Davie hosts Tabor with playoff berth on the line
Published 10:50 am Thursday, October 29, 2015
Here’s the deal for Davie’s football team: Despite a three-game losing streak, it still has a chance to qualify for the playoffs. It must defeat Mt. Tabor and Parkland in the final two regular-season games.
This Friday at home, all it has to do is take down a team that has beaten Davie three straight times and 13 times in 15 meetings.
Davie is 3-6 overall and 1-3 in the Central Piedmont Conference. This will be Tabor’s final regular-season game, and a win will vault the Spartans (5-5, 2-3) to the postseason.
“We are going to treat (this) week’s game as a playoff game,” Tabor coach Laymarr Marshall told the Winston-Salem Journal. “As far as I understand, if we beat Davie, we’re in.”
Tabor’s biggest name is receiver Divine Deablo, who has committed to Virginia Tech.
Here’s a game-by-game look at Tabor’s season:
• East Forsyth 42, Tabor 7 – After Tabor got an interception, Teddy Christakos tossed a 74-yard touchdown to Jaquan King for a 7-0 lead. That was the only highlight for the Spartans, who trailed 28-7 at the half and got outgained 426-247. Marshall said: “We’re an extremely young team. We’re going to have some growing pains. We did next to nothing right tonight.”
• Tabor 47, Winston-Salem Prep 6.
• Carver 26, Tabor 20 – With Tabor leading 20-18, it faced fourth-and-1 at midfield. Marshall went for it, but a run was stuffed. Carver turned the stop into points, scoring the game-clinching TD with 14 seconds remaining. … Tabor squandered a 13-0 lead. … Isaiah Jones rushed 28 times for 173 yards. … Christakos completed seven of 11 passes, but for only 35 yards.
• Tabor 25, Glenn 22 – Tabor forced four turnovers to build a 22-0 lead late in the third quarter. Glenn stormed back to tie it at 22. Tabor won it on a 27-yard field goal by Ben Gardner with 36 seconds to go.
• Tabor 47, North Forsyth 13 – Tabor rolled, leading 35-7 at the half and getting two TD passes from Christakos, 120 receiving yards from King, three TD runs from Jones and two interceptions from D.J. Morgan. … Tabor held North to 55 rushing yards. … North coach Pete Gilchrist told the Journal: “This might have been the best offensive line we’ve played all season.”
• Reagan 35, Tabor 31 – Tabor blew a 31-21 lead in the fourth quarter. … Reagan drove 93 yards to cut it to 31-28 with 8:33 remaining. After Tabor went three-and-out, the Raiders partially blocked a punt, took over at midfield and scored to take a 35-31 lead with 4:23 left. … Tabor’s last gasp was a fumble at the Reagan 43 with 3:24 to play.
• North Davidson 42, Tabor 27 – Jones’ 29 carries for 231 yards and three TDs were not enough as Tabor was victimized by North’s Joe Butts (20 of 28 for 275 yards, three passing TDs, two rushing TDs) and tailback Kennedy McKoy (101 yards on 24 carries). … Christakos threw for 175 yards, but he was picked off three times. … A 46-yard TD pass to King pulled Tabor within 35-27 with seven minutes left.
• Tabor 55, Reynolds 21.
• West Forsyth 24, Tabor 14 – With West looking to build on a 21-14 lead, Tabor’s Jack U’ren intercepted at the Tabor 15. Then quarterback Kedrick Patterson, who completed 11 of 17 passes for 166 yards, hit King behind the West defense at the Titans’ 30. But the defensive back who was beaten on the play caught King at the 15 and knocked the ball loose. West recovered at the six-yard line. … West hit a 29-yard field goal with 4:08 to go to put Tabor away. … Jones had 83 of his 106 rushing yards in the first half. West Forsyth rushed for 328 yards.
• Tabor 49, Parkland 15 – In a span of 77 seconds, Tabor returned two fumbles for touchdowns. Another Parkland fumble led to a Tabor TD. … Jones had 26 carries for 174 yards as Tabor bolted to a 28-0 halftime lead. … Parkland had success passing, throwing for 276 yards.
Tabor leads the series with Davie 18-10. Last year the Spartans smacked Davie 38-9 in the first half and settled for a 45-24 win. Jones had five carries for 52 yards, while Deablo had six catches for 103 yards.
In 2013, Tabor thumped Davie 42-21.
The War Eagles had a bye last week. In the 45-28 loss at North Davidson on Oct. 16, the leading tacklers were James Boyle (15), Cody Hendrix (10), Broc Barnette (six), Jack Little (six), Hite Merrifield (five), Angel Perez (four), Spencer Wilson (four) and Michael Rauen (three).