Airport holds on for first-round victory
Josh Tucker threw for a pair of touchdowns and ran for two more as Airport defeated Orangeburg-Wilkinson 35-27 on Friday in the first round of the Class 3A Lower State playoffs.
It was the Eagles’ first playoff win since 2011, which was also the last time they won 10 games in a season. Airport (10-1) will travel to No. 1 Hartsville next week in the second round. It’s the third meeting between the teams in the playoffs, which includes the 1981 Class 3A title game.
Tucker rushed for 141 yards and threw for 130. His 86-yard run, which he used a spin move to break free, gave Airport a 35-13 with 9:36 left.
O-W quarterback Joee Bonaparte, who came in for an injured Jasaun Grainger in the second quarter, led the Bruins to a pair of scoring drives to trim the lead to 35-27 with 36 seconds left. But Airport recovered the onside kick to seal the win.
TURNING POINT
Facing a fourth-and-8 from its own 46, Airport ran a fake punt and Zach Feaster picked up nine yards for a first down. Two plays later, Richardson scored on a 15-yard run to give the Eagles a 28-13 lead with 5:20 left in the third quarter.
KEY PERFORMERS
Josh Tucker: Senior quarterback accounted for 271 yards of offense and four TDs.
Kerryon Richardson: Airport receiver caught three passes for 46 yards and a TD, and also had a 15-yard touchdown run.
THEY SAID IT
“That fake punt, I think they saw it, but Zach Feaster made a heck of a run. He is one of the toughest players I ever coached. He got the first down and a few plays later we were back in the end zone.” – Kirk Burnett, Airport coach
“We haven’t won 10 games in a while, but I feel like we came out to play tonight. We got down early and bounced back like we always do and played ball.” – Josh Tucker, Airport quarterback
KEY NUMBERS
356: Total yards of offense by Airport in the game.
3: Number of quarterbacks used in the game by O-W.
HOW THEY SCORED
1st Quarter
OW – Ruppert 1 run (Thompson kick), 9:55
A – Richardson 15 pass from Tucker (Brooks kick), 1:34
2nd Quarter
A – Feaster 12 pass from Tucker (Brooks kick), 5:28
3rd Quarter
A – Tucker 1 run (Brooks kick), 10:35
OW – Bonaparte 11 run (kick failed), 7:17
A – Richardson 15 run (Brooks kick), 5:20
4th Quarter
A – Tucker 86 run (Brooks), 9:37
OW – Patterson 9 pass from Bonaparte (Johnson pass from Bonaparte), 6:26
OW – Bonaparte 2 run (run failed), 0:39
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing: O-W: Ruppert 23-107, Grainger 7-13, Johnson 6-18, Green 5-17, Bonparte 4-22, Walker 3-19. A: Earl 12-59, Tucker 17-141, Richardson 2-18, Feaster 2-8.
Passing: O-W: Grainger 1-2-0 3. Bonaparte 5-10-0 57, Walker 3-4-0 46. A: Tucker 9-16-0 130
Receiving: O-W: Milhouse 2-23, Johnson 3-47, Rivers 2-24, Ruppert 1-3, Patterson 1-9. A: Nottingham 2-20, Hairston 1-11, Richardson 3-46, Wright 2-41, Feaster 1-12.
This story was originally published November 13, 2015 at 11:23 PM.