Linemen’s dream keys South’s win

Linemen&#8217;s dream keys South&#8217;s win

Brian Jerzak

October 14, 2021 @ 11:54 PM

I had to do a double-take to make sure I saw what I thought I saw. Coming out of halftime, the Minneapolis South Tigers led Minneapolis Edison 9-6. The Tigers were set to receive the second-half kick-off. The returner caught the kick inside the twenty-yard line, cut to the left, threw a stiff arm, and sprinted down the sidelines for the touchdown. As I watched him down the sidelines, I took a look at the number on the back of the jersey – 50. As a former undersized offensive lineman, my chest puffed out a bit watching Rai’Shaun Wade – who I had noticed earlier starting both at offensive guard and defensive end – sprint down the sidelines. The touchdown made the score 16-7, and the dominating Tigers’ defense did the rest, keying South’s 16-7 victory. "We thought they might onside kick, so we took our quarterback off and put me back there. It was my first kick-off return ever," Wade said. "I just saw a bunch of (Edison) blue jerseys coming at me. I moved like a lineman. I threw out a stiff arm and just went full speed." Both defenses played well the entire game. After South forced a fourth and long, Edison’s special teams made the first mistake of the game. The snap to the punter was over his head, and South’s Rio Starr recovered the fumble. Keyed by Edison defensive lineman Andrew Rose’s presence in the backfield and subsequent loss, the Tommies’ defense turned South’s offense back. Despite the turnover, South eventually flipped field position and took over late in the first quarter at mid-field. Behind the running of Jaquill White and a nice move by Justin Benjamin Jr, after he caught a pass in the flat, the Tigers found running room behind Wade and Aiden Luhman to get inside the ten. They would go to the other side of the line with running back Starr for a six-yard touchdown run – giving the Tigers a 7-0 lead. "They (Edison’s defensive linemen) are pretty big, and we are considered a small offensive line," offensive guard and star kick returner Wade said. "We decided to cut-block and play some mind games – fake cuts – to throw them off. We knew we couldn’t beat them physically, so we tried to beat them mentally, play as a team and play for one another." Edison’s offense struggled all game, but they had a big-time answer for Starr’s touchdown run. Edison quarterback Toby Carr rolled to his left, planted his feet, and hurled a deep ball down the sidelines. The Tommies’ Robert Hampton ran under the nicely thrown ball for a 76-yard touchdown. After a failed two-point conversion, South held a slim 7-6 lead. South’s offense continued to move the ball, but as they got into the red zone, Edison’s defense – as they would all game – made a play. Facing fourth and ten from the 19, South ran a screen that nearly picked up the first down, but Edison’s Lamar Sloan made an open-field tackle to stop South a yard short. With Edison backed up deep in their end, the Tommies got aggressive on offense. The South defense made Edison pay for that aggression. South’s Teddy Lovan-Jackson got into the backfield and sacked Carr. On the next play, Lovan-Jackson was in the backfield again. He and Starr met at the quarterback, and their sack resulted in a safety and a 9-6 lead. Edison’s secondary made two great plays on deep throws by South to turn the Tigers away. First, Zytavious Williams and then Carr deflected a pass to prevent South from taking advantage of the good field position after the safety. After Wade’s improbable kick-off return, the South defense almost imploded. After giving up a completion and a first down on third and long, they were hit with back-to-back 15-yard penalties and then another five-yard penalty to put Edison near the red zone. Now backed up and trying to defend a first and five situation, Starr got pressure on the quarterback and deflected a pass. Two runs later, Edison faced a fourth and a yard at the 14-yard line. A five-yard penalty made it fourth and six, and Starr – who was in the backfield much of the game – was in the backfield immediately, forcing the quarterback out of the pocket and into the waiting arms of Luhman. The South offense turned the ball over again, but the defense bailed them out like most of the game. drew a holding penalty while making a tackle for a big loss. Starr recorded the first of back-to-back sacks for the Tigers. After the three disastrous plays, Edison would face a fourth and 45. "We penetrated, and we ran to the ball," Wade – the junior defensive lineman said of his defense. Neither offense would threaten the rest of the game – giving South the win. South’s victory got them to a record of 4-3, while the loss dropped Edison’s record to 2-3. Subscribers – look for more stories on this game this weekend.