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Tigers Win Streak Ends / Rice Green Knights Take D-2 Title Game

photo by Chris Thayer

photo by Mike Cameron #76 Sr. Co-Capt Patrick Fifield and members of his family took time for a photo after the Division 2 Vermont State Championship game awards ceremony held at Spartan Stadium on the campus of Castelton State College on Saturday evening November 13th 2010. The Tigers lost their first game of the season to Rice Memorial High of So. Burlington and ended the campaign 2010, 10-1. The Tigers will be sending several players to the annual North South Senior Football Classic to be played at this same field on Saturday November 20, 2010. Patrick had excellent seasons for the Tigers and is likely an all-state-candidate.

photo by Mike Cameron #12 Tiger Sr. Quarterback Brendan Burrell with his parents and girlfriend took time for a photo after the Division 2 Vermont State Championship game awards ceremony held at Spartan Stadium on the campus of Castelton State College on Saturday evening November 13th 2010. Brendan has had excellent seasons for the Tigers and is likely an all-state-candidate.

Tuesday November 16, 2010

By Mike Cameron

    Rice Memorial High School quarterback Christian McCormick had the game of his young life.  The 6/2 195 pound senior proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is one of the best high school signal callers ever to play in a Vermont State Championship football game.  Many Rice fans consider him the best offensive player to ever play for the school.

    McCormick  put up some amazing numbers in this one ( he passed for 303 yards and 4-touchdowns),  as the number 3-seed Green Knights used a late third quarter surge to break open a tight ballgame with the top-seed Middlebury Union High School Tigers.  The Tigers came into the championship undefeated at 10-0.  The Knights were 9-1.

    Middlebury fell behind early when speedy Casey Tipson of Rice raced into the end zone with the game's first touchdown.  His 14-yard run to pay dirt was set up by several McCormick look-in passes and excellent pass protection.  The Tigers only seemed to get more fired up by the score and the 8-0 Rice lead,  by charging back into the fray, doing what they do best...smash mouth in your face football and they sustained a clock and turf eating drive capped by a fortunate bounce of the ball.

    At the 4.16 mark of the first quarter  Bryan Ashley-Selleck knifed to the Rice 11.  Marshall Hastings extra effort on the next play saw the ball ripped loose by Connor Langlais of Rice but an alert Ashley-Selleck pounced on the loose ball in the end zone and the Tigers were back in business with a touchdown.  Alex Bowdish  knocked the extra point kick right through the sticks and the Tigers trailed by one, 8-7.   The Green Knights  went further ahead with another McCormick engineered drive midway through the second quarter making it 16-7.  The Tigers came right back again.

    With the score 16-7 and with just seconds remaining before the half, the Tigers were driving towards the Rice end zone.   Tiger quarterback Brendan Burrell was doing what he has done all year,  the gutty  senior was staying cool under fire and listening to his coach Dennis Smith.  With Rice thinking run-misdirection  or perhaps a half back option, Burrell went to one of the best skill players on the team in Marshall Hastings in the left corner of the end zone.  The air mail delivery was a perfect strike between two Rice defenders with Hastings going out prone to pull it in.  Bowdish again was on the money with the p.a.t. and the Tigers went into the locker room trailing by 2, Rice 16 and MUHS 14.

    The second half saw Rice score 22-straight points and the Rice defense began to slowly bog down the Tigers offense.  Rice defenders grabbed a couple of interceptions while the arm of their quarterback was  almost flawless.

    The Tigers continued to apply pressure and were able to stop the run with Fifield, Zeno, Malloy and Quesnel all playing dogged defense up front and Robinson, Foley, Ashley Selleck, Connor and Hastings working hard in the secondary.  The Green Knight passing game and pro-spread-offense was difficult to read and defend and the level of skill that the Rice pass receivers showed made the difference.  Several college scouts in house took note of this.  

    Middlebury was without the services of one of their best two way performers for most of the game when Steel White left with an ankle injury.  He never returned to the line-up and had to watch most of the contest from the sidelines.

    The Green Knights went up 24-14 with 3:46 left to go in the third quarter and they never looked back eventually building the winning margin to 38-20 as Middlebury refused to go quietly,and pushed over a touchdown with 1.58 left in the game. Burrell threw a strike to Dylan Robinson from 18 yards out and ended the game with an 8-for18 evening.  Two interceptions by an alert Rice secondary thwarted  two solid Tiger drives.  The Tigers rolled up 293-yards of offense.  Rice had 403-yards.  Both teams end the season with 10-1 records.  Rice is the 2010 D-2 Champion and Middlebury is the 2010 D-2 Runner-up.
Both teams look promising for 2011 with the Tigers having the most returning lettermen.

    Middlebury had a great year and Coach Smith and his players and staff deserve only the best as they plan for the future.  A county wide congratulatory message for this year's team appears in the center section of The Valley Voice, this week.

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