Greer hangs on to oust nemesis Clinton

Published on Friday, November 7, 2014

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Julie McCombs

Adrian McGee (24) gains some of his 83 yards rushing yards.

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Julie McCombs

Greer defenders get a bead on a Clinton runner.

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Julie McCombs

Troy Pride, Jr. (5) battles for some valuable yardage.

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A Clinton player sits on the field while surrounded by Greer defenders.

Visiting Clinton hardly looked like a 2-8 team Friday night as the Class 3A playoffs began at Greer's Dooley Field.

But the Red Devils strangely resembled the hard-nosed, run-first opponent Greer has come to know -- if not love -- over their long histories.

The Yellow Jackets had to turn away a pair of fourth quarter drives for a 17-13 victory over Clinton in the opening round of the state playoffs.

Greer (11-0) advances to host Belton-Honea Path in the second round next week. Belton-Honea Path defeated Camden 28-9 to advance.

The victory margin was the narrowest of the season for Greer. Since a 28-13 win at Emerald on Sept. 19, the Yellow Jackets' average margin of victory has been 52-7.

"Clinton High is always going to be good at football -- that's what they do," said Greer Head Coach Will Young. "But Greer's pretty good at football, too.

"Any time you play Clinton it's a physical battle. The game is won in the trenches; it's lost in the trenches. It's like that every time you play Clinton; it doesn't matter who's got the good record and who doesn't. Every time we play Clinton, it's the same game."

The Yellow Jackets opened their season by rallying from a 14-0 halftime deficit for a 23-14 win over Clinton.

The postseason win was no easier.

Greer junior quarterback Mario Cusano hit junior wideout Dorian Lindsey in stride along the right sideline for a 73-yard touchdown and 7-0 lead on the Yellow Jackets' first possession of the game.

A second scoring chance on their next possession ended with a Tay Cook interception at the Clinton 2-yard-line.

The Red Devils then proceeded to drive 98 yards in 15 plays, scoring on a 5-yard touchdown pass from Charlie Craven to Chandler Todd on Clinton's first pass attempt of the game.

But the extra-point try went wide and Greer held on to a 7-6 lead with just over four minutes left in the first half.

Greer's Nick Roberson was able to add a 21-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to extend the Yellow Jackets' lead to 10-6 at the break.

Halftime seemed to be the only refuge from an avalanche of penalties called against both teams, which combined for 202 penalty yards and 21 flags. Clinton was flagged 12 times for 105 yards and Greer nine times for 97 yards.

"There were a lot of flags and what they do with ball control makes it tougher on you," Young said. "You don't get as many shots at it, and if you don't capitalize on the shots you get, it puts you in a little bit of a hole. That's what we did in the first half."

The Red Devils' defense forced Greer to turn the ball over on downs to set up a nine-play, 67-yard drive, which was capped by Donoven Blackmon's 2-yard plunge that gave Clinton its first lead of the game at 13-10 with five seconds left in the third quarter.

Greer answered immediately, relying on Lindsey in the wildcat formation to end a seven-play drive with a 10-yard touchdown run to put the Yellow Jackets back on top, 17-13. Lindsey finished with 130 yards receiving and another 35 yards rushing.

"I just like when we can move the ball forward," Lindsey said. "If the ball is in my hands, I'm going to execute."

Greer's defense, which had recorded back-to-back shutouts to end the regular season, stopped Clinton twice in the final 10 minutes to seal the victory.

A close game after a succession of blowout victories may have been a blessing in disguise as the playoffs began.

"Games like this make a team humble -- it really tests a team's character when they run the ball right at you like that," said Greer senior linebacker Tyler Wright.

The Red Devils (2-9) ran the ball 48 times for 184 yards, employing a variety of two- and three-back formations, including the wishbone, to do so.

"We needed a four-quarter game to show us that we're not all that, and we've still got to play hard every down, every quarter, every game," said junior defensive back Troy Pride. "I like playing these four-quarter game where we have to pull it out hard and get that win at the end. It just feels good."

Statistics by Red Watson

SCORE BY QUARTERS	1	2	3	4	OT	TOTAL
Clinton	0	6	7	0	0	13
Greer	7	3	0	7	0	17

Team

Qtr.

Time

Scoring Play

Conversion

Plays/Yds

Score

GHS