Last night it was really Raw-ley in Raleigh: Nothern Guilford over Crest 21-20, for State 3-AA Championship

It rained most of the way down to Raleigh and it rained on the way back from Raleigh and with the fog rolling in to cover the top of Carter-Finley Stadium, plus a light mist that was falling throughout the course of the game, it was a Raw night in Raleigh, for the Norhern Guilford Nighthawks, but it didn’t rain on their parade, as they marched out of the stadium, with their State 3-AA Championship plaque in hand…..

21-20, Northern Guilford over Crest and I’ve broadcast 8 of these Championship games since back in 2000 and that’s the wildest ending/finish that I’ve seen yet….The missed extra point by the Crest Chargers’ kicker Tyler Austin and that just adds to the overall drama that led up to this game and it will be one that will be talked about, for many years to come…..

Rocco Scarfone, three toucdown passes, Maurice Harris with two TD receptions and an interception, TJ Logan with a 30-yard TD catch from Scarfone on the first Nighthawk offensive series, right after Crest had fumbled the ball away after taking the opening kickoff….Mark Mitchell a super interception at the Nighthawk five-yard line to squelch a Crest scoring opportunity and Mitchell also recovered an on-side kick….Stellar defensive play from linebackers Alan Hart, Daniel Downing, plus Mohammed Khellah and linemen Stephen Machanic, Sam Parker and Ryan Johnson……We also need to send up props to K Kris Gafford, connecting for 3-3 on his PAT’s and as we found out last night, there are no guarantees…..

You could go on and on, but the Hawk stops right there with that 21-20 victory, coming on the heels/what heals you, of that Austin missed extra point….The Nighthawk offense was relatively quiet in the first half, with the exception of that Scarfone to Logan touchdown play, but the Nighthawks came alive, when they took the opening kickoff to start the second half right down the field and scored on a pass play from Scarfone to Harris……

This game was filled with emotion and you will find that to be the case in almost all of these type settings….

As I was talking about earlier, this game will take the cake, when it comes to overall endings/finishes that I have seen from our local teams, in the State Title games and with the missed PAT and me yelling, NO GOOD, NO GOOD, NO GOOD over and over again for a minute or so, that will stick out and stay in my mind for a few days/weeks….

But again, I have seen a few, last night made football Championship Game #8 going back to the 2000 season….

Back in 2000, it was Ragsdale falling to Bertie on a Friday night in Kenan Stadiium, with Bertie’s Randall Rankins throwing for 322 yards and 2 TD’s to Jequan Rankins…Bertie won it by something like 34-15 and we later saw Randall Rankins playing quarterback at N.C. A&T…Game two for me and my crew came in 2002, with Dudley falling to Gastonia Ashbrook, on a last-second field goal by Ashbrook’s kicker Lowell Rauch….Dudley was going down hard in the first half, but came on strong to go ahead in the second half, led by RB Jamaal Edwards, who went on to play at Florida State and by DeMario Pressley, who played at N.C. State and in the NFL…Dudley was coached by Victor Floyd and the game was played at Carter-Finley Stadium….

The Northeast Guilford Rams faced South Point, out of Belmont, back in 2003 and the Rams had big Matt Deese and Nathan Cockman, but they came up short against the Raiders from South Point…Cockman was named offensive player-of-the-game and did not play football his senior year and in fact, never played football again, but he did play baseball for N.C. State….In 2003 we were in Kenan Stadium again, I think…..

In 2004 it was Dudley again and this time the scene was then-Groves Stadium in Winston-Salem, where the Panthers would meet the Crest Chargers….Dudley led by their QB James Tre’ Perry, had a super first half, but Crest led by the current NFL linebacker Brandon Spikes, who also was a star at Florida; well Crest took over in the second half, with defense by Spikes and the running of Martay Littlejohn, the Chargers spoiled the first Championship game, for now Panther first-year head coach Steven Davis and Crest took the contest, but just like I told you, Dudley would be back….Wait and see they will return…..

In 2005 it was the Grismely Whirlies in Raleigh at Carter-Finley, to battle Greenville Rose and Rose rose to the occasion and knocked off the Guilford County team….Grimsley was led by Robert Lane and that kid did all he could to try and will his Whirlies to win/victory, but Grimsley could not contain Jonathan Williams(now the starting RB for ECU) and the Rose Rampants….Grimsley also had guys like David Moore, Peguese, Rease, Morris, Stewart and others…..

Dudley claimed their first title in 2007, when they beat Charlotte Catholic at Carter-Finley Stadium and Ricky Lewis led his Panthers to the title and he did it with his feet…The QB kid could run and he made sure his Panthers were going to get that 3-AA title on that Saturday afternoon in Raleigh and he did again with his Panthers the following year, 2008, in Winston-Salem at BB&T Field/Groves Stadium….That season, Dudley defeated A.L. Brown, out of Kannapolis for the 3-AA crown…..

I may add more to this blog post later on today, but for now, Northern as added another NCHSAA 3-AA Football title to the Guilford County trophy case and we stand at (3-5) in the title pursuit, since 2000….

Scarfone and Lewis were both very capable leaders and that explains a large part, of why their teams came home with, “Mission Accomplished”……..

*****Just ran into RB David Moore(Grimsley HS/Guilford College) here in the Guilford College library and he is doing well headed deeper into the exam period and he wishes all in the Greensborosports.com viewing area, a safe and happy holiday season…….***** [Again, checking in LIVE or as close as you can get to it, here at the Hege Library on the Guilford College campus, on a wet Sunday evening…..]

One thought on “Last night it was really Raw-ley in Raleigh: Nothern Guilford over Crest 21-20, for State 3-AA Championship

  1. Thanks for all the thoughts guys but that was a great job by the Nighthawks and again, Congratulations to them and their families on the win Saturday in Raleigh….

    This was a good win and I hope the kids had fun and will continue to….For many of you fun is trying to hurt others and for you, we have no time for you….

    Would love to say more, but I work with and see many of the coaches, players and AD’s on a regular basis and I will continue to support them and not those of you who think you know it all, but you don’t have a clue….You sit back and watch and don’t do anything and the kids go out and get the job done….

    We’ll support the kids and you have trashed many of them, what if the role is reversed and someone starts trashing your kid????

    Thanks for taking away a good chance to discuss this game….You have ruined it for others…..

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