Corrigan Head Coach Seven Armstrong during pre-game warm ups.
Bulldogs Kick Into High Gear and Storm Back to Advance Deeper Into Playoffs, WILLIS, November 19, 2011 - The Corrigan/Camden Bulldogs crashed district champ Centerville's football party on Friday night when they hosted the Tigers at Wildcat Stadium in Willis. The Dogs' faithful turned out on a chilly windy night to watch the Dogs play a flat first half and go in at halftime down 14 to 0. The first half saw the Tigers score first when an apparent break down on the Dogs special teams allowed a Tiger punt return man to find a seem and take it to the house. Moments later when the Dogs were trying to establish a drive, they threw an interception to the same guy that ran the punt back (see the highlight reel). That set up another Tiger touchdown. If my memory serves me correctly, the Dogs fumbled the ball 3 times and didn't recover (in addition to the interception), which any coach would agree, the Dogs were not only fighting the Tigers, they were fighting themselves with costly mistakes and turnovers. Then late in the 3rd quarter something happened, it's an unexplainable phenomenon. I just don't know, maybe head coach Seven Armstrong yelled at the team, maybe the stars lined up correctly, maybe a spirit descended on the Bulldogs, but something happened and suddenly the Dogs began playing with a sense of urgency. It was easy to see to! All the sudden they were running harder, they were protecting the ball better, their passing became more accurate and they established a drive and scored a touchdown early in the 4th. The touchdown was set up by a 40 yard run by running back Derrick Petty. That got the Dogs down to the Tiger 25. More good running by running back Carlos Inguanzo put the Dogs at the Tiger goal line. Inguanzo's tough style of running reminded me of watching Larry Csonka when I was a kid. At any rate, the following play quarterback Patrick Parker punched it in for the Bulldogs' first TD early in the 4th quarter. In the meantime, the Bulldog defense had stiffened up and held the Tigers scoreless in the second half (that helps). After the defense held the Tigers again, a punt put the Dogs at their own 5 when Patrick Parker threw a 33 yard pass to Chris Caballero and get the Dogs out of trouble and sustaining another drive. The Dogs continued the drive and then another beautiful pass from Parker to Andrew Harvey for a 30 yard chunk of real estate putting the Dogs at the Tiger 15. By now the Corrigan side of the stands were on their feet and going crazy. The Dogs worked the ball down to the 10 yard line. Running back Derrick Petty took a handoff and, put simply, refused to be denied as he ran in for the Dogs' second TD while getting clobbered by half the Tiger Defense along the way. At this point, I was thinking, okay, we kick the extra point and we'll be looking at overtime. Perfect...right? Ummmm...not exactly (at least that's what Coach Armstrong must've thought). In a gutsy decision by Coach Armstrong, the Bulldogs lined up and went for the juggler and went for the 2 point conversion which would give them a 1 point lead with little time left on the clock. I can't help but think that 99% of other coaches would have been safe and taken the extra point to take their chances in overtime. In this case, Coach Seven Armstrong looked brilliant. A handoff up the middle to Carlos Inguanzo and he bulled his way in. The Bulldog crowd went crazy, Inguanzo looked like he just scored the winning TD in the Super Bowl and the Tiger Crowd went silent. There was still well over a minute left on the clock though, and the Dogs were only winning by one single point. But remember that stiffened up defense that I mentioned earlier...No problem, we got your back! The intense Bulldog defense flushed the Tiger quarterback out of the pocket and senior Mason Locke brought down the Tiger QB and stripped the ball in the process and recovered the fumble. Victory secured. BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE!...A little insurance to pad that lead always makes things nice and more comfortable. A handoff to running back Charlie Cooper and he was gone, 19 yards, touchdown. In the end it was Bulldogs 22, Tigers 14. To be honest, up until the Dogs jumped up and started playing with that sense of urgency, I was disappointed and thinking the Dogs were going to lose to a team that they were very capable of beating. The team effort was amazing in the second half, and there's lots of credit to go around. There were clutch plays, and there will be many unsung heroes from this amazing game, but the one play that sticks out in my mind the most is the gutsy decision by Armstrong to lay it all on the line and go for the 2 point conversion. Coach Armstrong knew exactly what he was doing, and he knew exactly what his players were capable of doing, and I think that's why he did what he did. And that's EXCELLENT COACHING.
Willie Openshaw, Editor
Flying their flags: The Corrigan/Camden Bulldogs run onto the field.
An apparent special teams breakdown allowed number 20 for the Tigers to take a punt to the house.
Running back Carlos Inguanzo is a hard nosed running back and was also a great defensive player for the Dogs.
Derrick Petty carries for the Bulldogs.
The Bulldog defense played well and only allowed 1 Tiger Touchdown.
Quarterback Patrick Parker guided his offense down the field. Parker ran and threw effectively
In the first half the Bulldog fans didn't have a whole lot to cheer about.
Towards the end of the game the Bulldog fans were on their feet.
Bulldog defenders close in on the Tiger QB.
Running back Derrick Petty runs for a 40 yard gainer that helped set up the Bulldogs' first touchdown.
Insurance: Running back Charlie Cooper scores the Bulldogs' final touchdown to cushion their lead.
Head Coach Seven Armstrong speaks to his team following their hard fought victory.
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