By By Austin Bishop / EMG regional sports director
Oct. 23, 2004
DEKALB Chris Skinner may have carried the mail for Clarkdale High School Friday night, but Blake Johnson applied the postage with a 1-yard touchdown run with 23 seconds left in the game to deliver a 12-6 win over Kemper County and assure the Bulldogs of a spot in the MHSAA prep football playoffs.
With Chris Sirven out and Cedric Burns limited to spot play, Skinner was asked to be the workhorse for the Bulldogs and he responded with 184 rushing yards on 23 carries.
He picked up 72 of those yards on just four carries in Clarkdale's game-winning 93-yard drive that culminated with Johnson faking to Skinner up the middle, then racing untouched around right end for the winning touchdown.
The game-winning drive began at the Clarkdale 7-yard line, after the Bulldogs had come up with a big defensive stop on fourth-and-goal to turn the Wildcats away.
Kemper, which had tied the game at 6-6 on a 3-yard run by Cyril Edwards with 9:35 to play in the game, drove the ball down to the CHS 3-yard-line where it faced a fourth-and-goal.
KCHS quarterback Marcus Green, who finished the night with 92 yards rushing, tried to get around right end, but Clarkdale defensive back Michael Steele had other ideas.
After Steele cut Green down for a 3-yard loss, Skinner responded with a 41-yard run to get the Bulldogs out of the hole.
Gartman agreed.
While Steele's defensive stop, Skinner's bruising running and Johnson's touchdown were certainly highlights for the Bulldogs, punter Kevin McKissack may have come up with the biggest play of the night.
With just over six minutes to play in the game and the score tied, Clarkdale faced a fourth-and-four at its own 9-yard line and was forced to punt out of its own endzone.
The snap from center was high, but McKissack made an athletic play to tip the ball up in the air then catch it. He then cut loose a 25-yard punt on the run under great pressure.
Clarkdale dominated field position in the first half and took a 6-0 lead on a 1-yard run by Skinner with 6:34 to play in the second quarter. The extra point kick attempt failed. The drive covered 72 yards and took 16 plays.
Kemper County threatened to tie the game late in the half, but Clark Boatner recovered a fumble for the Bulldogs at the CHS 6-yard line.
Clarkdale finished the game with 312 yards, all on the ground. Kemper County had 217 rushing yards and 45 passing yards for 262 yards of total offense.
Clarkdale, now 3-5 overall and 3-1 in Division 5-2A plays host to Newton High School on Friday night. The winner of that game will finish second in the division and will earn the right to host a first-round playoff game.