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Arlington, Tx – Linebacker Jeremiah Harris remembers the sting of defeat in last season’s state championship game loss to Highland Park, 27-17. However, this year, he shares a sweeter taste with his teammates.
The road to victory lived up to its billing. Still, gratification stood near senior Linebacker Terrance Marshall, who broke up a game-tying touchdown with no time left, as Alvin Shadow Creek went on to claim its first state championship, 28-22 in the Class 5A Division I Finals on Friday night at AT&T Stadium.
Marshall broke up a game-ending pass intended for Alabama signee 6’5″ standout receiver Drew Sanders in the end zone with the clock reflecting zeros. Immediately after, a celebration erupted on Shadow Creek’s sideline.
But before the thrilling finish, Raiders’ Receiver Billy Bowman, Jr. made up for a dropped pass the play before by securing a reception at the 33, giving Denton Ryan a first down. The clock continued to tick away, but Ryan called a timeout after Henigan carried the ball to the 38 with 14 seconds left. Two plays later a trick play and a personal foul pushed the Raiders to the 26. Henigan connected with Bowman, who pitched the ball to Sanders cutting left. Sanders then tossed the ball to junior defensive end/receiver Ja’Tavion Sanders, who was tackled out of bounds by junior cornerback Jaylen Lane near the 40 of Shadow Creek. The penalty carried the ball to the 25-yard line, where it set up the last play of the game with 2 seconds left.
“We just played a great team,” Sharks quarterback Kyron Drones spoke. “You see, it came down to the last two seconds.”
“The scoring drive which set up Denton Ryan’s near comeback opened at its 33-yard line. Bailey’s 15 yard run up the middle set the tone. After a couple of five-yard penalties, Henegan evaded the rush, picking up eight yards at the 40 to wipe out a fourth and six with 2:23 left. Two plays later, the Sharks absorbed a 15-yard personal foul when defensive end Alec Bryant wrestled Henegan down out of bounds, giving the Raiders a fresh set of downs at the 19 with 1:56 to go.
But Henegan suffered a sack at the 26 when junior nose guard Jairo Castillo, Jr. blasted through the line. On the next play, the strong-willed junior delivered a perfect strike to Ja’Tavion Sanders in the back of the end zone with 1:14 remaining as Denton Ryan closed the gap, 28-22 following the extra point kick by Nuzzo.
“That was a nail bitter,” said Sharks coach Brad Butler. “It wasn’t any sense of relief until the very end. It’s a credit to both teams. This was a big-time fight, and both teams hung in there.
Sharks’ quarterback Kyron Drones spectacular evening awarded him the MVP for several reasons as he led the way, carrying the ball 24 times for 135 yards and two touchdowns. He also added 185 yards through the air on 10-of-18 passing with two interceptions.
The last 59 seconds of the game, proved to be critical for both teams. Ryan fans cheered and shouted from the edge of its seats as the Raiders’ final drive began at its 18-yard line with 47 seconds left.
“We found a way,” Butler explained. “I thought we had made too many mistakes, but we found a way to win, I couldn’t be happier.”
Henigan passed for 161 yards on 18-of-34 attempts and a touchdown.
The Sharks (16-0) behind Drones moves the ball down the field through Ryan’s defense and scores on Drones one-yard touchdown run with 7:27 left in the first quarter.
The mystery of figuring out the Sharks quick and stingy defense frustrated Denton Ryan, who averaged 53.9 points a contest.
Denton Ryan (15-1) countered, returning the kickoff for a touchdown when receiver Tra Smith raced 91 yards. Then the Raiders surprised Shadow Creek by going for two points when Sanders took the handoff and battled his way into the end zone with 7:12 left. Ryan led 8-7.
After, the game shifted toward defense. The Sharks accounted for two sacks and three plays resulting in no gain or loss of yards in the first half. Denton Ryan, in a comparable fashion, sacked Drones twice, grabbed two interceptions, and registered a couple of stops behind the line of scrimmage.
At the center of attention, Sharks senior linebacker Jeremiah Harris picked up the defensive MVP honors, recording seven tackles and two sacks.
“I knew I had to do it for my team,” Shadow Creek’s linebacker Harris said. “We worked so hard for this. We remember the pain we felt last year when we lost to Highland Park, and after you feel that pain, you don’t want to feel that again.”
A bizarre play developed when the Raiders lined up in punt formation. The snap from the center sailed over punter Riley Nuzzo’s head into the end zone. With the rush in pursuit, Nuzzo sprinted back to the end zone and illegally kicked the ball out of the end zone to the Denton Ryan’s 37-yard line.
Several players held its ground, unsure of how to respond. But without hesitating, Shadow Creek’s sophomore receiver Randy Masters raced to the ball, scooped it up and sprinted 37 yards down the sideline to the end zone, as the Sharks recaptured the lead, 14-8, following Eric Landaverde’s extra-point kick with 5:43 to go in the second quarter.
The Raiders suffered back-to-back illegal formation penalties, which halted a drive, but another opportunity blossomed when Bowman intercepted Drones with 50 seconds left in the second quarter. The possession ended when Harris dropped Henigan on back-to-back sacks before intermission.
In the third quarter, sophomore running back Kelvon Brown’s 25-yard pickup and receiver Seth Jones’ 31-yard catch fueled the opening drive when Drones sealed a one-yard touchdown run with 7:58 to go. That increased Shadow Creek’s lead, 21-8.
The Raiders responded with a 73-yard drive. Two plays into the series, Henigan found Sanders and junior Ja’Tavion Sanders for back-to-back big plays, picking up 33 yards, as it moved to the Sharks 38-yard line. Then a pair of plays later, running back Emani Bailey carried the ball to the 20, and Sanders capped the drive on a two-yard run, trimming the score,21-15.
Another golden opportunity eluded the Raiders after defensive lineman Dorian Anderson recovered a fumble lost by Drones in Shadow Creek’s territory at the 39. But the drive ended in a turnover of downs.
Then the Sharks would take advantage of a 15-yard pass interference call charged to Try Smith, moving the ball to the 37, and later Drones found an opening and penetrated to the Denton Ryan’s eight. Brown finished the possession, shredding a few would-be tacklers on his way to the end zone as the Sharks extended its lead, 28-15 with 3:08 left.
Other interesting facts, in two two varsity seasons, Shadow Creek has two state appearances, a title and coach Butler is 31-1 in the school’s young history.
illegal man downfield No 77 and Henegan offsides,
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