WILDCATS WHIP WINFIELD
Publication: THE SUNDAY GAZETTE-MAIL
Published: 08/28/1994
Page: P1D
Headline: WILDCATS WHIP WINFIELD
Byline: MIKE CHERRY
Nitro finally decided one
Winfield comeback was enough Saturday
night.
The host Wildcats permitted the return of former head coach Leon
McCoy to take place on Underwood Field. But Nitro stopped a frantic
on-field comeback _ depending on viewpoint _ either 13 yards or six
inches short as the Wildcats earned a season-opening 21-15 win before
about 2,300 fans.
Senior cornerback Bill Haynes dragged down General wide receiver
Kevin Mullen at the Nitro 13 along the sideline in front of
Winfield's bench. Mullen, who had caught a quick pass from Jeremy
Brown, desperately reached for the sideline, but could not stretch
far enough. The final five seconds depleted as Winfield could not
start another play.
"It was a little disappointing at the end,' McCoy said. "I
was proud my kids didn't quit. I think the conditioning paid off for
us there.'
Led by senior quarterback Dan Taylor, Nitro built a 21-7 lead
early in the fourth quarter.
touchdowns on 13 carries. He threw just three times, but his 22-yard
completion to Brian Clark set up the final Nitro score.
scored on a 1-yard sneak a play later with 10 seconds gone in the
fourth.
"I think he's probably our best running back,' Wildcat Coach
Greg Cyrus said.
cutback scoring run with 1:48 left in the second quarter. Many of
his yards came on bootlegs. In all, Nitro ran for 240 yards.
"We had problems finding him behind all those blockers,' McCoy
said.
Winfield also showed the ability to run, earning 169 of its 263
total yards (Nitro had 268) on the ground. The Generals' top threat
was 175-pound senior back David Briscoe. He rushed for 99 yards on
16 attempts and threw a first-quarter 15-yard scoring option pass to
Mullen to tie the game at 7.
Nitro had taken a 7-0 lead after 282-pound senior defensive
tackle Scott Riddle recovered a fumble on the Winfield 5. Three plays
later, senior back Robbie Withrow scored from the 1. Withrow added 70
yards on nine attempts, but a foot injury kept him from second-half
action.
"It's fun now,' Cyrus said of the game and its tingling
conclusion. "I was disappointed we didn't put them away when we had
the chance.'
After
plays. Brown's 1-yard sneak with 5:24 left capped the drive and the
Generals made their two-point attempt for a 21-15 score.
Nitro appeared safe when sophomore Jason Redman made a juggling
interception of a Brown pass on the Wildcat 38 with 1:06 left. But
Nitro was forced to punt and its kick dribbled just nine yards to its
46 with 39 seconds left.
On the third play, Brown hit Arrow Tewawina for 15
yards to the
19. Mullen's grasp for the sideline and Haynes' unyielding hands
ended the game on the next play.
"We can be decent and we can be interesting to our fans through
conditioning and our attitude for the game,' McCoy said.
Cyrus, however, was not sure the hype about Winfield's
conditioning was legitimate, although he said his team would have run
100 40-yard dashes had it blown the lead.
"That would make a big difference,' Cyrus said, "if we were a
cross country team.'