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Dante's Inferno: East rusher sparks second-half charge in comeback win over Plano
BY Matt Welch, mwelch@acnpapers.com
The Plano East (5-4, 3-3) football team has learned a thing or two about resilience the past few weeks.
Those lessons were put into practice from the opening moments of the second half Friday night at Clark Stadium, setting the table for a three-score comeback and 28-24 victory over Plano Senior (4-5, 1-5)
"We told the kids at halftime that they had one choice," said Johnny Ringo, East head coach. "They can show great character, come back and play the way we know we can play or not. I'm proud of our kids and coaches. They did exactly what we asked."
It required capitalizing on a myriad of Wildcats errors, from a pair of consecutive false starts to a 21-yard punt that placed a mere 31 yards between the Panthers and the end zone.
Regaining the ball with 3:24 to play, the Panthers divvied up rushes between seniors Dante Taylor, Nathan Meadors and Corey Wesley. A 6-yard keeper by Wesley drew the Panthers to the Plano 6-yard line and one play later, it was Taylor who found pay dirt for the third time in the half for East's first lead of the ballgame at 28-24.
"We stuck with our game plan," Taylor said. "In the first half, we came out a little slow, but in the second half the line gave us a great push and we took advantage of it."
With Plano junior Richard Lagow injured on the Wildcats' second-to-last drive, a last stand fell on the shoulders of freshman Christian Hutzler. Given just 47 seconds to amass 80 yards, the drive ended with a Hutzler pass sailing over the outstretched arms of senior Sam Morell on 4th-and-9 to procure the Panther victory.
"For whatever reason, we kind of self-destructed," said Jaydon McCullough, Plano head coach. "But you have to give Plano East credit because they're a good football team. We had trouble stopping the run and they had one long pass on us, and we were kind of reeling."
The Panthers ran for 225 yards; 153 on the legs of Taylor, who required just 20 carries while chipping in 24 yards in the passing game.
Taylor totaled three touchdowns, scoring on East's first two possessions of the third.
Accruing just 46 yards in the first half, Taylor surpassed the mark four minutes into the third; accounting for 58 yards on seven carries to cap a nine-play drive with a 2-yard touchdown for East's first points of the game. Taylor added an 18-yard touchdown run to one series later, drawing the Panthers to within 17-14 with 2:21 to play in the third.
The Wildcats steadied the tide by extending their lead back to 10 points on the opening play of the fourth quarter after Lagow found Morell deep for 33 yards. Winning a jump ball battle with East junior Nimoy Tennison, Morell ballooned the cushion to 24-14 with 11:52 left in the game.
Morell led all Wildcat receivers with 71 yards on three catches while Lagow threw for 148 yards on 10-of-17 passing.
East closed its deficit down eight minutes later after Wesley found senior Tre Jones on a crossing route that led to a 42-yard touchdown and 24-21 trail.
"We went back to our basics," Ringo said. "I thought we were the more physical football team in the second half. That's all we talked about before the game because that's how Plano beat us last year."
Wesley finished with 129 yards on 8-of-15 passing with one touchdown while chipping in 37 yards on the ground. Jones hauled in three balls for 57 yards and a score.
One of Wesley's two interceptions silenced East's final drive of the first half and creaked open the floodgates until the second half took form. Driving with 48 seconds left in the second quarter, the series went awry after senior wide out Kaleb Jones lost his footing. That opened the door for Plano senior Tyler Grant, who picked off Wesley's pass and ran the ball back 43 yards for a touchdown that equated a 17-0 halftime cushion.
"We had trouble finishing tonight," McCullough said. "Up 17-0 at halftime, that's all we talked about: finish, finish, finish, stay focused and don't be complacent."
The second half didn't go to Plano's liking after capping the first half with a 14-0 run in the final 68 seconds.
Prior to Grant's pick, it was senior Rakeem Crawford who accrued a 1-yard touchdown run for Plano's first score of the night. Crawford totaled 130 yards on 23 carries.
The late Plano push put the Panthers on their heels in a first half littered with missed opportunities.
For East, an opening drive that featured a swift dose of Taylor was dashed on a holding call that negated a 3rd-and-1 conversion from the Plano 12. The call backed the Panthers up to a 37-yard field goal attempt by senior Casey Collins that sailed wide left.
Plano's response proved just as ill-fated, launching a 13-play crusade that drove as far as the Panthers 1 before stalling out courtesy of a Lagow fumble that fell into the arms of senior Nick Self. The ball was jarred loose on a sack, a common theme throughout the night as Lagow succumbed to the East pass rush five times.
"We had to (pressure Lagow) because he's such a great passer," Ringo said. "He hurts you big time throwing the ball, so if we didn't get to him, he'd pick up apart."
The loss ends the Wildcats' hope for a playoff berth.
Plano looks to rebound in its season finale Friday against Plano West at 7:30 p.m. from Clark Stadium. The Panthers' playoff hopes rest on the outcome of that game as well. A win over Lewisville, coupled with a Plano win would equate an East playoff berth. The Panthers and Farmers tangle Friday at 7:30 p.m. from Kimbrough Stadium.
"We're just playing as a team," Taylor said. "We're coming together and it's all clicking."
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