Game Time Blog

Good evening. Welcome again to insidenova.com’s high school football Game of the Week.
Tonight’s featured game is Woodbridge (3-4) at Potomac (4-4).
We come to you from Chuck Coles Memorial Stadium where Potomac is celebrating its Homecoming.
Both teams have taken the field after the national anthem.
The Vikings have won three of their last four games and the Panthers are looking to put on a good show, especially with a possible chance to go to the playoffs in coach Jerry Roadcap’s first year.
Fans are filing into the stands on the Potomac side.
The coin toss has taken place. Potomac will receive the opening kickoff.
Stay tuned and we’ll bring you the action as the game goes along.

Woodbridge’s first possession is deep in Potomac territory.
The Vikings benefitted from a muffed punt attempt by the Panthers.
They now have second down and 11 from the Potomac 21.

Woodbridge’s first drive stalled thanks to some penalties and inability to effectively move the ball.
The Vikings punted, but a Potomac player touched the ball and Woodbridge recovered at the five-yard line.
A first down attempt netted the Vikings two yards.
It’s second and goal from the three.

The Vikings cashed in on Potomac’s turnover.
Zayd Hamilton scored from three yards out, but the Vikings missed the extra point.
So it’s 6-0 Woodbridge with 7:16 left in the first quarter.

Potomac has a good-looking drive going.
Running back Desmond Spates broke off a 27-yard run to the Vikings 33.
Spates ran for two yards on a fourth down play to keep the drive alive.
The Panthers, though, have third and 10 at the Woodridge 23.

Panthers quarterback David Grimm improvised coming out of a timeout.
He rolled to his left and spotted Dominique Brundidge in the left corner of the end zone.
Grimm completed the pass for a 27-yard touchdown.
The extra point makes it 7-6 Potomac with 3:09 left in the first.
The Panthers marching band joined in the celebration by playing the Notre Dame fight song.
Clearly support is here as the Potomac stands are filling and lots of people are watching the game from near the concession stands.

Jarrell Greer has just given Woodbridge great field position. His 52-yard catch and run has put Potomac in position to score.
Woodbridge has the ball at the Potomac 10.
Running back Jaylen Avent ran to the Panthers one two plays later.
That brings us to the end of the first quarter.
It is 7-6 Potomac with Woodbridge knocking on the door.

Quarterback Corey Taylor called his own number and crossed the goal line for a Vikings touchdown.
Woodbridge is up 12-7.
The Vikings were attempting a two-point conversion, but a substitution penalty pushed their try back.
A rush attempt by Logan Farrar went for little yardage.
So we stand at 12-7 Vikings with 11:58 left in the second.

Potomac is showing an effective running game. Desmond Spates and R.J. Holmes are speedsters who show a good burst when they touch the ball.
Holmes even returned a kickoff back to give the Panthers good field position.
He benefitted from an outstanding Spates block.
Those two have helped the Panthers move inside the Woodbridge 25.

The Panthers drive stalled and they turned it over on downs.
It was exactly what Woodbridge wanted.
A reverse allowed Evrett Edwards to run 27 yards to the Panthers 36.
It is second and 10 after an incompletion.

Woodbridge is known getting lots of players involved in its offensive schemes.
It also knows how to convert on fourth down.
The Vikings have been successful on two such occasions so far.
Darius Parson ran for eight yards on fourth and two from the Potomac 28.
Taylor barely got a first down with a one-yard run to the 10.
So the Vikings are moving closer to scoring, but face third down after Avent was just stuffed by Marcus Glover for no gain.

Avent was taken down for a four-yard loss on third and 10, so the Vikings settled for a 31-yard field goal attempt.
But kicker Chris Meres came up short.
The Panthers get the ball back with 1:55 left in the second quarter. They have first down at the 20.

With the line of scrimmage the 15, Potomac’s punt went to its own 35.
Woodbridge is taking advantage.
The Vikings are on the 21 with 14 seconds left before halftime.

Woodbridge is serious about scoring before halftime.
Taylor unleashed a pass to the right corner of the end zone.
It fell incomplete, but receiver Mike Herrity drew a pass interference call.
Then, with the penalty bringing the ball half the distance to the goal, Meres missed a 26-yard field goal attempt as time ran out in the first half.
So we are at 12-7 Woodbridge at halftime.
The Homecoming festivities are ready to start with the Potomac marching band on the field.
So let’s enjoy the halftime show.

Halftime seems to be going well.
I noticed that a person dressed in a balloon outfit is a featured attraction down by the concession stand.
His name is Ricky Recruiter. He is here because ROTC recruiters are on hand to give students a chance to learn about what life is like in the army.
Ricky is in the stands and is hard to miss.
We are now getting ready to hear the 2010 Homecoming court.

The 2010 Homecoming king is Matt Ball, a track athlete who also plays football.
Angela Jones was named Homecoming queen.
Potomac has retaken the field and we are about ready to start the second half.

Woodbridge starts the second half at the Potomac 49.
Ben Funny returned a short kickoff a good 15 yards.

The Vikings are at the Potomac 20.
They almost extended their lead.
Taylor’s pass into the right corner of the end zone was broken up by defensive back Landon Cowardin.
Cowardin did not turn around, so he could not see the ball.
But at the last minute, he extended his arm and knocked the ball out of bounds.
The Panthers are not out of the woods yet.
Woodbridge is at the 10.

The incompletion did not faze Taylor.
He dropped back to pass and just as he was hit by an opposing defender, he threw into the end zone.
‘The pass was caught by Logan Farrar, who was on his knee and then flattened by a Potomac defender.
It is 18-7 Vikings.
A penalty on the two-point conversion attempt, which was good, pushed the ball back to the 15.
Meres missed the kick.
The Vikings are leaving points on the board. They have missed three point after attempts and two field goals.
So they could be up 24-7.
As it stands, they lead 18-7 with 6:35 left in the third.

As soon as the Panthers got the ball back, Spates ripped off a 52-yard run to the Woodbridge 10.
But the drive began to stall.
The Panthers went for it on fourth down and six.
But it became a fourth and 11 thanks to a false start penalty on one of their offensive linemen.
Grimm, though, made a play.
Under pressure, he found R.J. Holmes, who caught the ball in the right flat and sprinted into the end zone.
Holmes then ran the ball in for the two-point conversion.
Potomac has quickly made this a game again.
The Panthers trail 18-15 with 3:28 left in the third.
I want to correct something I said earlier. Woodbridge has actually missed two field goals, instead of one. So the Vikings have missed out on getting nine points in this game.

Woodbridge leads 18-15 at the end of the third quarter. Potomac has a third down and 19 on the Woodbirdge 40.

Potomac missed a golden scoring opportunity.
The Panthers turned the ball over on downs after going deep into Woodbridge territory.
A couple penalties and Grimm missing Holmes in the end zone on a fourth down pass gave the ball back to Woodbridge.
And the Vikings knew what to do with it.
Avent ran up the middle for a 76-yard touchdown.
New kicker Sam Brew helped the Vikings extend their lead to 25-15.
There is 6:15 left in the fourth quarter.

Potomac has just called timeout.
The clock shows 2:31 left and Woodbridge is at the Potomac 40.
The Panthers cheerleaders tried to encourage the crowd with chants of “Let’s Go Panthers” and “Take that Ball Away.“
It does not seem to be doing much good at this point unless the Panthers can force a turnover.
We’ll see what happens in the next few minutes.

Woodbridge’s defense has just stymied Potomac for minus two yards on a four-play drive.
It appears this game is over as the Vikings have the ball back leading by 10.

And that is the end of the game.
Final score is 25-15 Woodbridge.
Both teams are on the field shaking hands.
Coaches and players are exchanging pleasantries and that’s all we have.
Woodbridge improves to 4-4, 3-1 in the Cardinal District.
After losing its first three, Woodbridge appears to be in contention for a playoff spot. We’ll see what happens though at the close of the regular season.
Potomac falls to 4-5, 2-3 in Cardinal play.
I’m Robert Daski wishing everyone a good night and good weekend.
So you next week.