Bulldogs survive Hornets

COTTONDALE — There were no black cats with which to cross paths. No ladders to walk under, mirrors to break or a schoolwide outbreak of swine flu.

Still, Cottondale’s stretch of tough luck continued Thursday night.

Marianna quarterback Hakeem Holmes eked over the goal line with 27 seconds left for the go-ahead touchdown, and the Bulldogs survived a wild fourth quarter in a 26-22 season-opening victory at Hornet Field.

“We came in as a team,” Marianna’s Tre Jackson said, “and we won it as a team.”

Cottondale quarterback C.J. Smith located receiver Jacquez Walker on a 61-yard touchdown reception that gave the Hornets a 22-18 lead late in the fourth quarter. Smith’s pass was deflected by a Marianna defender, but Walker collected the ball and waltzed into the end zone for the score.

The only problem was the amount of time left on the clock.

Taking over at the Marianna 42 with 2 minutes remaining, the Bulldogs needed just six plays to retrieve the lead and seize the victory.

Chris Bowers rushed 23 yards on the Bulldogs’ first play and added 9 yards on the next. Jackson rumbled 23 combined yards on the next two snaps to put the ball on Cottondale’s 3. Holmes scored two plays later on a quarterback keeper up the middle.

Hornets coach Mike Melvin, whose team finished 1-8 last year, consoled his players after the final whistle.

“You look at last year when we were 1-8,” Melvin said, “but everyone had the swine flu, and we never had the same 11 players on the field. I can’t tell you how bad it was. The entire school had it. But we’ve got to build on the momentum of (this game). It was a huge game for us. We had our opportunities, and we played our tails off to the end.”

After falling behind early, Cottondale trimmed its deficit to 12-8 with a touchdown on its first drive of the second half. The Bulldogs kept their composure, however, and an interception of a Cottondale pass turned into Jackson’s 15-yard touchdown run on the next play. That extended Marianna’s lead to 18-8 midway through the quarter.

The Hornets wouldn’t go away. Dominique Webb and Evan Davis combined for 42 yards on seven carries on Cottondale’s next possession, and Smith raced for an 8-yard touchdown. Smith then completed a pass to Prentice Webb on a two-point conversion to slice the Hornets’ deficit to 18-16 heading into the fourth quarter.

Marianna, which won last year’s matchup 26-6, drove 65 yards in seven plays on its opening possession, and Bowers gave the Bulldogs a 6-0 lead less than 4 minutes into the contest with a 24-yard romp through the middle of Cottondale’s defense.

Cottondale had a chance to even the score or take the lead just before halftime, but the Hornets turned over the ball on downs at the Bulldog 13 with 3:45 left in the second quarter. Marianna’s offense then turned to Holmes to spearhead a quick, effective drive.

Holmes connected on a pass in the flat to Jackson, who ran 44 yards to the Hornet 36. Holmes reeled off a 30-yard run two plays later that set up his 2-yard touchdown run to extend the Bulldog lead to 12-0.

Marianna            6 6 6 8 — 26
Cottondale          0 0 16 6 — 22
MHS: Bowers 24 run (kick blocked)
MHS: Holmes 2 run (run failed)
CHS: McAroy 11 run (D.Webb run)
MHS: Jackson 15 run (kick blocked)
CHS: Smith 8 run (P.Webb pass from Smith)
CHS: J. Walker 61 pass from Smith (pass failed)
MHS: Holmes 3 run (Jackson run)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Marianna: Bowers 14-78, Jackson 9-134, Holmes 8-53, Barnes 6-41; Rushdan 1-4, Canty 2-1, Cottondale: D. Webb 10-82, Davis 12-75, McAroy 2-17, Vann 2-0, Smith 4-9, P. Webb 1-6,
PASSING — Marianna: Holmes 2-6-1-78. Cottondale: Smith 10-23-1-168.
RECEIVING — Marianna: Jackson 2-78, Cottondale: J. Walker 2-67, Vann 1-6, D. Webb 1-15, P. Webb 5-69, Saye 1-11.