Flashback 1999

By T. Scott Boatright/ Originally printed in The News Star

The old football adage says that offense sells tickets, but defnse wins championships. Oak Grove proved that saying true Saturday.

While the Tigers' offensive unit received much of the spotlight in a 33-15 win in the Class 1A title game against Kentwood, it was Oak Grove's defsne that proved to be the difference.

Oak Grove held the Kangaroos to seven first downs and 181 total yards on offense as the Tigers simply dominated the war in the trenches. The Tigers completely controlled time of possession, holding the ball for 32:54 and not allowing Kentwood's offense to find any kind of rhythm.

Yes, Kevin Brown's 123-yard rushing performance was very impressive, as were Oak Grove's 19 first downs and 309 yards of total offense. But it was the defense that set the pace, and the Tigers didn't waste any time in doing so.

Less that four minutes into the game Oak Grove showed just what kind of game Kentwood's offense was in for as John Densmore picked off a Schdrick McKnight pass to give the Tigers possession inside Kangaroo territory.

"Our defense has come out of the blocks early all season long," Tigers coach Vic Dalrymple said. "It usually takes our offense a few possessions to get going, and it's usually a big play on defense that kind of kick-starts the team. We probably have more athleticism on offense, but we definitely have more white-knuckle intensity on defense."

The Tigers gave up an average of just 7.8 points per game in their 14-0 season, more than enough for an offense which averaged more than 45 points per contest. Dalrymple said one of the things he's most proud of is that the Tigers have improved on a week-by-week basis throughtout the season.

"I think our defense figured out real early on that intensity helps their game," Dalrymple said. "They've really been doing this since the third or fourth week of the season. They've made steady progress throughout the season and have been real stingy in the playoffs."

The game was knotted up at 7-7 at the half, but Oak Grove came out after intermission and jumped out to a 14-7 advantage just 2:53 into the third quarter.

Oak Grove gained more and more momentum as the quarter progressed, and as Brown picked up a first down at the Kentwood 18 on a fourth-and-2 situation, the fatigue and frustration started showing in the Kangaroos as several Kentwood players remained on the ground for 10-20 seconds before Coach David Currier called a timeout in an attempt to rally his troops.

The timeout worked momentarily, as Oak Grove fumbled the ball away at the Kentwood 2 on the ensuing play. But that just set up another big play for the Tigers' defense as it brought down Serrick Johnson in the end zone on the next play for a safety.

"We could tell they were getting tired and worn out," Oak Grove offensive lineman John Allen said. "You could see it in their faces. We just wore them down on both sides of the ball as the game went on."

Oak Grove only played receivers/defensive backs Gavin Cato and Eric Newman both ways while Kentwood played five players both ways. Fatigue set in for the Kangaroos midway through the third quarter and that was something Kentwood coach David Currier had feared heading into the game.

"We thought that might happen," Currier said. "I knew going in we would have to control the ball to prevent that, but it didn't happen."

Currier said that when it became obvious early on that the Kangaroos wouldn't be able to run, he had hoped the passing game would open up.

"We've had trouble running against physical teams like Oak Grove," Currier said. "They were playing man defense and bringing the free safety up, and when a team does that theyre daring you to throw. We knew we had to pass, but their defensive backs met the challenge."

Dalrymple said that after a hard-fought season, it's now time to sit back and smell the roses for a bit. "It was a strong showing on both sides of the ball, but the defense set us up", he said. "They deserve a lot the credit."