Published: September 27, 2008 01:23 am      

Late comeback helps Raiders stun Madison Southern, 36-35

BEREA — It only took 12 minutes for the Raiders to snatch Madison Southern’s first victory of the year away.

McCreary Central compiled a 30-point comeback in the fourth quarter, which culminated with a 33-yard touchdown catch by junior wide receiver Dustin Stephens with 35 seconds left. Junior halfback Zack Roark ran the ball into the end zone for a two-point conversion to give the Raiders a 36-35 lead that would ultimately prove to be the final score.

“It was a tough loss. They made one more play than we did,” Southern coach David Brumley said. “I’m proud of these kids. They fought hard. We’ll be better because of it.”

Southern (0-5) started off strong, scoring first on a 17-yard touchdown reception by junior tight end Brad Riddell with 9:20 left in the first quarter. Riddell, who was the Eagles’ leading receiver on the night, had 62 yards receiving.

“Brad’s a good catching tight end,” Brumley said. “We need to work with him on his blocking a little bit but he’ll continue to get reps at the tight end position. He made some big clutch catches tonight.”

After a long run for McCreary Central on third down was called back because of an illegal formation, Southern regained possession of the ball and scored again with 3:39 left in the quarter on a 21-yard touchdown reception by junior running back Rico Brown.

McCreary Central scored with 1:46 left in the first quarter when sophomore wide receiver Dustin Goins got a 21-yard reception. However, after a Raider fumble inside the 10-yard line which was recovered by junior defensive end Shaun Lewis, Brown broke free for a 93-yard run for a touchdown with 21 seconds left to give Madison Southern a two-touchdown lead.

The second quarter was all sophomore running back Devon Johnson. Johnson, who hasn’t been an offensive presence yet this season, had a 70-yard rushing touchdown with nine minutes left in the half and an interception off of Raider junior quarterback Aaron Watts with four minutes left.

“We’ve talked to the staff about how to get Devon a few more touches,” Brumley said. “Everyone saw tonight what he can do with his athletic ability. Tonight was a little change of pace from everyone always seeing Rico. He’ll continue to get better and get more comfortable with the running back position.”

Brown was again putting points on the board in the third quarter, getting their final touchdown of the night with 9:29 left in the quarter on a 31-yard run that put the Eagles up 34-6.

Then, things began to go wrong for the Eagles. Freshman quarterback Chris Roberts fumbled, which was recovered by a McCreary Central player. McCreary Central gave the ball right back a minute later, after Roark fumbled after getting a first down.

“We had some costly fumbles and we’ve got to learn how to take advantage when we have a big lead like that,” Brumley said. “Most of the time, these kids have played from behind. We’ve got to learn how to handle the lead better. Maybe some of that goes back to us not knowing how to win yet. We’ll get there.”

Less than a minute into the fourth quarter, Watts was able to scramble a yard into the end zone for a touchdown. Senior defensive back Michael Mullins prevented the two-point conversion. On the next possession, Brown fumbled the ball and the Raiders recovered it on their own 31-yard line. Less than a minute later, Watts connected with sophomore wide receiver Dakota Chitwood on a 66-yard touchdown reception. After the ensuing two-point conversion, McC-reary Central was only down 15 points with nine minutes left in the game.

Brown had another fumble on the first play of the next drive, which the Raiders recovered and turned into eight points two plays later on a Goins 33-yard reception. Southern had another fumble, which McCreary County recovered on the 20-yard line, but the Eagles were able to get a stop on fourth down and took over on the Raiders’ 18-yard line. However, Brown fumbled again and the Raiders recovered on the 15-yard line and three plays later, Stephens and Roark gave their team the advantage.

The Eagles had one last chance to salvage the game, but Goins intercepted the ball with 7.3 seconds left to seal the victory for McCreary Central (3-2).

Brown was the leading rusher, with 226 yards. Johnson contributed 124 yards as well. Roberts had nine completions for 135 yards and two touchdowns.

“We’ve got to have other people step up besides Rico,” Brumley said. “He’s got to have a supporting cast, whether that’s from the wide receivers or Devon or somebody else. We’re going to have guys step up and make plays, not only Rico. We’ve got some athletes on the team and we’re going to find ways to get them in the game.”