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CONCORD — There’s been lots of conversation this year about how strange it is that neighbors Concord and A.L. Brown are no longer in the same football conference.
That’s nothing. Friday night, they weren’t even in the same solar system.
Concord’s out-of-this-world defense rocked the Wonders’ world in an emphatic 21-0 Spider victory that brought back echoes of the 27-0 thumping Concord handed the Wonders to end the 1996 season.
That ’96 romp by the Spiders was the last time they’d beaten the Wonders in a “Victory Bell” game. It may or may not be coincidence that ’96 was also the last year the Wonders, now 1-3, didn’t make the playoffs.
Wonder cheerleaders and players solemnly rolled that clanging old railroad bell over to the Concord sidelines immediately after the game, but to be honest, they could have gotten the painful deed over with midway through the third quarter. With apologies to Yogi, this one was over a long time before it was over.
Not that the Wonders quit. Defensive backs Terry Collins and Danyell Brown, in particular, played like men possessed. But the Spiders’ defense is so good that it may have taken the Wonders’ beat-up offense three or four more days to score, much less make it all the way to 21.
Other than Concord penalties, the Wonders didn’t move the first-down chains until the final seconds of the third quarter.
Concord coach E.Z. Smith won the coin toss, and as his custom elected to take the ball. Most coaches defer their choice to the second half.
“Not me,” said Smith. “I want the ball and you try to stop me.”
The Wonders couldn’t.
Concord (4-1) rolled right down the field with straight-ahead, nothing-fancy, I-formation football.
“They just physically whipped our tails,” said subdued A.L. Brown coach Ron Massey.
“We didn’t think we could go around ’em,” said hoarse Concord coach E.Z. Smith. “So we made a statement. We went right at ‘em.”
They went at ‘em like atom bombs, to be honest. It was a warm night, but huge Concord backs Franswa Sumlin and Jermaine Caldwell barely broke a sweat as they bowled over Wonder tacklers like tenpins.
Finally, that initial Spider drive stalled at the Wonder 25 and Drew Walters came on for a field-goal try on fourth-and-11.
Massey said he’ll have to review the film, but it sure looked like Collins got a piece of the kick (making the kicker fair game) Officials, though, didn’t see it that way. When Wonders bumped into Walters, flags flew for running into the kicker.
That made it fourth-and-6 from the 20. Walters tried again, but came up short. Believe it or not, the Wonders were called for running into him a second time, proof that on this night, they would be neither good nor lucky.
That set up fourth-and-1 at the Wonder 15. Now, Smith went for it and Sumlin turned the left corner for a TD and a 6-0 Spider lead.
The Spiders’ defense made sure it was still 6-0 at halftime, as the Wonders’ offensive effort was as weak as that sliver of a moon that hovered over Bailey Stadium.
“It’s hard to throw when they can play six guys deep,” sighed Massey. “They were daring us to run the ball and we couldn’t. They stopped us with just (star linebacker Andy) Boyd and their front four.”
The Wonder offense literally lost what little teeth it had — literally — when star wideout Aundrae Allison, who had scored six TDs in three games, was nailed by free safety Matt Cole and had two teeth knocked out. Allison was not able to return.
“A lot of the package we put in this week depended on Allison,” said Massey. “When he went out, it knocked our kids back a little bit and they never recovered.”
It was still only 6-0 when the Wonders got their only break of the night, a fumbled punt that Collins pounced on at the Spider 39 with 9:37 left in the third quarter. But then Concord’s defense got really surly. Jeremy Norman sacked Wonder QB Drew Maher and teammate Reggie Lee picked it up on the run and scored untouched. Sumlin’s 2-point conversion made it 14-0.
Midway through the quarter, a Walters punt pinned the Wonders deep. Moments later, Maher was hit at the 1 and fumbled. He picked the ball up and tried to advance, but was pounded and fumbled again. Concord pounced on the loose ball, setting up an easy plunge by Sumlin and an insurmountable 21-0 edge.
The nightmare never ceased for the Wonders, who, late in the game, had a 98-yard scoring run by Chris Carter negated by a procedure penalty.
On the other hand, it was a dream night for Smith and his seniors.
“This night couldn’t be any better,” said Boyd, who’s senior class would have been the first at Concord never to own the bell for a year. “I haven’t even seen that bell the last four years.”
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Contact Mike London at 704-797-4259 or mlondon@salisburypost.com
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