ECRU — Zay Cullens nearly did it all Friday night.
The North Pontotoc High School junior running back ran for 150 yards, caught four passes for 58 yards, threw a 79-yard touchdown pass, had a 19-yard punt return, and picked up 11 more yards on a kickoff return — all while playing a prominent role on the defense — in a pivotal Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 3A, Region 4 game against Aberdeen.
With first place on the line in the region, Cullens accounted for 317 all-purpose yards, but he came up a foot short of a first down with less than a minute to play, which allowed Aberdeen to hold on for a 33-28 win.
Cullens entered the game as the state’s fifth-leading rusher with more than 1,700 yards. But with his team trailing by five points and running behind a massive offensive line that averaged 276 pounds per man, Cullens fell inches short of a first down at the Aberdeen 23-yard line. The Bulldogs (7-3, 4-0 region) then were able to run out the clock and take control of the top spot in the Region 4 standings.
“Without a doubt, he’s (Cullens) is the best back we’ve faced this year,” Aberdeen coach Eric Spann said. “Thank God a football field is 100 yards long because from the 20 to the 20 he’s hard to handle.”
Cullens wasn’t the only shining star on the field, however, as the Bulldogs utilized a committee system to offset Cullens’ heroics. Although the individual stats of the Aberdeen players didn’t match Cullens’ effort, collectively it was enough to keep the Bulldogs unbeaten in region play.
Memphis commit Jerrick Orr scored twice, caught five passes for 42 yards, rushed five times for 43 yards, had a 73-yard pass completion out of the Wildcat, and electrified the crowd with a game-tying 82-yard kickoff return. Wide receiver Isiah McMillian scored a touchdown and caught four passes for 142 yards, while quarterback Tramonte Prather threw for 112 yards, rushed for a team-high 99 yards, and accounted for three touchdowns.
With only three pass completions in the second half for 14 yards and 30 yards rushing in the first half, Aberdeen’s high-flying offense sputtered.
“It definitely wasn’t our best game offensively,” Spann said. “We were off throwing the ball, and other than Tramonte’s long run there in the second half, we had trouble running the ball, too.
“But we battled back, fought hard and the kids didn’t give up. Although it wasn’t our best game overall, we made the plays to win the game.”
Two of those plays took the Bulldogs less than a minute-and-a-half to turn a 21-13 third-quarter deficit into a 27-21 lead.
With Aberdeen trailing 14-13, linebacker Caleb Todd tipped a Prather pass intended for McMillian and returned the interception for a score. John Gonzalez’s kick gave North Pontotoc (7-3, 3-1) a 21-13 lead with 4 minutes, 6 seconds left in the third quarter.
Thirteen seconds later, Aberdeen tied the game after Orr muffed the ensuing kickoff and then streaked 82 yards for a touchdown. Prather added the two-point conversion run.
Orr’s electrifying run up the middle fired up his defensive mates, who quickly forced a fourth-down punt that rolled dead at the Bulldogs’ 35.
Seconds later, Prather was standing in the end zone after a 65-yard scamper on first down gave Aberdeen a 27-21 lead with 2:37 left in the period. Romeo Simpson blocked the kick.
“It’s (the quick scores that are) demoralizing,” Spann said. “It’s kind of like getting hit in the stomach.”
Undaunted, North Pontotoc marched 67 yards on 10 plays on its ensuing possession. Cullens had six carries on the drive for 23 yards. The Bulldogs also committed a 15-yard face mask penalty. Two pass completions for 37 yards by sophomore quarterback Clark Mills to wide receiver Jerrell Miller, the smallest player on the field at 5-foot-, 130 pounds, set up Cullens’ 1-yard plunge. Gonzalez’s kick gave the Vikings a 28-27 lead with 9:25 remaining.
But the Bulldogs responded with an eight-play, 64-yard march capped by a 5-yard Prather keeper with 5:36 to go.
A B.J. Williams’ fumble recovery at the Vikings’ 42 on North Pontotoc’s initial possession gave Aberdeen its first scoring opportunity, but Todd knocked the ball loose from McMillian in the end zone on a fourth-down Prather pass to end the threat.
A 31-yard run by Cullens and a 24-yard Mills’ pass completion to Tanner Turk set up North Pontotoc’s first score, an 18-yard Cullens’ run followed by the first of Gonzalez’s four kicks for a 7-0 lead with 3:31 left in the first period.
Aberdeen tied the game a minute later when Prather found McMillian open over the middle and the sophomore wide receiver broke several tackles en route to a 43-yard touchdown. Jacoby Carruth’s kick tied the game.
Less than two minutes into the second quarter, Orr hooked up with McMillian on a 73-yard gainer. He then scored on a 6-yard run, but the kick failed.
Figuring what’s good for the goose is good for the gander, two minutes later Cullens took a backward pass from Mills and then tossed a 79-yard touchdown pass to Turk, who was 20 yards behind the nearest defender. Gonzalez added the point after for a 14-13 advantage with 8:11 left in the first half.
North Pontotoc launched one last scoring threat before halftime, but Shavez McMillian dropped Mills for no gain on a fourth-down run at the Aberdeen 27.
“We won’t play anybody any better than Aberdeen once we reach the playoffs,” North Pontotoc coach Brian Sutton said. “They are a very talented team with great team speed, but we proved we could play with them.
“I’m disappointed we lost, but I’m not disappointed in our effort. There was nothing negative about our overall effort, and I’m proud that we didn’t quit.”
Said Spann, “It was a good, hard-fought game on both sides, very clean. Coach Sutton does a fine job, and I’m sure we’ll see them again later in the playoffs.”
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