Game Time Blog

By DAVE UTNIK | 6:15 p.m. Thursday

Welcome to the News & Messenger Special Thursday night Rosh Hashanah version of the Football Game Time Blog.

45 minutes to kickoff…

PREVIEW

> ROSH HASHANAH: Because of the Jewish New Year, which begins at sundown on Friday and continues until nightfall on Sunday, in-county high school fottball games are being played on Thursday this week.

> A LOT TO CONSIDER: Osbourn Park junior quarterback Dominique Terrell has received a dozen Division I football scholarship offers from (in no particular order) Clemson, Maryland, Miami, N.C. State, Penn State, Pitt, Rutgers, Tennessee, UCLA, Virginia, Virginia Tech and West Virginia. Five of those schools—Rutgers, Tennessee, UCLA, Virginia Tech and West Virginia—currently have area players on scholarship. Liberty, which has received Top-25 votes in Div. I-AA, has also offered a scholarship. Terrell’s brother, Zach, was an all-conference running back for the Flames.

> NEW TERRITORY: The Cardinal District schedule begins tonight for both teams. This is OP’s first game in the district since 2001. The Yellow Jackets played in the Cedar Run District from 1992 to 2001.

> NOT TOO EARLY TO START THINKING ABOUT THE POWER RANKINGS: It’s only the third week of the season, but this game could have an impact on the six-team Northwest Region, Division 6 playoffs. The Bulldogs are considered a contender—along with Woodbridge—for the district title despite last week’s surprising 7-3 loss to Stonewall Jackson. Hylton quarterback Jabari Dukes was intercepted twice near the goal line against the Raiders. OP’s Terrell threw a career-high four interceptions at Battlefield last week, a 14-0 loss.

UPDATE, 6:16 p.m. Since Hylton opened in 1991, the Bulldogs have won all 17 games against Osbourn Park, including regional playoff games in 2002 and 2003. Tonight’s game is the first between the two schools since 2006, so most of these guys have not faced each other at the varsity level. The most recent games have been fairly lopsided with the Bulldogs winning 55-0 in 2005 and 28-7 in 2006.

STARTING LINEUPS
OSBOURN PARK OFFENSE
1 Dominique Terrell, QB
2 Gary Jackson, RB
3 Chris Mason, Jr., WR
19 Pat Derenda, WR
20 Travis Marion, WR
50 Elliott Lloyd, G
54 Alex Tyers, G
57 Kevin Marley C
67 Trevor Nealy T
75 Case VanWingerden T
78 Andrew Green T

OSBOURN PARK DEFENSE
Not Available

HYLTON OFFENSE
8 Jaleel Dukes WR
11 Jasper Willis WR
13 Omrie Lawrence WR
75 Chris Wood T
63 Joe Grassilli G
50 Ali Aslam C
60 Joe Lopez G
74 Daniel Amedekey T
5 Jabari Neeley RB
1 Andre Coleman RB
10 Jabari Dukes QB

HYLTON DEFENSE
66 Curtis Dixon DE
75 Chris Wood T
20 Parrish Kelley-Collier DE
32 Christian Harris LB
5 Jabari Neely LB
34 Winston Riddle LB
44 Greg Robinson LB
6 A.J. Grady DB
9 Kevin Kisiedu DB
1 Andre Coleman DB
2 Tyler Dickerson DB
12 Manny Rodriguez K

UPDATE, 7:01 p.m.It’s cowbell time. Apparently, this is not just a Battlefield thing.
 
7:02 p.m. OP has won the toss and will receive the opening kickoff.

7:03 p.m. Dominique Terrell runs 70 yards on the opening day from scrimmage, but there is no joy in visitorsville. There is a flag on the field. An illegal shift negates the big run. And then Terrell’s first pass of the night is picked off.

Junior linebacker Winston Riddle makes a juggling interception giving Hylton possesion at the 13 yard line. Terrell now has 5 interceptions in the last 4-plus quarters of play. Better keep it on the ground.

7:08 p.m.The Bulldogs seem to have their offense stuck in reverse. A drive that started at the 13 ended with a missed 36-yard field goal attempt.

7:10 p.m. The evening’s first punt comes courtesy of OP’s Kyle Whitt. Hylton has the ball for its second possession at the 40 yard line. Neither team has a first down in the game’s first 5 minutes.

7:14 p.m. Ahh, another 4th down and another punt is on the way. 1st and 10 OP at the 24. 5:52 to go in the first quarter.

7:18 p.m. OP is on the board, 7-0 Yellow Jackets courtesy of a 58-yard touchdown pass from Terrell to Travis Marion. 4:12 remaining, 1st quarter. It’s Terrell’s second scoring toss of the season.

7:22 p.m. Apparently, the press box at Hylton is open to random people who enjoying having very long cellphone conversations. Suddenly it’s Ellis Island up here. Everyone is welcome. 

7:28 p.m. End of the first quarter: OP 7, Hylton 0

7:30 p.m. The Yellow Jackets have found their running game again. Apparently they recovered it from the Battlefield High School lost and found. Gary Jackson has 13 yards on 4 carries and Chris Mason 11 yards on 2 carries.

But OP coach Brian Beaty insists on throwing the ball down field anyway. And, guess what? Terrell is picked off again. Memo to Jackets—KEEP IT ON THE GROUND! Or work on a short passing game. Throwing deep isn’t exactly working out. Six interceptions in just over 5 quarters might require a different approach.

7:39 p.m. Hylton capitalized on the turnover with a 1-yard touchdown run by Jabari Dukes. We’re tied at 7.

The Bulldogs ran seven consecutive times during a 7-play, 34-yard scoring drive.

7:43 p.m. The Jackets have picked up on the idea. Three straight runs just produced 30 yards. OP is driving at the Hylton 35. On 4th and inches, it’s decision time. 2:54 left in the half and OP is going for it.

7:47 p.m. And there’s another run. Whoa. 10 yards for Terrell and a first down inside the 30. He’s got 58 yards on 10 carries. You do the match. Just saying. There’s no need to throw when the Bulldogs can’t seem to stop the run.

7:50 p.m. Unless, of course, there’s a wide open 6-foot-1 receiver running across the middle of the field. That was the case on second and 14 from the 16 yard line and Terrell connected on a short pass to Pat Derenda for a 16-yard TD.

HALFTIME: Osbourn Park 14, Hylton 7.

7:54 p.m. Halftime stats courtesy of award-winning sports journalist Joe Conroy coming in just a few minutes. Stay tuned. Don’t change that channel. 

UPDATE, 8 p.m. Osbourn Park: Rushing, Terrell 54 yards on 11 carries; Jackson 6-24; Mason 3-19. Passing: Terrell 5-7-2, 87 yards and 2TDs; Receiving: Marion 3-70, 1 TD.

Hylton: Rushing, Andre Coleman 4-21; Jabari Neeley 4-19; Passing, Dukes 0-1-0, 0 yards. Receiving, none.

8:04 p.m. The cowbells have been quiet. The band has brought them back to life though at halftime. Go band. 

8:09 p.m. And after some unexpected technical difficulties, the Hylton dance team just put on a very cheerful performance. Way to overcome adversity girls. Nice routine.

8:14 p.m. Hylton has possession to start the second half. Andre Coleman just ripped off an 11-yard gain. But alas, there’s a holding penalty. Back to the drawing board.

8:16 p.m. The Ellis Island doors are open late this evening. More random fans are meandering through the press box. There are plenty of seats available in the bleachers, but this seems to be a destination of choice tonight.

8:20 p.m. An intentional grounding penalty by Dukes just put the Bulldogs in a long-yardage situation. It was either that or take a sack so pick your poison. It’s second and 25 from their own 40.

8:21 p.m. It was looking pretty dire for the Dawgs, who were about to punt. But the Jackets were just hit with a roughing the kicker penalty so “the drive” lives on. 1st and 10 at the OP 40.

8:26 p.m. “The drive” has finally stalled. Hylton turns the ball over on downs at the 35. OP has the lead and the ball with 6:56 left in the third quarter.

8:30 p.m. The Bulldogs have great field position and a great chance to tie the game following a 38-yard punt return by Dominique Miller. It’s 1st and 10 at the OP 30 for Hylton.

8:31 p.m. Hylton quarterback Jabari Dukes just completed his first pass of the night. A six-yarder to Omrie Lawrence. The Dawgs are knocking on the door at the 20 yard line.

8:33 p.m. An Andre Coleman 11 yard run sets up 1st and goal at the 9.

8:34 p.m. There won’t be a tie on this possession. It’s starting to look like last week for Hylton. Another turnover inside the 10. This time a fumble. OP recovers at the 10. That might have been Hylton’s best shot at pulling out a win tonight. There’s still a quarter to go, but the Jackets have the momentum, not to mention the ball.

8:39 p.m. END OF THE THIRD QUARTER: OP 14, HYLTON 7

8:42 p.m. The Jackets are on the verge of earning their first victory over Hylton. The 17-game streak is certainly in serious jeopardy with OP on the move at the Bulldogs’ 25 yard line. Folks, you are witnessing history tonight. Or at least reading about it in the blog.

8:47 p.m. This game is OVER. You saw it first here in the blog. Terrell’s 7-yard TD run has OP in front 21-7. 7 minutes, 49 seconds from history. Maybe the Jackets fans can borrow some cowbells. 

8:51 p.m. OP’s 21 points are the most allowed by Hylton’s defense in three games this season.

8:56 p.m. The Yellow Jackets are beginning to look like the second-best team in the Cardinal District. This was an inspiring performance following last week’s humbling shutout at Battlefield. And they aren’t done yet. It’s second and goal at the 2.

9:00 p.m. Touchdown, Gary Jackson. It’s 28-7 OP. 3:18 remaining.

9:10 p.m. IT’S A FINAL. History in Dale City. Osbourn Park earns its first varsity football victory over Hylton. Final Score: 28-7.

9:11 p.m. Stay tuned for final individual leaders courtesy of Joe Conroy.

9:18 p.m. As promised, the much anticipated final statistics:

Osbourn Park: Rushing, Terrell 25-135, Jackson, 13-60; Passing, Terrell 8-11-2, 114 yards, 2 TDs; Receiving, Marion 5-85, Derenda 2-28.
Hylton: Rushing, Coleman 8-31, Neeley 8-31; Passing, Dukes 6-12-1, 47 yards; Receiving, Hasan 2-20; Lawrence 2-13.

9:20 p.m. You have reached the exciting conclusion of the special Thursday Night High School Football Game of the Week. Thank you for reading.

9:21 p.m. The End