Bulldogs run off from G-Men
Graham (21) vs. Tazewell (45)
Written: Sep 06, 2014
By LARRY HYPES
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
TAZEWELL, Va. — Malik Davis scored three touchdowns and three two-point conversions to pace Tazewell to a 45-21 romp over the Graham G-Men Friday.
For the second straight week, the Bulldogs (2-0) raced to a 22-7 first half lead while the G-Men (0-2) battled gamely but could not stop a relentless opposing offense.
The victory was the first for THS against the G-Men in seven years and the Dogs rolled up 480 offensive yards en route to the triumph including 378 on the ground.
Dylan Cook led Graham with 106 yards rushing and notched a pair of touchdown gallops, with scoring runs of 21 yards in the second stanza and 61 yards in the fourth period.
Early on, it appeared that only the Bulldogs could stop themselves. Nick Blanken-ship capped a 63-yard first quarter march with a 13-yard score and Davis rushed over for the two-pointer as THS moved in front 8-0 with 8:47 to go.
Blankenship finished with a game-high 154 yards rushing in slightly less than three quarters of action.
Davis added a 14-yard touchdown on the next series at the 3:18 mark of the opening stanza to give Tazewell a 14-0 cushion. The drive was set up by a dazzling one-handed interception by Jesse Mountain to give the Dogs the ball.
Tazewell marched 69 yards in nine plays. Juwan Jordan became the third different Dog to score when he hauled in a 37-yard touchdown pass from Davis with 11:48 left in the half. Davis raced in for the two-point run and Tazewell moved up 22-0.
A 31-yard (two-penalty) reversal cost Tazewell another touchdown on the next series and gave Graham the momentum to fight back.
Taymon Cook made a spectacular leaping touchdown grab over a pair of Tazewell defenders to put the G-Men on the scoreboard with 5:35 to play before halftime.
Roman Workman intercepted a pass earlier to give Graham the opportunity. Logan Surface kicked the extra point to cut the margin to 22-7 as the G-Men rolled off 73 yards in six plays.
Graham finished with 291 yards in total offense with 200 yards rushing and 91 passing.
Bubba Asbury then fell on a Graham onside kick attempt and Tazewell kept control at midfield.
Blankenship and Davis ground it out for the Dogs and it was Davis who scampered in from 11 yards away with 3:15 left in the second period. Blankenship ran for two as THS led 30-7.
“I just had to do whatever it took to win, but give credit to our offensive line. They got a good push all night long and made it a lot easier for all of the running plays,” said Davis, who rushed for 127 yards and passed for 102 more.
“We made some mental mistakes but we made some great plays, too,” said THS coach Shane Allen. “Malik stepped up again and so did a lot of players. Our line was stout tonight and I give all of those guys up front a shout-out. They make it possible for our plays to work. I give them (the offensive line) a heck of a lot of credit these first two games.”
It was not so easy because the never-say-die G-Men came battling back against the big Bulldog lead.
Once again, Tazewell penalties helped Graham get back on track.
Israel Harris and Workman pounded upfield for the G-Men and then Cook blasted his way up the middle for a 21-yard touchdown with just 48 seconds left in the first half.
Following a roughing the kicker penalty on THS, Cook then got his eighth point of the drive with a two-point conversion. The G-Men, with 15 quick points, closed to within 30-15, going 55 yards in six plays.
Graham’s Harris kept Tazewell out of the end zone with an interception at the end of the half. Davis, refusing to yield, got the first score of the second half with a one-yard bolt and then ran in the two-pointer with 3:59 remaining in the third period to punctuate a 9-play, 58-yard drive for a 38-15 advantage.
Mountain halted the next Graham advance when he notched his second interception of the game, this time in the end zone.
“We were playing a lot of ‘Cover 3’ and my job was to drop over the middle and take that play away,” noted Mountain. “We worked on it a lot in practice this week and all I can think of right now is that we need to get ready for our next game. Work, work, work — that’s what we need to do.”
Chris Hall capped Tazewell’s stack with a one-yard touchdown run with 56 seconds left and Corey Honaker’s PAT to up the tally to 45-15.
Hall, who picked up 79 yards rushing, said, “I’m proud of this whole team. I can tell you, our ‘second team’ is ready, willing, and able to come in and get the job done to the best of ability. We all want to help to get a win any way we can.”
Cook finished the scoring when he ran over four tacklers to chalk up a 61-yard touchdown with less than half a minute to play.
Graham entertains Richlands Friday while Tazewell will host Sullivan Central.
At Bulldog Stadium/Witten Field
Graham...............0 15 0 6 — 21
Tazewell...........14 16 8 7 — 45
First Quarter
T -Blankenship 13-yd. run (Davis run)
T – Davis 14-yd run (Blankenship run)
Second Quarter
T – Jordan 37-yd. pass from Davis (Davis run)
G – T. Cook 27-yd pass from Workman (Surface kick)
T – Davis 11-yd. run (Blankenship run)
G- D. Cook 21-yd. run (D. Cook run)
Third Quarter
Davis 1-yd. run (Davis run)
Fourth Quarter
T – Hall 1-yd. run (Honaker kick)
G – D. Cook 61-yd run (run failed)
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