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| WEEK 2 FOOTBALL: Diboll 49, Silsbee 35 |
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Posted: Friday, November 13, 2009 1:17 pm
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By GERRY L. DICKERT
The Bee
It was a matter of too many penalties at the wrong time and not enough defense at the right time as Silsbee fell to Diboll 49-35 this past Friday night at Lumberjacks Stadium.
Silsbee, coming off a big win over Houston Davis in the Tigers’ first week of play, rolled into Diboll perhaps expecting a team still limping after a 62-20 beating at the hands of Kirbyville in the season-opener.
What Silsbee found, though, was a revitalized Diboll team that showed some big-play savvy and a desire not to go 0-2 to start the year.
Silsbee’s efforts to start the season 2-0 were stymied by two huge penalty calls that would undo two touchdowns late in the game, one a break-away run by quarterback Jeremy Johnson and another on a pass reception for a score.
In addition, Silsbee would find stopping one of the top runningbacks in the state a big job, especially as the game wore on into the late moments.
In a game featuring some of the top rushing talent in this part of Texas, it would be the passing game that made the biggest impact as both teams went on an aerial attack that extended through four quarters and kept the game close even as Diboll would try to run away with the win.
Chris Bailey finished with 210 yards passing for the Lumberjacks, collecting three touchdown completions, hitting 12 of 27 attempts overall.
It would be Silsbee, though, that would get on the board first, taking its first possession of the game the distance with quarterback Jeremy Johnson running the last 25 yards for the touchdown. A missed extra-point attempt left the Tigers leading 6-0.
With about seven minutes left in the first quarter, Diboll hit paydirt when Bailey connected with Kamran McCollum for 17 yards and the TD. A Cody Stisle kick gave the Jacks a 7-6 lead.
Less than a minute later, the Jacks were on the board again when sophomore running sensation Terrance Taylor crossed the goal line from 22 yards out. Stisle’s kick made it 14-6.
Almost as quickly, the Jacks scored again with 4:49 left in the quarter when Bailey crossed the goal line from a yard out. The extra-point kick gave Diboll a surprising 21-6 lead.
Silsbee found itself in a precarious position, trailing by more than two touchdowns to a team that had already scored more points in a quarter than they did in its entire game a week ago.
So the Tigers went to the air again.
Johnson hit a streaking Kelson McDaniel who sprinted into the end zone on a 65-yard pass-and-catch. Johnson found Chris Barnes on a two-point conversion pass and the Tigers were back in the game 21-14.
But Diboll wasn’t finished with the first quarter.
With just 25 seconds left in the first quarter, Bailey found Stisle for a 27-yard toucdown pass, extending the Jacks’ lead to two touchdowns again at 28-14.
The Tigers recovered, though, never giving up on its own offensive abilities, an attitude that paid off with a second-quarter touchdown with 8:54 left in the half. Johnson went to the air again, hitting Jarrian Rhone for 20 yards and the score. Again, the Tigers’ extra-point kick flew wide, leaving the Tigers down 28-20.
Diboll’s Taylor would score on a 3-yard run and on an 18-yard run, handing the Jacks a seemingly impenetrable 42-20 lead.
Midway through the third quarter, Johnson found Pheall Hill on a 68-yard touchdown pass to draw the Tigers to within 42-28.
The Silsbee defense stiffened up, forcing a three-and-out and then pressuring the Diboll punter into booting a mere 9-yard punt, setting up the Tigers at the Diboll 37 with about 10 minutes left in the game.
After a roughing-the-passer call against Diboll helped move Silsbee to the Jacks’ 5-yard-line, Johnson would take a bootleg to the left for the score and a 42-35 difference.
On the next possession, Taylor broke loose again, going 33 yards before being stopped. The Tigers defense once again answered the call, holding Diboll to minus-one yard. On fourth down, one what is likely the biggest play of the game, Diboll’s Bailey went to the air on fourth down, finding McCollum open for the touchdown and a 49-35 lead.
Knowing just how potent Silsbee’s offense had been during the game, the Diboll head coach opted to go for the onside kick. His gamble paid off as the Jacks recovered the ball.
The Tigers defense held strong and intercepted another fourth-down pass attempt, giving Silsbee another chance to bring the game to within one touchdown.
Johnson scrambled 85 yards for the score, but a holding call not only brought back the TD run but pushed the Tigers back to their own 5-yard-line.
Unable to move the ball again, the game ended with Diboll running out the clock for the win.
Johnson finished with a big night, throwing for 13-of-26 for 312 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions, while picking up 41 yards on nine rushes with one TD. Except for the ground efforts by Johnson, the rushing game was mostly non-existent for the Tigers.
Top receivers were McDaniel with seven catches for 177 yards, Hill with two for 83, Barnes with three for 32 and Rhone with one for 20 yards.
Silsbee had 356 yards of total offense with 14 first downs while Diboll finished with 444 yards offense and 23 first downs. Silsbee had 10 penalties for 127 yards and Diboll had eight for 102.
Taylor led Diboll’s rushing game with 34 carries for 222 yards. Stisle was the top receiver with five catches for 92 yards.
The Tigers will travel to Lumberton this Friday night for a non-district game against their Village Creek rivals. The game is set to kick off at 7:30 p.m.
Lumberton is 2-0 after topping Hamshire-Fannett 40-14 and Barbers Hill 35-29.
This past week, Lumberton eked past the Eagles with Ryan Hughes leading the charge, throwing for 127 yards and rushing for 122 yards. Ryan Asher scored four times for Lumberton on runs of 1, 5, 3 and 1 yard in the Raiders’ win.
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