Airport takes off with backup, downs Dreher

Airport backup quarterback Josh Tucker’s 65-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter rallied the Eagles to a 23-20 victory over Dreher Friday night at Memorial Stadium.

Tucker replaced the injured Brett Burnett and Airport hardly missed a beat.

The Blue Devils had a chance to force overtime but the 34-yard field goal attempt was wide right with 10 seconds remaining.

The Eagles (2-0) won the battle of field position all night. Their scoring drives were 58, 80, 46 and 65 yards. Dreher had to cover nearly the length of the field on every possession. Their scoring drives were 75, 69 and 73 yards and their best starting field position was their own 31 yard line.

TURNING POINT

Dreher took a 20-16 lead when Avery Armstrong scored his third touchdown of the night on a 1-yard quarterback dive. After the ensuing kickoff went out of bounds, Tucker took the snap and raced untouched to the end zone to cap the scoring with 1:13 remaining in the third quarter.

KEY PERFORMERS

Josh Tucker: The senior is normally a wide receiver and hasn’t taken snaps at quarterback since his freshman year. He started slow but finished with 206 yards on 16 carries. He keptthe defense honest by going 9-of-18 for 86 yards and one interception.

Avery Armstrong: Armstrong almost did enough to lead the Blue Devils back. The Furman commit finished 9-of-13 for 181 yards and ran for an additional 79 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. His scoring runs were 5, 10 and 1 yards.

Jay Washington: The sophomore has the potential to be a big-time prospect. He’s shifty and hard to bring down on first contact. He finished with 160 yards on 24 carries.

OBSERVATIONS

Injuries played a factor: Airport had to play without starting quarterback Brett Burnett. The junior injured his knee on the final play of last week’s victory over Brookland-Cayce. Dreher lost offensive linemen Noah Turnley and Kwesi Jackson in the first quarter.

Airport easily could be a Top 10 team: The Eagles are 2-0 and Kirk Burnett doesn’t believe his team has played anywhere close to their ability. Getting Brett Burnett back healthy will be key but Tucker proved he’s more than able to handle things until then.

As long as Avery Armstrong stays healthy, the Blue Devils have a chance: Armstrong missed last week with a concussion and returned to direct the Blue Devils offense efficiently. Armstrong did it with his arm and legs and will be trouble for opponents moving forward.

THEY SAID IT

“Josh Tucker hasn’t played quarterback in over two years and you couldn’t tell it by his performance. He showed a lot of poise and I just think he showed why he is one of our school’s best athletes.” – Airport coach Kirk Burnett

“Field position was big. We missed a few in the kicking game and we have to improve on that. They had short fields and that proved to be key.” – Dreher coach Treigh Sullivan

“It felt great. I trusted my offensive line and they trust me so I have to make plays. The first couple of drives were rough but I got a feel for it. It worked out. – Airport backup QB Josh Tucker

THREE KEY NUMBERS

292: Total offensive yards for Airport QB Josh Tucker

187: Total number of yards by Dreher running back Jay Washington – 160 rushing and 27 receiving.

5: Dreher quarterback Avery Armstrong completed all five pass attempts in the first half

HOW THEY SCORED

This story was originally published September 5, 2015 at 12:12 AM.