DuVal High School football coach Dameon Powell envisioned his young team defeating the defending Class 4A state champions when not many others did. Friday afternoon he turned a dream into reality.
DuVal defeated Henry A. Wise 14-13, dealing the defending champs their first loss since the 2011 playoffs. The DuVal victory ended Wise's 15-game winning streak.
“I'm proud man,” Powell said following the win. “Like I told them all week, 'this is our game to take.' No pressure — nobody believed we could win but us.”
The Tigers fell behind early after looking rattled to start the game. Senior tailback Terrance Davenport fumbled on his own 9-yard line on his second carry of the contest. The turnover seemed costly, with Pumas' quarterback Isaiah Black connecting with senior wide out Anfernee Perry on an 11-yard touchdown just four plays later.
Wise held onto its lead as both teams struggled to move the ball. Short runs by Tigers' sophomore quarterback Antoine Brooks and Davenport plus an incompletion led to a three-and-out on DuVal's ensuing drive. The Pumas' attempt to extend its lead failed in similar fashion.
Midway through the second quarter, Davenport silenced the home crowd. On third down and six from his own 36-yard line, Brooks faked a screen to the right and rolled to the left. He found his running back waiting for the ball 5 yards ahead of him and watched Davenport weave through the entire Wise defense for a 64-yard score to tie the game.
“Antoine, he's a phenomenal player … and [Terrance] did a heck of a job,” Powell said of his one-two punch. “These two guys made some good plays today.”
Hampered by penalties throughout much of the third quarter, neither team managed to find the goal line. Two minutes into the fourth DuVal took advantage of face mask and roughing the kicker penalties, allowing its first drive of the quarter to remain alive.
With 9:54 left in the game, Brooks found senior wide receiver Jamal Woodland in the back-right corner of the end zone for a 22-yard go-ahead strike.
“We allowed them to keep drives alive,” Wise coach DaLawn Parrish said. “When we stopped them — personal fouls — and holding to stop our drives.”
The touchdown pass gave Brooks his second of the game and his third of the year.
“We came out, practiced — practiced hard too — and we did what we had to do on the field,” Brooks said.
The call of the game did not come from a penalty, yet from a decision to attempt a two-point conversion after Pumas' tailback Adam Gillis Jr. scored from 4 yards out.
Parrish decided to go for the win trailing 14-13 after Gillis scored. He gave the ball back to Gillis, who was swarmed by Tiger defenders before crossing the goal line.
“I wasn't in a sense,” Powell said when asked if he was surprised the Pumas tried for two instead of tying the game. “They had us. Our guys were tired. They pushed us around a little bit and they had the momentum. … Our guys played hard as heck and came out with the 'W.'”
DuVal 14, Wise 13
DuVal (2-0) 0 7 0 7—14
Wise (1-1) 7 0 0 6—13
W—Anfernee Perry 11 pass from Isaiah Black (kick), 3:44
D—Terrance Davenport 64 pass from Antoine Brooks (Andy Akotia kick), 6:52
D—Jamal Woodland 22 pass from Antoine Brooks (Andy Akotia kick), 9:54
W—Adam Gillis Jr. 4 run (Adam Gillis Jr. run failed), 7:03
DuVal—Antoine Brooks 10-13-162-2
Wise—Isaiah Black 4-12-43-1
DuVal—Antoine Brooks 20-74, Terrance Davenport 13-32, Jamal Woodland 1-0, Elems Ukwu 1- -1
Wise—Isaiah Black 5-41, Anfernee Perry 1-40, Adam Gillis Jr. 11-16, Antwan Benjamin 3-7, Malik Null 1-3, Crawford Quincy 1-0, Reggie Ware 1- -10
DuVal—Terrance Davenport 3-68, Eric Wilson 1-41, Jamal Woodland 1-22, Demarco Seay 1-13, Tulu Adeboyeku 1-8, Jarrett Scott 2-6, Elems Ukwu 1-6
Wise—Micah Till 1-22, Anfernee Perry 1-11, Marcus Allen 1-10, Adam Gillis Jr. 1-0