Football - 2008
2008 DeKalb County Middle School Championship Game
Bethune “Lions” vs. Miller Grove “Wolverines”
Miller Grove devours Bethune
Wolverines run the table to capture
their 2nd football championship
James R. Hallford Stadium – Clarkston, GA
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| Zavier Johnson (l) and Devante Parks (r) ran wild against Bethune. Parks added 3 TD's and Johnson added 2. |
Clarkston, GA - For the second time in three years the Miller Grove Wolverines completed an undefeated middle school season and topped it off with a championship game victory. Unlike in 2006 when they defeated McNair 8-0 for the championship, Coach Mark Evan’s Wolverines had this one wrapped up at halftime. Leading 34-6 at the half Miller Grove cruised to a dominating 50-14 championship game victory.
Miller Grove showed up in full force with their band, cheerleaders and the school’s auxiliary dancers, and with the band banging out the tunes the Wolverines hit the turf and went right to work.
An 11-yard run by the Wolverines elusive tailback Devante Parks gave Miller Grove a first down out to the thirty-one. A few plays later the Wolverines ran their vaunted inside counter reverse to their other elusive tailback Zavier Johnson who took the handoff from QB-Ken Allen and raced 54-yards for the touchdown. The two-point conversion failed leaving the score at 6-0 with 5:20 left in the first quarter.
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| This was one of the rare holes that Bethune RB-Jermaine Kyles saw all game. |
Having beaten Bethune earlier in the season Miller Grove already knew that the key to repeating that performance was stopping the Lions talented running back Jermaine Kyles (last week in the semifinal game against Chapel Hill, Kyles rushed for over 100-yards and two touchdowns). The Wolverines defense caged up Kyles all but this one time when he broke a couple of tackles and raced 67-yards to tie the score at 6-6 with 3:44 left in the quarter. The Lions also missed their two-point conversion.
On the ensuing kickoff Jason Terrell from Miller Grove gave his team great field position returning the kick 65-yards to the Bethune forty-four yard line.
The Wolverines got a little greedy and tried to run that inside counter play to Johnson again but the Lions DL-Javarius Johnson and DL-Ronny Hardy weren’t having it as they dropped the ball-carrier for a loss of four yards. A nice scramble by Allen on forth down gave Miller Grove a big first down on the twenty-six as the quarter came to an end.
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| QB-Ken Allen did a nice job of directing the offense for Miller Grove. |
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| Bethune TE-Kight Dallas is going to be an outstanding varsity player in a couple of years. |
As the second quarter got underway Miller Grove faced another forth-down situation but this time Bethune jumped offside to give the Wolverines the first down. An 11-yard run by Avonte Boyd made it first and goal from the Lions four-yard line. Hector Stanback finished off the drive with a short touchdown plunge and Boyd scored the two-point conversion to give Miller Grove a 14-6 lead with 7:02 left in the half.
Kyles who has been Bethune’s most valuable player suddenly had a case of the drops; first he mishandled the kickoff that put the Lions in a hole at their own eleven-yard line; then on the punt he fumbled the snap and was tackled by a host of Wolverines on the four-yard line where Miller Grove took over.
The Wolverines quickly took advantage of the turnover as Allen ran a quarterback-sneak behind center Jeovoney Strothers for the touchdown and a 20-6 lead with 5:20 left on the clock.
Things went from bad to worst for Bethune even when they made something good happen; a punt by Kyles pinned Miller Grove up at their five-yard line with less than 2:00 minutes to play in the half. I’m sure the Lions defense thought they could keep them pinned up their and get the ball back with good field position; but the Wolverines had other plans as they unleashed Zavier Johnson who made a sweet cut back and raced 95-yards for his second touchdown of the game and a 26-6 lead.
Looking to try and get some more points on the board before the half Bethune went up top but the pass bounced off of the hands of Kight Dallas into the waiting arms of Miller Groves Hector Stanback who returned the interception back to the forty-six yard line with :52 seconds left.
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| Coach Evans gets the customary championship "Gatorade Rinse" from his players. |
Miller Grove quickly jumped on the gift when Antonio Coates took a pitch stopped and lofted a pass down the left side-line to a streaking Devante Parks who caught the ball over the out stretched arms of Bethune’s Donnell Hayes and raced 51-yards for the touchdown as the horn sounded to end the half. Allen scored the two-point conversion to give Miller Grove a commanding 34-6 halftime lead.
The second half was really just a formality, Bethune would get a touchdown from Kight Dallas, who his going to be a very good varsity player in years to come, on a 35-yard pass from quarterback Marquez Gilmore.
Jason Terrell who almost broke a kickoff return in the first half for Miller Grove finally did so in the third quarter when he raced 90-yards for a touchdown. Parks would cap off the scoring for the Wolverines with his third touchdown of the game as he busted loose for 50-yards.
As time ran down Coach Evans got the customary “Gatorade Rinse” from his players as they rushed the field to celebrate their 2008 DeKalb County Middle School Championship.
The Final Score: Miller Grove 51 – Bethune 14
Miller Grove’s Hector Stanback was named the games Most Valuable Player and “Most Outstanding Defensive Player”, teammate Zavier Johnson was named “Most Outstanding Offensive Player”. Justin Wade was name Bethune’s “Most Outstanding Defensive Player” and Jermaine Kyles was named the Lions “Most Outstanding Offensive Player”.
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