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Bears upend Raiders
“I thought our kids played great. Going up there (Birmingham) is a goal every year, we know you can’t make it every year but this year we will. We are just real excited; we have to get ready for another one. We have got a little more we want to do. Our defense played lights out tonight” Powell said. Houston Academy won the coin toss and elected to receive to start the game. The gamble did not pay-off, the Bear defense whipped the Raiders up front and forced a quick three and out after stopping star running back Stanley Jones in the backfield on a third and two. Leroy came out on offense with one clear mission, to play smash-mouth football. Consider the mission accomplished, Leroy marched 64 yards on their opening drive and capped the drive off with a Clint Moseley to Johnny Williams 7-yard touchdown pass. Paul Gartman nailed the point after to give the Bears a 7-0 lead with 7:16 to go in the opening stanza.
Houston Academy started their next drive at the 30-yard line and it didn’t take long to realize that the Raiders were over-matched by the physical Bear defense. On first and second down Houston Academy quarterback Watson Downs was sacked forcing a third down and 22. Leroy tried to help the Raider cause by committing back to back penalties but on third down and 12 the Bear defense was all over a screen pass to Stanley Jones dropping the talented senior for a 7-yard loss to force a punt. The Raiders defense forced the Bear offense to one of their few three and outs on the night to regain possession at their on 32- yard line. On first down the roof caved in for quarterback Watson Downs and his errant pass was intercepted by Leroy cornerback Michael Bracey. Bracey returned the ball to the Raider 20-yard line and the Bears were in business again with great field position. On first down, Leroy running back R. Bracey scored his first touchdown of the game going twenty yards untouched for the score. Gartman again made the point after and with 3:23 to go in the first quarter the Leroy lead was 14-0. On the ensuing possession for Houston Academy, the Leroy defense again was able to force a big turnover. This time it was linebacker Craig Weaver intercepting a Downs pass on a third and four to end the first quarter. The Leroy offense started the drive at the 30-yard line and quickly picked up runs of eight and 14-yards on first and second down by R. Bracey. Moseley capped the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run to give the Bears a 21-0 lead with 9:36 to go in the first half. After two straight turnovers by the Houston Academy offense, it was imperative that the offense get something going to avoid a complete first half disaster. The Raiders did just that, converting two crucial fourth down attempts and capitalizing on two Leroy penalties before Troy University verbal commitment Stanley Jones found pay-dirt with a 3 yard touchdown run with under two minutes to go in the half to bring the Raiders within two touchdowns of the Bears at 21-7. That score remained the same at the half. The Bears started the second half on offense and was held for only their second three and out of the night. Houston Academy forced an incomplete pass on a third to force the Leroy punt. Leroy would have no part in letting the Raiders cut further into the lead, dropping Stanley Jones deep in the back field on an attempted reverse on third and short to force another punt. Leroy started their drive at the 33-yard line. On first down R. Bracey picked up fifteen yards to kick-start the drive. Facing a big third and five from the Raider 17- yard line with four minutes to go in the third quarter, a Houston Academy defensive lineman jumped off-sides to give the Bears a free first down. The Bears would capitalize on the mistake with a R. Bracey 7-yard touchdown run later in the drive to give the Bears a comfortable 28-7 lead with 2:25 to go in the third quarter. Houston Academy would not go away quietly, on first down quarterback Watson Downs broke free for a 62-yard scamper down to the Leroy 10 yard line. The Bear defense would not budge though and Josh Trotter intercepted a desperation pass on fourth down by Watson Downs. The Leroy offense took over on their on 10-yard line and grinded out a 90-yard drive that took all but two minutes off the clock. The drive ended with a Detrick Powell 5-yard touchdown run to give the Bears a 34- 7 lead. The point after was missed, but at that point the Leroy Bears could care less. With a first time starter at quarterback in sophomore Moseley and a brand new head coach, the Bears are heading to Birmingham for a shot at their second state championship in three years. Leroy (13-1) will face Woodland (12-2) in what will be a rematch of the 2004 state championship game that the Bears won 17-14. Leroy is now 12-1 in the AHSAA play-offs in the last three seasons. Moseley added 67 yards on 10 carries while Powell had 65 yards on 12 carries. First year quarterback Clint Moseley said “Man, this is just unreal, I can’t even think right now. I never expected this out of my first year. Nobody expected this, everyone picked against us. My passing wasn’t really on tonight. I hate throwing against that zone. I did run the ball pretty good though. Our line just dominated. I can’t wait to get to Birmingham.”
Game time at Legion Field is 3 p.m.
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