Run, Trace, Run! MRA Pulls Away Late For Win GREENVILLE – Tanner Propst had a good view of fellow defensive back Trace Kindred running down the field after he had picked off a fourth quarter pass deep in MRA territory here Friday night. Propst, who was trailing on the play, thought a Pick 6 was a possibility for Kindred, but he wasn’t sure if No. 33 was going to make it to the end zone or not. After all, 90 yards is a long way. Especially near the end of the game when the defense has been on the field a lot, being relied upon to come up with crucial stop after crucial stop. Turns out, Kindred wasn’t so sure he was going to make it either. “I was running out of gas at the end,” Kindred said, with a big smile. “I could hear Tanner yelling at me to run.” It wasn’t exactly Forrest Gump-esque, but Kindred did manage to navigate his way all the way to the end zone, all but sealing MRA’s 27-6 victory over No. 4 Washington School. It was the highlight of the night for the Patriots, who led by just one point, 7-6, before reeling off 20 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to pull away for their third victory over a ranked opponent in as many weeks. It wasn’t a pretty game. In fact, at times it was ugly. It certainly wasn’t MRA’s best. But beauty is in the eye of the beholder. And MRA coach Herbert Davis wasn’t worried all too much about style points afterwards. “It was a good win, I’m happy with it,” Davis said. “They got after us. Definitely beats the other.” The “other” seemed like a distinct possibility as MRA’s offense was stuck in neutral for much of the night before coming alive in the fourth quarter. Once again, the Patriots’ defense had the offense’s back throughout. It forced four turnovers - a fumble to go along with three interceptions – scored once and also blocked an extra point. While defensive coordinator Allen Pavatte’s gang wasn’t as dominant as it has been at times this season – allowing 278 total yards, 190 through the air – it was just as effective. Washington’s only points came as a result of an 80-yard interception return by Bailey Black in the waning seconds of the first half. “The defense played great,” Davis said. “They basically had a shut out. They bent some, but they didn’t break. They kept finding ways to make big plays. They actually kept us in the game until we were able to find something offensively that worked for us.” Propst had two interceptions, and nearly had a third. His first came deep in MRA territory with Washington threatening to score on its second drive. It also set up the first of Clint Moses’ three touchdown runs. Linebacker Brooks Edwards, who had yet another good game, forced the fumble as he sacked Washington quarterback Gore Pulliam after the Generals had reached the MRA 26-yard line on their first drive of the second half. “Our goal this whole week was getting a goose egg,” Edwards said. “We gave up some big plays here and there. But we bounced back and hit them in the mouth, and got right off the field. It was the second shutout of the season for Edwards and Co. The other came in the season-opener. In the last three games, all against ranked teams, MRA’s defense has allowed a total of 17 points and forced nine turnovers – six interceptions and three fumbles. For the season, the Patriots’ D is allowing only 8.6 points per game and has only been scored on once in the second half. “The defense played hard again,” Propst said. “We gave up more (yards) than we normally do. But all we were worried about was keeping them out of the end zone.” Austin Scott also helped the cause with another good night punting the ball. MRA, which improved to 5-3 overall and 3-1 in North AAA, has been on the outside looking in the past few weeks in regards to the Academy AAA rankings. After three wins in three weeks – all against ranked teams - the Patriots just may have played their way back in. More importantly, rankings aside, Davis’ team has re-established itself as a legitimate contender. The Patriots have now defeated then-ranked No. 4 Magnolia Heights (24-7), No. 3 and previously undefeated Starkville Academy (17-10), and current No. 4 Washington. This following a three-game skid that saw once-ranked MRA fall out of The Clarion-Ledger’s Top 5. Starting quarterback Hayden Davis did not play at all in two of those games and only played one half in the other. Davis is one of at least seven starters who missed games due to injury during that that stretch - a stretch that had some of the players and coaches questioning whether or not they were past the point of no return even though they were losing close games to quality opponents. “I was not very confident,” Propst said. “We had a bunch of injuries. I didn’t think we were going to make it through it.” “At one time it was pretty bleak,” said the elder Davis. “My hats off to them for staying together.” The Patriots can now exhale a bit. They have a much-needed, well-deserved bye this upcoming week before returning to action in two weeks at Jackson Academy. That rival game will likely go a long way in determining who makes the playoffs, and who doesn’t. If MRA wins, and then can defeat Hillcrest and Heritage in the final two games, it will all but assuredly qualify for the playoffs. If not, the Patriots would likely need some help. JA also has this upcoming week off. The Raiders’ last two games are at Starkville Academy and home against Washington. The top two teams in the North and the top two teams from the South make the AAA Division I playoffs. “Tonight’s win puts us in a good spot,” Kindred said. “We control our own destiny.” Washington, ranked No. 4 in The Clarion-Ledger AAA poll, dropped to 5-2 and 1-2 in the conference. The Generals had won four straight since losing 24-0 to Starkville Academy in early September. Next week’s off-week should do wonders for Davis, MRA’s sophomore signal caller who has played the past three weeks despite a high ankle sprain. He’s gotten progressively better each week, although it’s still obvious that he’s playing through a lot of pain. On Friday, Davis completed 9 of 19 passes for 134 yards, including a key 27-yard pass to J.C. Hughes that kept MRA’s first scoring drive alive. He was sacked four times, though, in part due to his lessened mobility caused by his injured ankle. “That’s definitely one of our main priorities during the off week, trying to get him healthy along with some of the other ones who have been out,” Davis said. “Some of them we are not getting back, but we are hoping to get some of them back.” Another priority is getting the offense going like it was early in the season when Davis was healthy. The Patriots managed only 251 total yards, 117 rushing yards on 40 carries to go along with Davis’ 134 through the air. At halftime, MRA had minus -12 yards rushing (factoring in all the lost yardage) and were sitting at minus -10 yards rushing before Karter Bounds broke loose on a 42-yard scamper midway through the third quarter. “We’ve got to keep working there,” Davis said. “We’ve got to get better on offense.” One thing that would help MRA’s offense is for Moses to continue to run the ball with authority like he did Friday night, particularly in the fourth quarter. The junior running back ran the ball 16 times for 91 yards, 63 of those coming on the Patriots’ last two drives. Both were capped by scoring runs from Moses – the first covering 35 yards to give MRA a 14-6 lead, and the second a 3-yarder with just over one minute remaining in the game. On one run, he ran over and through two defenders, leaving them both behind on the ground. “That was awesome,” said Moses, who now has 488 yards rushing and six touchdowns. “That was fun.” Davis wasn’t pleased with the way Moses was performing in the first half and let him know about it on one occasion in the first quarter. The coach and player exchanged words with each other, and apparently Davis got his message across. “I like that,” Moses said “It motivated me…it gave me a boost. The first half I kind of lost it. I was making mistakes. Thank God for my teammates. At halftime, they talked with me and helped me out. They told me to stay positive, and learn from my mistakes.” Bounds, who has been a workhorse through the first eight games while playing multiple positions, could also probably use the rest next week. He accounted for 131 yards – 65 yards rushing on 17 carries, 66 yards on 4 catches – giving him 963 total yards rushing, receiving and passing. That doesn’t include his kickoff and punt return yardage.
Posted on: Sat, 11 Oct 2014 09:06:26 +0000
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