Saturday, Nov. 29, 2008

Chesterfield dominates Bears for title

Rams outgain Carvers Bay by 200 yards behind do-it-all quarterback Johnson

ORANGEBURG — Chesterfield left no doubt that the better team won the state championship in 2008.

The Rams won their second consecutive Class A, Division I state championship, dominating Carvers Bay 21-0 at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium in the teams' third consecutive meeting in the title game.

Despite Chesterfield's dominance in 2006 — both during the regular season and during the game — Carvers Bay won its second state title. Despite Carvers Bay's overall dominance in 2007, Chesterfield won its first state title.

The heavily favored Rams (13-1), who finished the year a failed two-point conversion against Central away from perfection, broke that trend, dominating on the field and on the scoreboard.

They outgained Carvers Bay by 200 yards (323-123), and the Bears managed 45 yards in a first half that saw them fall behind by three scores. Carvers Bay had not been shutout since losing to Andrews 39-0 in 2004.

“It kind of hurts,” Carvers Bay (11-3) linebacker Keshawn Frasier said. “It kind of hurts, but we are building for next year. Them boys next year are going to bring it back.”

The youth-laden Bears, who returned five starters from the 2007 squad, were not expected to get back to Orangeburg this season, but they matured as the season progressed and return a solid nucleus in 2009.

“I'm really proud of those kids,” Carvers Bay coach Nate Thompson said. “We had one guy coming back on offense as a starter. We only had four guys coming back on defense. And we're here today. I know there are a lot of teams that thought they were better than us, but they aren't here.”

Thompson told his players in their postgame huddle that this was one of his best teams. If that's true, then what does that say about Chesterfield?

Behind do-it-all quarterback Akeem Johnson, a senior who kicked, punted and even served as a lead blocker on several occasions, the Rams displayed the offensive firepower that makes them one of Class A's most explosive offenses. Carvers Bay was the third opponent to hold the Rams under 30 points.

Johnson, who completed 13 of 23 passes for 132 yards, caused fits for opponents all year, especially in Class A, where his team is one of the few that runs a pass-heavy offense. Johnson's 23-yard touchdown pass to Jonathan Murvin on the sixth play of the game was ultimately the winning score.

But Chesterfield was far from one dimensional. Tailback Derrick McQueen rushed 20 times for 160 yards, and Sergio Johnson rushed six times for 35 yards and two five-yard touchdowns.

“To do anything like we are trying to do, you've got to have the talent,” said Chesterfield coach Steve Taneyhill, who returns 15 of the 22 starters in Friday's game. “We're blessed with some good running backs, our quarterback is good and the offensive line, for being under sized like it was today, did a great job.”

As fast as Chesterfield is on offense, the undersized defense may be even faster. Taneyhill said every defensive starter had sub-4.7 speed. The Bears had a big size advantage on both sides of the ball, but the Rams clogged the middle of the formation and responded quickly when the Bears tried to run outside.

CH — Jonathan Murvin 23 pass from Akeem Johnson (Johnson kick failed) 9:59

CH — Sergio Johnson 5 run (S. Johnson pass from A. Johnson) 3:38

Second quarter

CH — S. Johnson 5 run (A. Johnson kick) 1:24

RUSHING — Carvers Bay, Davious Chestnut 16-60, Geathers 12-33, Acklin 7-19, Cox 2-10, Linnen 3-1. Chesterfield, Derrick McQueen 20-160, S. Johnson 6-35, Rivers 1-1, Miller 1-1, Merriman 1-(-2), A. Johnson 4-(-4).

PASSING — Carvers Bay, Carlton Linnen 4-8-1 0 minus-2, Geathers 0-1-0 0 0. Chesterfield, Johnson 13-23-1 1 132.

RECEIVING — Carvers Bay, Karim Gamble 2-2, Milligan 1-1, Chestnut 1-(-5). Chesterfield, Jonathan Murvin 7-49, S. Johnson 2-48, McCall 2-22, R. Rivers 2-13.

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