Post by novillero on Oct 20, 2008 8:19:09 GMT -5
Freehold's Brown saves the day
Colonials rally in second half from 14-point deficit
By Josh Newman • STAFF WRITER • October 18, 2008
FREEHOLD — Freehold wide receiver/cornerback Brandon Brown is a player people expect to make big plays in big spots.
The explosive senior lived up to that billing on both sides of the ball on Saturday, scoring the eventual game-winning touchdown on offense in the second half before leading a game-saving defensive stand late in the fourth quarter.
After trailing 14-0 at halftime, Freehold scored 21 unanswered second-half points, capped by a 60-yard touchdown reception by Brown early in the fourth quarter. Brown then came back and hauled an interception in the end zone as time expired as the Colonials, No. 3 in the Asbury Park Press Top 10 Poll, slipped past Long Branch, 21-14, in a Shore Conference nondivisional matchup.
With the game tied at 14, senior quarterback Nick Tyson dropped back on second-and-19 and hit Brown along the left sideline. He cut back to the middle of the field and took the pass for a 60-yard touchdown. The Gerry Plescia extra point capped the scoring at 21-14.
Brown caught two balls for 66 yards and Tyson finished with 138 all-purpose yards and two scores, one passing and another rushing.
"I told them at halftime that at some point in a season, every team deals with adversity and we're gonna find out in the second half who has character," Freehold head coach Mark Ciccotelli said. "I'm so very proud of all these kids for the way they played and were able to come back."
Brown made the biggest play of all late in the game. On a drive that started on its own 46, Long Branch (1-4) marched down to the 4 where it found itself with first-and-goal with 14 seconds to play. Green Wave senior running back Jonathan Robertson got stopped by linebacker Rakim Thorpe after a 1-yard gain on first down and tight end Billy George could not come up with a diving catch in the end zone on second down.
With eight seconds to play, sophomore quarterback Miles Shuler dropped back and threw a pass toward the back left corner of the end zone, but Brown came up with the interception as time expired to preserve the win.
"I knew it was gonna be a pass because they knew we were looking for the run. I played my zone right and everyone faces adversity. We faced it today and we beat it," Brown said. "We weren't playing the Freehold way in the first half, so we made some adjustments at halftime and came out and made it happen."
Freehold (5-0), the Shore's No. 1 ranked offense entering the weekend, was very much bottled up in the first half, but came out ready to go in the second half.
On the third play of an 81-yard scoring drive, senior running back Frank Nicosia took a pitch to the left from Tyson and ran untouched down the left sideline for a 64-yard scoring run that made it 14-7.
After a Long Branch three-and-out, Freehold went 71 yards in 10 plays, culminating in Tyson keeping the ball up the middle and into the end zone from 25 yards out while dragging several defenders along with him to tie the game at 14.
The Green Wave got off to a quick start, getting first quarter touchdown runs of 41 and 57 from Shuler and John Stovall, respectively, to take an early 14-0 advantage.
Colonials rally in second half from 14-point deficit
By Josh Newman • STAFF WRITER • October 18, 2008
FREEHOLD — Freehold wide receiver/cornerback Brandon Brown is a player people expect to make big plays in big spots.
The explosive senior lived up to that billing on both sides of the ball on Saturday, scoring the eventual game-winning touchdown on offense in the second half before leading a game-saving defensive stand late in the fourth quarter.
After trailing 14-0 at halftime, Freehold scored 21 unanswered second-half points, capped by a 60-yard touchdown reception by Brown early in the fourth quarter. Brown then came back and hauled an interception in the end zone as time expired as the Colonials, No. 3 in the Asbury Park Press Top 10 Poll, slipped past Long Branch, 21-14, in a Shore Conference nondivisional matchup.
With the game tied at 14, senior quarterback Nick Tyson dropped back on second-and-19 and hit Brown along the left sideline. He cut back to the middle of the field and took the pass for a 60-yard touchdown. The Gerry Plescia extra point capped the scoring at 21-14.
Brown caught two balls for 66 yards and Tyson finished with 138 all-purpose yards and two scores, one passing and another rushing.
"I told them at halftime that at some point in a season, every team deals with adversity and we're gonna find out in the second half who has character," Freehold head coach Mark Ciccotelli said. "I'm so very proud of all these kids for the way they played and were able to come back."
Brown made the biggest play of all late in the game. On a drive that started on its own 46, Long Branch (1-4) marched down to the 4 where it found itself with first-and-goal with 14 seconds to play. Green Wave senior running back Jonathan Robertson got stopped by linebacker Rakim Thorpe after a 1-yard gain on first down and tight end Billy George could not come up with a diving catch in the end zone on second down.
With eight seconds to play, sophomore quarterback Miles Shuler dropped back and threw a pass toward the back left corner of the end zone, but Brown came up with the interception as time expired to preserve the win.
"I knew it was gonna be a pass because they knew we were looking for the run. I played my zone right and everyone faces adversity. We faced it today and we beat it," Brown said. "We weren't playing the Freehold way in the first half, so we made some adjustments at halftime and came out and made it happen."
Freehold (5-0), the Shore's No. 1 ranked offense entering the weekend, was very much bottled up in the first half, but came out ready to go in the second half.
On the third play of an 81-yard scoring drive, senior running back Frank Nicosia took a pitch to the left from Tyson and ran untouched down the left sideline for a 64-yard scoring run that made it 14-7.
After a Long Branch three-and-out, Freehold went 71 yards in 10 plays, culminating in Tyson keeping the ball up the middle and into the end zone from 25 yards out while dragging several defenders along with him to tie the game at 14.
The Green Wave got off to a quick start, getting first quarter touchdown runs of 41 and 57 from Shuler and John Stovall, respectively, to take an early 14-0 advantage.