Bethel Christian wins NCISAA 1A title in first varsity season since 1978
Friday
Posted Nov 11, 2016 at 11:14 PM Updated Nov 11, 2016 at 11:17 PM
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By Keith Spence / Correspondent
Bethel Christian Academy likes to refer to its smash mouth, tight formation, power running offensive style as “phone booth” football.
That phone booth just got a lot more crowded with the addition of the NCISAA 1A state championship trophy.
Completing a remarkable gridiron revival 38 years in the making, the Trojans cruised past Halifax Academy 40-0 for the state title Friday at Barnet Park, Bethel’s first varsity football campaign since 1978.
The victory was Bethel’s ninth in a row following three straight losses to open the season.
“I couldn’t be more proud of this team,” Trojans coach Brick Crowder said. “We got off to a rough start, battled adversity, but once we tasted some success we started to believe in ourselves. Now, here we are, state champions.”
As they have all season, Bethel relied on the golden legs of running back Javon Edwards in Friday’s title contest. Edwards carried the ball 35 times for 313 yards and four touchdowns, surpassing the 3,000-yard mark in the process.
The Trojans handed the ball to Edwards 28 times in the first half alone as they completed dominated play and built a 20-0 lead at intermission.
“Javon’s our guy, our workhorse,” Crowder said. “I think he’s the best running back in the state, and he’s backed me up game after game. He’s also a tremendous young man off the field, and the best part is he’ll be back next year.”
As will junior quarterback Austin Eubanks, who was no slouch in the rushing department with 142 yards and a pair of TD’s on 21 carries against the Vikings (7-5).
In all, the Trojans ran for 484 yards and didn’t attempt a single pass because they didn’t need to.
On six possessions, Bethel embarked on soul-crushing drives of at least 66 yards. The crowning glory was a 14-play, 92-yard march that took 8:26 off the first quarter clock and seemed to drain the life from the Vikings.
“We’re fortunate to have a home-run hitter like Javon, but mostly our offense is predicated on ball control and grinding out yards,” Crowder said. “We did an excellent job of that tonight. I thought our offensive line was outstanding.”
Lost in the high-scoring offensive efficiency was a brilliant effort by the Trojan defense, which allowed just five first downs and 89 total yards. Only twice did Halifax cross midfield, once because of a failed Bethel onside kick.
“Sometimes our defense doesn’t get much credit because our offense is so good,” said Cole Williams, one of the leaders of that defense, and one of just six seniors on the Trojan squad. “All season we’ve played together as a team on both sides of the ball. It’s an amazing feeling to be a part of a state championship in my final year.”
Williams’ cousin and best friend on the team, senior Jonathan Truett, echoed those sentiments.
“We lost in the state championship last year in baseball, and we knew that we didn’t want to feel that way again,” Truett said. “The entire team came out tonight focused and ready to play. We weren’t going to let the title slip away this time.”
An emotional Crowder couldn’t hide the fact that his team might have just gotten started its championship run.
“We’ve got a lot of key pieces coming back next year so we should be very good again,” Crowder said. “This school waited a long time to experience something like this, and we owe it all to God and His glory. This is something the Bethel community will never forget.”
Bethel Academy 40, Halifax Academy 0
Halifax 0 0 0 0—0
Bethel 12 8 14 6—40
First Quarter
B—Javon Edwards 24 run (pass failed), 9:57
B—Edwards 18 run (run failed), :09
Second Quarter
B—Edwards 6 run (Edwards run), 3:33
Third Quarter
B—Edwards 33 run (Austin Eubanks run), 6:51
B—Eubanks 3 run (pass failed), 4:11
Fourth Quarter
B—Eubanks 6 run (run failed), 6:38
H B
First Downs 6 24
Rushes-yards 26-81 63-484
Passing 2-6-0 0-0-0
Passing yards 8 0
Total yards 89 484
Punts-avg. 3-33.7 0-0.0
Fumbles-lost 4-2 0-0
Penalties 3-25 7-40
Individual Statistics
RUSHING—Halifax: Jarrett Smith 7-38, Harrison Hardee 5-22, Jared Byrum 3-12, Reid Lynch 9-7, Garrett Dunlow 2-2. Bethel: Javon Edwards 35-313, Austin Eubanks 21-142, Jonathan Truett 7-29.
PASSING—Halifax: Lynch 2-6-0 8. Bethel: None.
RECEIVING—Halifax: Hardee 1-7, Byrum 1-1.
.
Friday
Posted Nov 11, 2016 at 11:14 PM Updated Nov 11, 2016 at 11:17 PM
Share
By Keith Spence / Correspondent
Bethel Christian Academy likes to refer to its smash mouth, tight formation, power running offensive style as “phone booth” football.
That phone booth just got a lot more crowded with the addition of the NCISAA 1A state championship trophy.
Completing a remarkable gridiron revival 38 years in the making, the Trojans cruised past Halifax Academy 40-0 for the state title Friday at Barnet Park, Bethel’s first varsity football campaign since 1978.
The victory was Bethel’s ninth in a row following three straight losses to open the season.
“I couldn’t be more proud of this team,” Trojans coach Brick Crowder said. “We got off to a rough start, battled adversity, but once we tasted some success we started to believe in ourselves. Now, here we are, state champions.”
As they have all season, Bethel relied on the golden legs of running back Javon Edwards in Friday’s title contest. Edwards carried the ball 35 times for 313 yards and four touchdowns, surpassing the 3,000-yard mark in the process.
The Trojans handed the ball to Edwards 28 times in the first half alone as they completed dominated play and built a 20-0 lead at intermission.
“Javon’s our guy, our workhorse,” Crowder said. “I think he’s the best running back in the state, and he’s backed me up game after game. He’s also a tremendous young man off the field, and the best part is he’ll be back next year.”
As will junior quarterback Austin Eubanks, who was no slouch in the rushing department with 142 yards and a pair of TD’s on 21 carries against the Vikings (7-5).
In all, the Trojans ran for 484 yards and didn’t attempt a single pass because they didn’t need to.
On six possessions, Bethel embarked on soul-crushing drives of at least 66 yards. The crowning glory was a 14-play, 92-yard march that took 8:26 off the first quarter clock and seemed to drain the life from the Vikings.
“We’re fortunate to have a home-run hitter like Javon, but mostly our offense is predicated on ball control and grinding out yards,” Crowder said. “We did an excellent job of that tonight. I thought our offensive line was outstanding.”
Lost in the high-scoring offensive efficiency was a brilliant effort by the Trojan defense, which allowed just five first downs and 89 total yards. Only twice did Halifax cross midfield, once because of a failed Bethel onside kick.
“Sometimes our defense doesn’t get much credit because our offense is so good,” said Cole Williams, one of the leaders of that defense, and one of just six seniors on the Trojan squad. “All season we’ve played together as a team on both sides of the ball. It’s an amazing feeling to be a part of a state championship in my final year.”
Williams’ cousin and best friend on the team, senior Jonathan Truett, echoed those sentiments.
“We lost in the state championship last year in baseball, and we knew that we didn’t want to feel that way again,” Truett said. “The entire team came out tonight focused and ready to play. We weren’t going to let the title slip away this time.”
An emotional Crowder couldn’t hide the fact that his team might have just gotten started its championship run.
“We’ve got a lot of key pieces coming back next year so we should be very good again,” Crowder said. “This school waited a long time to experience something like this, and we owe it all to God and His glory. This is something the Bethel community will never forget.”
Bethel Academy 40, Halifax Academy 0
Halifax 0 0 0 0—0
Bethel 12 8 14 6—40
First Quarter
B—Javon Edwards 24 run (pass failed), 9:57
B—Edwards 18 run (run failed), :09
Second Quarter
B—Edwards 6 run (Edwards run), 3:33
Third Quarter
B—Edwards 33 run (Austin Eubanks run), 6:51
B—Eubanks 3 run (pass failed), 4:11
Fourth Quarter
B—Eubanks 6 run (run failed), 6:38
H B
First Downs 6 24
Rushes-yards 26-81 63-484
Passing 2-6-0 0-0-0
Passing yards 8 0
Total yards 89 484
Punts-avg. 3-33.7 0-0.0
Fumbles-lost 4-2 0-0
Penalties 3-25 7-40
Individual Statistics
RUSHING—Halifax: Jarrett Smith 7-38, Harrison Hardee 5-22, Jared Byrum 3-12, Reid Lynch 9-7, Garrett Dunlow 2-2. Bethel: Javon Edwards 35-313, Austin Eubanks 21-142, Jonathan Truett 7-29.
PASSING—Halifax: Lynch 2-6-0 8. Bethel: None.
RECEIVING—Halifax: Hardee 1-7, Byrum 1-1.
.
