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Call and response: Skyline capitalizes on Plano miscues in bi-district win
BY Matt Welch, mwelch@starlocalnews.com
UNIVERSITY PARK -- The Skyline football team's offense wasn't its usual potent model of efficiency Friday night from Gerald J. Ford Stadium at SMU.
It didn't need to be.
The Raiders (10-1) showcased their full ensemble in the second half to dispatch of Plano Senior, 35-14, in bi-district playoff action.
"Some things just didn't go our way tonight."
The Wildcats (5-6) were able to claw as close as 14-7 with 3:45 left in the third quarter after a 33-yard completion from senior Richard Lagow to senior Anthony Antwine set up a 3-yard touchdown run by senior Andre Morman. That score could have potentially tied the contest at 14-14, as Plano squandered a chance at a touchdown during its previous series after a holding call negated a 6-yard score by Morman.
That backed Plano into a missed 37-yard field goal by senior Jourdan Escobar.
Plano would make good on its next drive and trim the Raiders' lead to 14-7, but as would be the case all night, Skyline had an answer.
Needing just 16 seconds to counter, the Raiders fired back with an 86-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Andrew Coleman to increase the advantage to 21-7.
The Wildcats' next series was dashed after a 25-yard run by senior Corey Robertson ended with a lost fumble in Skyline territory. Six plays later, the Raiders led 28-7 after a 21-yard touchdown pass from Devante Kincade to Ra'Shaad Samples with 9:29 left in the fourth.
Plano responded with a 22-yard touchdown catch by senior Devon Richardson from Lagow, who finished with 216 passing yards and one touchdown on 16-of-26 attempts.
Again, the Raiders wasted little time in countering -- this time in just 14 seconds, as a recovered onside kick paved the way for a 31-yard touchdown run by Ellis Onic, who led Skyline with 190 total yards and a score.
A turnover on downs was the end game for Plano's final possession of the season, stalling out at the Skyline 20-yard line.
"We never could get in sync and it seemed like we were always chasing the lead," McCullough said. "We wanted to be more balanced than we were tonight."
The Skyline offense played a hand in that, opening the game with a seven-play, 75-yard drive. Onic accounted for 62 of those yards, paving the way for a 7-yard touchdown pass from Kincade to Carlos Strickland for a 7-0 Skyline lead with 9:37 left in the first.
Plano mustered little of consequence in the opening half, despite senior Steven Cypert picking off Kincade on Skyline's ensuing possession.
Credit the Skyline defense for suffocating any manner of a Wildcats offensive, with Kerrick Huggins, Devion Anderson and the Raiders' pass rush pressing Lagow persistently and sacking the signal caller five times on the night. The Wildcats' tried-and-true running game didn't alleviate concerns, mustering just 3 yards in the first half.
"A lot of it was dictated by the situation we were in," McCullough said. "When you get down by two scores, you're forced to pass a bit more. The time started being our enemy and took us out of what we wanted to do."
The end result was Plano's first scoreless half of the season.
Skyline had a bit more success, albeit not to the usual standards of a unit that produced 56 points per game in District 9-5A. It was enough to leave the Wildcats at a double-digit deficit at halftime, with the Raiders extending their lead to 14-0 after a 3-yard touchdown on a sweep to Lamont Levels.
"I thought the defense played well enough for us to win," McCullough said.
The Raiders tallied 342 yards opposite Plano, with Kincade throwing for 165 yards plus two touchdowns and a pick on 16-of-19 attempts. Morman finished the night with 62 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries, operating alone in the backfield with senior Braylan Campbell unavailable for the game. Antwine led all receivers with 115 yards on four catches.
The loss marked the 2012 swan song for the Wildcats, whose year ends after a return to the postseason.
"I hurt because we have such good seniors," McCullough said. "They did so much for this program and I really think we're on the way up."
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