By Staff
Photo by Paula Merritt/The Meridian Star
HITTING IT HARD Will Mosley is forced out of bounds after a reception by Newton County's Delvin Merrell.
By Marty Stamper/The Meridian Star
Nov. 17, 2001
During the week, Newton County head football coach Jeff Breland said his team had to control the tempo of Friday's Class 3A state playoff game at West Lauderdale in order to win.
Big band leaders Lawrence Welk, Mitch Miller, Les Brown, and even Brian Setzer wish they had the tempo down like Breland's Cougars did in their 40-10 rout of the Knights.
Newton County, 12-0, had 308 total yards by halftime as the Cougars carried a 26-3 lead into the break.
Newton County finished the night with a 425-172 advantage in total yards. Darryl Mapp had 33 carries for 195 yards and five touchdowns to lead the Cougars to a third-round date with Collins next Friday at Decatur. Collins blanked Philadelphia 23-0 last night. Mapp also had a 29-yard reception.
Newton County scored on its first possession as David McConnell boomed a 51-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead.
The Cougars put together a five-play, 55-yard scoring drive later in the first quarter. A 29-yard pass from Colby Amis to Mapp went to the West 3 with Mapp running in on the next play. McConnell's extra points gave Newton County a 10-0 lead with 1:38 remaining in the opening period.
A 12-play, 65-yard scoring drive gave the Cougars a 17-0 lead with 6:35 to go before halftime. Mapp had eight carries for 43 yards on the drive and scored on a 17-yard run with McConnell adding the PAT.
The Cougars took a 20-0 lead on a 31-yard field goal from McConnell with 1:30 left in the first half as they covered 81 yards on eight plays. The drive's big gain was a 69-yard pass from Amis to a wide open Adam Bout.
Newton County struck again after Jared Parten muffed the kickoff and the Cougars recovered at the West 39. Amis hooked up with Dusty Rose for a 36-yard gain, setting the stage for a 3-yard scoring run from Mapp that gave the Cougars a commanding 309-22 yardage advantage. McConnell's PAT was blocked, leaving the Cougars up 26-0.
West got on the scoreboard with 2.8 seconds left in the first half on a 41-yard field goal from Will Moseley. The Knights covered 43 yards in five plays to set up the score. Moseley caught passes of 12 and nine yards from C. Jay Fountain on the drive.
The Knights drove 76 yards in 10 plays with Fountain scoring on a sneak from a yard out with 4:01 remaining in the third period. Blanks had eight carries for 75 yards on the drive, breaking loose for a 50-yard pickup to the 16.
The Knights tried a fake punt in the final minute of the third period, only to come up three yards short of a first down.
The Cougars then covered 50 yards to go up 33-10 on a 17-yard run up the gut by Mapp. McConnell added the PAT.
The Cougars got their final touchdown three plays after the Knights lost a fumble at their 8. Mapp got his fifth touchdown of the night from two yards out with 57.6 seconds remaining.
Kendrick Windham gained 54 yards on 11 carries for the Cougars. Amis completed 7-of-11 passes for 165 yards. Rose had three catches for 49 yards.
Blanks, who had over 900 yards in the last three weeks, managed 115 yards on 21 carries against the swarming Cougar defense. Fountain completed 4-of-12 passes for 26 yards and suffered two interceptions as West finished 7-5.
Marty Stamper is a sports writer for The Meridian Star. E-mail him at mstamper@themeridianstar.com or phone him at 693-1551, ext. 3235.