The gridiron gang had two reasons to celebrate Friday night ? they won the Division 1 District playoff game and avenged last year’s loss to Romeo, beating them 21-3.
‘It was a great game,? said senior Jordan Clark. ‘When we came out we knew we had to take it to them after they blew us out last year. Everyone was pumped up.?
Clark and his teammates were reminded before the game what happened last time Clarkston faced the Bulldogs.
‘It’s on every board ? the score and everything,? said Wolves Head Coach Kurt Richardson. ‘I talked to the seniors about what they went through last year and don’t let it happen again. We came out and laid down last year. We didn’t play very good, hard football. Romeo is a very good football team, but they embarrassed us.?
The game got rolling as Sophomore Alex Barta sent the ball into Romeo’s territory and into their end zone, starting the Bulldogs on their 20-yard line.
Seniors Dustin Gamble and Jack Durkan led the defense attack and kept Romeo from gaining enough yards for a first down.
Clarkston gained controlled on their 38-yard line and drove forward into the Bulldogs pen. As the scoreboard closed in on the final seven minutes in the first quarter, Quarterback Tyler Scarlett threw a powerful 40-yard pass to Derek Booker.
Booker ran to the side and into the end zone finishing five plays in 62 yards at 7:05.
The Wolves regained possession of the ball three minutes later on their 17-yard line.
Scarlett threw a 48-yard pass play to Gamble to put the boys in Romeo’s territory again and they closed in.
Scarlett threw again to Gamble as the final 30 seconds of the quarter rolled down. Gamble caught the 15-yard pass in the end zone to cap off a 83-yard drive in eight plays.
Romeo put themselves on the board with six minutes remaining in the first half. They had six yards to go on their fourth down and only 25 yards to reach the end zone. They took a chance and Robert Flinn kicked 41 yards for a field goal.
Clarkston made their final touchdown in the middle of the third quarter when Scarlett made a 4-yard pass to Dakota Bender.
‘Tyler has been our leader all year,? said Richardson. ‘He makes big plays when we needed him. He is our man – him and Dakota.?
Brian Benway was 3-3 on PATs.
While offense led on the board, Gamble led defense as they built a force Romeo couldn’t get past.
‘Defense did an awesome job,? said Richardson. ‘We only gave up three points and it was a field goal.?
‘Last year we underestimated the competition and this year we knew we couldn’t take them lightly,? said Clark. ‘We did a lot more tackling drills. We practiced different schemes and came out tackling.?
Another key for defense was prepping throughout the week was isolating Romeo’s running back Ben Brown and keeping him from scoring.
‘We made goals all year,? said Clark. ‘District champs was one of them. We achieved it and now we are looking ahead.?
The boys face Macomb Dakota after defeating Utica Eisenhower, 28-10.
‘It’s huge to be at home,? said Richardson. ‘We have been talking about it from game one – not only do we want to win, we want to look at the big picture and have home field advantage and what a difference it makes.?
Clark is set with his game plan for Friday and to ‘come out, play as hard as we can and do what we do.?
Richardson added the team will have to play better overall if they want to get to the Semifinals on Oct. 21.
‘There isn’t just one thing,? he noted. ‘We need to play better offensively, defensively, special teams – all the way through.Every week we try to get better and we will be in a dog fight.?
Clarkston is no stranger to Macomb Dakota. They played them in 2006 in the regionals playoffs, and lost 35-13.
But many Wolves fans remember the playoffs 10 years ago when Clarkston battled them into four overtime periods before winning, 57-56.
‘It was one of the best high school football games ever played,? said Richardson. ‘It’s a good rivalry.?
Clarkston (11-0) hosts Macomb Dakota (9-2) Friday. Kick-off is set for 6:55 p.m.