History in the making: Kennedy upsets Seneca Valley

Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2006

Click here to enlarge this photo chris rossi⁄the gzatte Seneca Valley’s David Purvis (6) almost intercepts this pass intended for Kennedy’s Abreon Scott during playoff loss.

Friday night’s Class 3A West Region football semifinal at Kennedy in Silver Spring was historical in so many ways.

First and foremost, Kennedy beat Seneca Valley. The team that entered the season loser’s of 25 straight games on the field, beat the state’s winningest program (12 state titles). The team that had won just 16 times in the last nine years (against 72 losses) and had not had a winning record or made the playoffs since 1992 beat the team that had a 91-15 record, won four state titles and been to the playoffs eight times over the same time frame. Kennedy had lost, 49-7, just seven weeks ago to the same Seneca Valley team, and yet Friday night it won ... over Seneca Valley.

To say the words is stunning, shocking (insert your own favorite adjective). But not so to the Kennedy players who have pulled off arguably the greatest turnaround in Montgomery County football history — from 0-10 last season to 10-1 and a berth in the 3A West Region final at home Friday night at 7 against Frederick County’s Urbana (8-3 record).

‘‘This really puts us on the map,” said senior wide receiver Abreon Scott, whose 27-yard touchdown reception from junior quarterback Melvin Harris early in the fourth quarter broke a 7-7 tie and put the Cavaliers up for good. ‘‘We’ve had all the crazies telling us about all the teams we didn’t play. But now we beat [Seneca]. They came to our house and we beat them. Now they have to put us on the map. We beat the best and we proved we are the best in the county. We’re ready for any challenge right now.”

It didn’t start well for Kennedy. In fact, it started like the Sept. 29 49-7 loss ended with Seneca senior running back Shawn Perry running wild. Perry rushed for 224 yards and three touchdowns (on just 15 carries) in the first meeting, including touchdown runs of 60 and 67 yards. With 2 minutes, 24 seconds remaining in the first quarter Friday he broke off a 54-yard scoring jaunt around left end to put Seneca (8-3 record) up 7-0. But the Cavaliers had a much better defensive scheme this time around, and though Perry finished with 160 yards on 25 carries, he didn’t break another run over 11 yards the rest of the night and was dropped for losses on four occasions, twice by junior defensive end Delano Ferguson, who also registered a sack and recovered a fumble. And Seneca, which rolled up 366 yards (on only 34 carries) rushing in the first meeting, was limited to 214 on 35 attempts.

‘‘I think we have the best coaching staff in the county,” said Kennedy senior linebacker Chimso Okoji. ‘‘We worked hard all week, we changed up our scheme, bringing more players into the box. We just made plays. ... Our preparation [was the key]. We had a wonderful week of practice. The thing that motivated us the most was the only people that thought we could win were the 40 guys on our sideline and the coaching staff. We had something to prove.”

Still, things didn’t look bright for the Cavaliers in the early going. Their first three possessions netted just 10 yards, and their fourth didn’t start well either a 2-yard loss on a running play and a 5-yard delay of game penalty. But, as he has all year, Harris made a big play; maybe the biggest play of the game. After dropping back to pass from the Kennedy 18-yard line he was rushed heavily by the Screaming Eagles’ defensive line, he avoided the pressure, stepped up in the pocket, then scooted 33 yards right up the middle. The play ignited the Kennedy sidelines and stands and five plays later senior running back Phillip Shaw ran nine yards to the end zone to tie the score at 7-7 with 4:20 left before halftime.

‘‘This was a very big game,” Harris said. ‘‘We needed this game to get the fans with us. I think everybody had a little doubt, since [Seneca] beat us 49-7 in the first game. I don’t think a lot of people thought we could win this. But now we’ve got them right back on our side, we’re going to take it from here.”

The score remained tied until Scott’s touchdown reception with 11:03 to play in the game, a play that came on fourth down and 10. But Seneca had its chances. In the second and third quarters alone, it fumbled inside the Kennedy 40 three times. The fourth quarter followed a similar theme with two more turnovers in Kennedy territory — another fumble and an interception by Harris with under two minutes to play.

‘‘If you turn the ball over that many times inside the other 40-yard line, you’re not gonna win any ballgames,” Seneca head coach Fred Kim said. ‘‘It’s extremely disappointing. We lose to a team we’d beaten earlier in the year. It’s the playoffs and we didn’t come to play, it’s really disappointing.”

Harris’ perfect pass to Scott put the Cavaliers up 13-7, then he finished the Eagles off with a 33-yard touchdown run with 6:21 to play to account for the game’s final points. He ended with 93 yards passing (10 of 24) and 85 yards rushing (16 carries) — just another terrific performance for a player playing his first season of high-school football.

‘‘He’s got to be the best player in the county right now,” Okoji said of Harris.