Eagles' Hopes Take Near-Fatal Hit

Daily News-Record - By Jeremy Cothran

BRIDGEWATER — It was nearly impossible for Emory & Henry coach Don Montgomery to field a questions from a reporter as Wasps fans streamed onto the field, offering congratulations, back slaps and jubilant hand shakes, just minutes after E&H had sealed a 21-17 upset of Bridgewater College.

"I’ll tell you what," Montgomery said, trying to raise his voice over the crowd, "this is as big a win as they come. Last year at this point, we’re 0-7. Now we’re 4-3 and we just beat Bridgewater."

Emory & Henry not only notched the most significant win of the Montgomery era but also likely buried any chance the Eagles (5-2 overall, 2-2 in the league) had of an Old Dominion Athletic Conference championship and a seventh straight NCAA Division III playoff berth.

Although BC is not mathematically eliminated from the ODAC crown, it must depend on a long, improbable list of variables to secure the title.

Washington & Lee added salt to the wound by beating Guilford 34-13 in Lexington, which meant the Eagles would have regained control of their ODAC and playoff destinies had they won Saturday at Jopson Field.

Sophomore tailback Caleb Moore dived over the pile on fourth-and-one with just 1:36 remaining in the fourth quarter to seal the win, which also capped an impressive 14-point second-half rally by the Wasps – whose defense shut out the Eagles in the second half.

On the ensuing drive, BC marched to the E&H 32, but Highfill’s fourth-down pass was tipped and fell just short of the diving hands of senior receiver Michael Oakes.

After the game, the Eagles couldn’t explain why the conference’s most potent offense failed to muster a single point in the second half.

"It’s still a question to me," junior receiver Brandon Copeland said. "I thought we were prepared. We just lost our focus."

The loss was the second consecutive game in which the Eagles failed to display their trademark big-play offense, a staple during the five-year conference championship streak. BC scored only one offensive touchdown, a beautiful 57-yard rainbow from Highfill to Copeland.

In the second half, the Eagles mustered only four first downs.

"They made great adjustments at halftime," Highfill said, sporting a bruise on his lower lip. "They changed up their fronts, which made the running game hard. It gave us different looks."

Highfill struggled, completing just 11 of 23 passes for 145 yards. He was also hit repeatedly and pressured by a Wasps defense that teed off on him in the second half.

Bridgewater tailback Winston Young said E&H’s 10-man fronts made it impossible to find running space.

"There was always two safeties flying down," the senior said. "You try to break one tackle and they were on you. They played 6 yards off the ball, just like linebackers."

Bridgewater opened the scoring in the first quarter with a 25-yard field goal by Luke Taylor. Emory & Henry answered in the second quarter with a 37-yard touchdown pass to senior receiver Brennan Stewart, who beat Eagles cornerback Earl Chaptman with a shifty double move to free space.

BC responded with a 14-point outburst, starting with the 57-yard play-action TD pass to Copeland. On Emory & Henry’s next drive, senior quarterback Todd Woods was picked off by Chaptman, who raced 35 yards untouched to the end zone to push the lead to 17-7.

From that moment, it looked like a typical BC rout was on, but the Eagles’ offense fell completely out of sync, which allowed the Wasps to hang around within a two-score range.

"I don’t like to analyze it too much after a game," Eagles coach Michael Clark said. "I can’t point at just one individual. Bluntly, we used a watered-down game plan. And it seemed to me, Emory was able to get control."

The Wasps cut the deficit to three in the third quarter with a 65-yard scamper by Moore, who took the handoff on a designed draw and outraced every BC defender to the end zone. The combined tandem of Moore and Matt Gillespie gashed the Eagles for a combined 171 yards.

E&H would put the finishing touches on the comeback with a 10-play, 70-yard drive late in the fourth. BC had a chance to seal the win, but the Wasps converted on a fourth-and-14 with Woods floating a long fade pass to Brennan Stewart, who beat senior cornerback Josh Knight on the play. Knight was also tagged with a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for arguing with the referee.

Emory & Henry scored the game-winning TD four plays later with Moore’s 1-yard dive.

Clark said he’s going to view the rest of the regular season as a character litmus test for the team’s players.

"I told the kids in the locker room," he said, "championships are not necessarily about rings, playoffs and banners. It can be about the energy, effort and character you show in difficult situations.

"We’re at point B right now."