, a Darius Parson 5-yard run puts the Vikes back on top with 28.7 seconds left in the third. And a two-point conversion makes it Woodbridge 20, Hylton 13.

END OF THIRD QUARTER: WOODBRIDGE 20, HYLTON 13

9:23 p.m. The Bulldogs are running out of time. It looks like that losing streak in Lake Ridge is going to be extended unless one of the Jabari’s can come up with a really big play. Ed Sullivan big I mean. Does anyone remember Ed Sullivan? You know the Beatles first time on TV, etc.

9:24 p.m. This might be the last time they get the ball and they have 53 yards to go with 6:20 remaining. Don’t change that channel, unless you are checking out a Major League Baseball division series score or the Ice Cream and Cake video (I don’t recommend that). But hurry back. There could still be an exciting finish.

9:29 p.m. I told you not to go anywhere. Jabari Neeley just went 32 yards to the 18 yard line. You are now officially a resident of Drama City. 1st and 10 Bulldawgs.

9:30 p.m. This could be the ball game folks. Fourth and 7 at the 15.

9:31 p.m.There won’t be any Wizards of Waverly Place magic tonight. Where is Selena Gomez when you need her? The Dawgs are stopped on 4th down. Woodbridge takes over on downs with 3:51 to go and the clock running.

9:36 p.m.One more first down will do it and the Vikings will remain undefeated. 2:30 remaining, but it’s 3rd and seven.

9:38 p.m.Now it’s 4th down. The Vikings nearly lost a fumble at the 30, but they recovered. It’s punt time.

9:40 p.m.Hylton will have one more chance with the ball at their own 30 and just over 2 minutes.

9:41 p.m. “So your’re telling me there’s a chance.“ You gotta love Jim Carrey. Alas, not this time. The Dawgs just fumbled and Rommel Burks came up with it for Woodbridge. Ballgame.

9:45 p.m. The FINAL from Lake Ridge—Woodbridge 20, Hylton 13.

9:47 p.m. Enjoy your holiday weekend. Don’t forget the Ice Cream and Cake.