What We Saw: Darlington 26, Lamar 21

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>LAMAR | </strong>When <strong>Nyshaun Quillen</strong> caught a 15-yard touchdown pass just before halftime, it provided Lamar a season-opening spark. When he brought back a 31-yard interception off Darlington quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1395094' first='Jaylen' last='Augustus'], it appeared Lamar had all the momentum it would need.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>That's when Augustus turned in arguably the most memorable 18 minutes of football of his career.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Falcons' junior rebounded from the pick six to rush for 73 of his 128 yards and two of his three rushing touchdowns to lead his teammates to a 26-21 season-opening victory over the Silver Foxes.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was exactly what most teams who fall behind to a talented Lamar defense over the years have failed to do.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“The guys just got in front of me, lifted me up. They told me ‘Let it go,'' said Augustus (pictured). “I trust them boys. They told me ‘If you lead us, we'll win this game.'”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Augustus - who doesn't throw much anyway - only attempted one more pass following the interception. But even that one was special, as he completed a seven yarder to tailback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1592270' first='Troy' last='Hailey']</strong> to covert a fourth-and-six and keep the sticks moving.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>That's just sort of how the final 18 minutes of this game was for him. Mostly notably, he had an 18-yard touchdown run and another from a yard out to go along with his two-yard score in the second quarter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hailey also took advantage of an impressive rushing performance spurred by Falcons senior center <strong>Shawn Zimmerman</strong>. The tailback finished the game with 182 yards 27 carries, almost all of them right up the gut.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Everything I do is thanks to them,” Hailey said of the offensive line. “All the hard work and dedication goes to them.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While others got into the rushing mix early, Augustus and Hailey divided up the last 12 carries of the game, when the Falcons were ahead and needing to burn clock to walk away from their county foe's home field with the win.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The late scheme even included a new wrinkle: a tightly packaged quarterback sneak that eventually put the game away for good.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“I trusted in [Darlington coach Jamie] Johnson,” Augustus said. “He put the ball in my hands and I just wanted to get the first down, do what I had to do for my team.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>OTHER DARLINGTON STANDOUTS</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Zimmerman wasn't the only Falcons offensive lineman opening holes all night.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sophomore right guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1664650' first='Jaiden' last='Green']</strong> was getting a solid push on Lamar's front line. Darlington's play-calling adapted more and more as the night went one. Jet sweeps and end arounds turned into consistent runs between the tackles. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior receiver/tailback <strong>Jamascus Brown</strong> was responsible for Darlington's fourth touchdown of the evening, a three-yard run late in the second quarter that at the time put the Falcons up 14-0. Brown set up that scoring run on a broken play when Augustus found him behind the defense and the receiver kept his feet in bounds to make the 34-yard grab. He finished with eight carries for 44 yards.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior defensive end <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1254005' first='Treyshawn' last='James']</strong> helped set an early defensive tone for Darlington on a sack that ended Lamar's first offensive series of the game. It helped prevent the Silver Foxes from getting a first down until the closing moments of the second quarter.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>LAMAR STANDOUTS</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior linebacker and tight end <strong>Nyshaun Quillen</strong> was part of two of the biggest plays all night for Lamar.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After the Silver Foxes fell behind 14-0, Quillen capped off a nice series just before halftime when he hauled in a 15-yard seam route for a touchdown. Then, on Darlington's opening drive of the second half, he picked off Augustus' pass and returned it 31 yards for the go-ahead score at the midway point of the second quarter.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lamar quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1165108' first='Zori' last='Pierce']</strong> finished the game six-of-10 passing for 106 yards and two touchdowns. In addition to the one he threw to Quillen, he also found senior <strong>Alvion Ward</strong> on a screen route that Ward took 59 yards to the end zone.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->