Daphne 41, Robertsdale 7

Trojans pound Bears, improve to 6-1 in 6A Region 1 play

By John Underwood / john@gulfcoastmedia.com
Posted 10/26/16

ROBERTSDALE, Alabama — The Daphne Trojans sprinted out to a 21-0 lead en route to a 41-7 victory over the Robertsdale Golden Bears in 6A Region 1 play Friday night at J.D. Sellars Stadium in …

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Daphne 41, Robertsdale 7

Trojans pound Bears, improve to 6-1 in 6A Region 1 play

Posted

ROBERTSDALE, Alabama — The Daphne Trojans sprinted out to a 21-0 lead en route to a 41-7 victory over the Robertsdale Golden Bears in 6A Region 1 play Friday night at J.D. Sellars Stadium in Robertsdale.

“We wanted to come out fast,” said Trojan Head Coach Kenny King, “and we were able to have some success early.”

The Trojans took just four offensive plays to score 21 points in less than 8 minutes, taking a 24-0 lead at the end of the first period, then tacked on three more scores in the second period to extend the lead to 41-0 at the half.

After holding the Bears to three-and-out on the first series of the game, Daphne did not need an offensive play to get its first score of the game. After looking like he would get dropped for no gain when he fumbled the punt, receiver Myles Henderson picked the ball up, reversed field and raced 60 yards down the east sideline to score and Diego Guajardo’s extra point gave the Trojans a 7-0 lead with 9:17 left in the opening period.

After that the Trojans would outgain Robertsdale 257 to 37 yards in the first half, holding the Bears without a first down until their last series of the half.

Quarterback Chance Newman connected on 5 of 14 passes for 155 yards in the first half, including touchdown strikes of 56 yards to Henderson and 47 yards to Letarius Battiste to give Daphne a 21-0 lead with 4:07 left in the opening period.

While the Bears punted four times in the opening period, the Trojans punted just once and that one was fumbled, giving Daphne back the ball at the Robertsdale 11.

The Robertsdale defense backed Daphne up a yard on three plays, forcing a 29-yard fieldgoal from Guarjardo with 29.2 seconds left in the period.

Following another three-and-out, Robertsdale’s Evan Robertson recovered a Daphne fumble following a 9-yard reception from Newman to Henderson, but gained just two yards offensively on its next possession, setting up Daphne’s first score of the second period.

The Trojans had their longest sustained drive to that point – five plays – with runs of 39 and 13 yards by Battiste, followed by a Trojan penalty, then runs of 23 and two yards by Christopher Franklin to the Bear 1 before Newman connected with tightend Taylor Smith for another score to put Daphne up 31-0 with 6:05 remaining in the half.

A short punt, coupled by a 48-yard return from Henderson, left Daphne with another short field at the Bear 5 and Franklin took two direct snaps behind center with the second resulting in points, putting Daphne up 38-0 with 3:35 to go in the half.

The Trojans would get the ball back one more time before halftime and drove from their own 41, following a first-down penalty, to the Bear 18, but the drive would stall as Newman had two passes broken up by Bear defenders Anthony Hubbard and Chance Coleman. Guajardo’s 34-yard fieldgoal gave Daphne a 41-0 lead with 43.1 seconds left in the half.

The Trojans added 102 yards on just 10 carries on the ground in the first half, led by Battiste who had 52 yards on only two carries. Franklin added 50 yards on eight carries, finishing the game with 55 yards on 10 carries.

While the first half was all Trojans, the second half was more even as both teams emptied their benches and Robertsdale outscored Daphne 7-0 in the final two periods of play.

“We challenged our players to forget about the score and about the outcome and to come out and play hard in the second half,” said RHS Head Coach Brian Campbell. “I feel like our younger players came out and played hard both offensively and defensively in the second half.”

The Bear defense held Daphne without a first down on its first two offensive series of the game, then mounted a 71-yard, five-play drive to avoid the shutout. After a 15-yard penalty to open the drive placed the ball at the Bear 44, Deandre Prim rushed three times for 26 yards and Robertson caught two passes from quarterback Nate Krebs, including a 20-yard scoring grab. Mark Alvarez added the extra point to cut the lead to 41-7 with 1:06 left in the third quarter.

The young Bear offense outgained the Trojans 132 to 53 yards in the second half, led by freshman running back Broderick Wilson, who finished the game with nine carries for 56 yards. Prim added 29 yards on five carries in the second half to finish the game with 47 yards on 17 carries.

Both coaches see next week’s games as a must win for their teams. Robertsdale, who fell to 1-8, 1-6, will need to overcome injuries and other missing players to gain victory on the road at winless Gulf Shores (0-9, 0-7), who fell to Blount 46-7 Friday night.

“We have a lot of players on crutches right now,” Campbell said. “We need to have a good week of practice and come ready to play next week.”

Daphne will be looking to gain some momentum going into the playoffs, taking on Baldwin County High School (5-4, 3-4), who topped the LeFlore Rattlers 28-20.

“We won, but I don’t think we played our best game tonight,” said King. “It’s not always about winning and losing, it’s about getting better week to week and this week we took a step back. We need to assess where we are right now and make the determination that we are going to do what it takes to get better as a team.”