Tigers Run Streak to 87

When Oscar Smith lost to nationally-ranked DeMatha (MD) in its season-opener 42-7, some might've wondered if the Tigers were still the same elite program that has won no fewer than 11 games in any season since 2004.

Five games later, that answer appears to be yes. Oscar Smith won its fifth straight game by double-digits under new Head Coach Bill Dee, defeating the Indian River Braves 21-7 on Friday night at Hickory High School in Chesapeake. With the victory, they extended their Southeastern District regular season winning streak to 87 games. No one in the district has beaten them since Hickory did so in 2006.

Oscar Smith did it with a strong defense that limited Indian River to just 144 total yards on 51 plays while forcing eight punts. Most impressive was the fact that the Braves managed just one first down the whole second half after moving the chains nine times prior to intermission.

Known for their quick-strike ability and averaging over 30 points per game coming in, the Braves couldn't get QB Keyshawn Brown or RB Devon Hunter loose for a huge chunk of yardage. Only one play the whole night went for more than 20 yards - a 22-yard pass completion from Brown to wideout Johnathan Griffin.

"Big plays drive their team. That's how they run their offense," noted Oscar Smith senior defensive back Branden Delbridge, who recorded four tackles and three pass breakups, including one on the game's final play.

"The game-plan was just to keep outside containment. Keep Devon and Keyshawn in the backfield. As long as we come out here and compete, that's how it's going to be the whole year."

On a playing surface that the common person could argue was hazardous to say the least, both offenses struggled in the early going. The two teams combined for just four rushing yards on 13 attempts in the opening quarter. Both passing games took a while to settle in and even defenders found it problematic at times to plant and go.

"It was tough, especially as a DB trying to keep your feet under you," Delbridge added. "As coach said before the game, short, choppy steps, keep everything in front of you."

The Tigers found the end zone first on Keyon Watson's three-yard scoring plunge with 36 seconds to play in the opening period. That capped a six-play, 45-yard drive in a span of 2:16. Watson added another touchdown run midway through the second quarter to increase Oscar Smith's lead to 14-0.

Indian River had only one touchdown the whole evening, which came on quarterback Keyshawn Brown's three-yard scoring run to cap a nine-play, 63-yard drive that took 4:54 off the clock. It trimmed Oscar Smith's lead in half to 14-7 with 1:22 before half-time.

Oscar Smith quarterback Shon Mitchell, a William & Mary commit in pursuit of VHSL passing records for career yards and touchdowns, started out just 2 of 6 with an interception. Mitchell got in a rhythm in the second quarter, completing nine of his final ten pass attempts, highlighted by a 25-yard scoring strike to Kenny Etheridge.

For much of the season, Mitchell's favorite targets have been Khalik Perry and Cam'Ron Kelly. Getting their #3 receiver, Etheridge, free for five receptions, netting 76 yards, proved to do wonders for the offense as they went to half-time with a comfortable 21-7 lead.

"The first quarter we were honestly trying to get a feel of their defense and see what they were running. Going into the second quarter, we switched up our offense," Mitchell pointed out.

"When we went doubles, we saw a lot of blitz packages from Indian River. We were able to find some holes, hit Kenny for a big one and executed. With the traction on the field, we were kind of losing our feet and guys were slipping in their routes. Overall, 21-7, can't be more happy."

It wound up being a scoreless second half and Indian River didn't sniff the end zone as the Tigers continued their dominant stretch of defense over the past five games.

Against Southeastern District foes this season, the Tigers have given up just 21 points. That's less than five points per game with three of victories - over Hickory, Lakeland and Nansemond River - being of the shutout variety. The Braves were held to 37 total yards in the second half.

Hunter, one of the nation's most prized recruits with schools such as Florida, North Carolina, Virginia Tech and many others trying to land him, was held under 100 yards for a second consecutive game. He ran for over 100 yards in each of the first four contests this season and managed to churn out a hard-earned 62 yards on 18 carries against the Smith defense, which saw all three levels produce in their latest win.

Up front defensively, both seniors Troy Mott and Kolby Hunter made a tackle behind the line of scrimmage. Kyle Thomas, a junior and first-year starter for the Tigers, was in on five total tackles.

From the linebacker spot, senior Jahmeek Jones and Keshon Artis controlled the run game the whole night, allowing only one of Indian River's 30 rush attempts to go for longer than nine yards. The Braves finished with just 71 yards on the ground as Jones made nine total tackles and Artis added seven. Another linebacker, senior Dekireon Turner, was in on six stops.

In the secondary, Delbridge along with juniors Deangelo White and Marrio Smith as well as senior Thomas Woodhouse - who made an interception in his role as 'Rover' - prevented the Braves from beating them over the top.

Since their 42-35 win over Grassfield, where they erased a 21-point second half deficit, Indian River has dropped two in a row with double-figure losses to Nansemond River and Oscar Smith. That puts them at 3-3 overall and needing to finish strong to not only reach the playoffs in 5A-South, but secure a seed where they can open in the first round at home.

"They did a good job of holding Devon Hunter and Germeek Knight in check. Defensively, we gave up two big plays on blow coverages that really hurt us. Momentum swung back their way, and when you're playing a team like that, momentum is big," stated Indian River Head Football Coach Glenwood Ferebee.

"Other than the two blunders that put them in scoring position, one of them being a touchdown, the defense played well enough for us to win. Offensively, we were waiting to put together a drive that would give us some confidence and it didn't happen."

Last year, the Braves played two home games that they won in the postseason over Bethel and Kecoughtan before going to Darling Stadium to take down top-seeded Hampton. Their playoff run came to a halt in the 5A-South Region Championship to eventual State Champ Highland Springs.

Clearly, the road to returning to that point will be much harder for a team playing quite a few sophomores starting for the first time.

Oscar Smith knows it left points on the field, converting just 3 of 13 on third and fourth downs combined. They also had great field position with the average starting point at the Braves '47-yard line during the first half and their own 45-yard line over the final two quarters of play.

"Offensively, we're still trying to get it clicking and work out the rough edges. Obviously, it's mid-season," said Mitchell.

"Coming into the season, we had 16 returners and a lot of those guys were on defense. We knew defense was going to be the strong point of our team."

Even though they aren't quite firing on all cylinders offensively, they are headed in the right direction. Ultimately, the goal is to head across the tunnel to play at Hampton University on the second Saturday of December for some hardware.

"I would say happy, but not satisfied," Delbridge said.

"I agree," Mitchell added. "Nobody's ever satisfied in this program until we win a State Championship."

Oscar Smith Tigers 21: (5-1 Overall)
Shon Mitchell - 21-35 for 204Yds. 1-2TD/Int. ratio
Deangelo White - 13Car. 39Yds; 5Rec. 56Yds.
Kenny Etheridge - 5Rec. 76Yds. TD
Khalik Perry - 7Rec. 25Yds; 6Car. 23Yds.
Cam'Ron Kelly - 4Rec. 47Yds.
Keyon Watson - 3Car. 6Yds. 2TD's
Jahmeek Jones - 9 Tackles (7 Solo), 2TFL
Keshon Artis - 7 Tackles, 2TFL, Sack
Dekireon Turner - 6 Tackles (5 Solo)

Indian River Braves 7: (3-3 Overall)
Keyshawn Brown - 9-21 for 73Yds. 0-1TD/Int. ratio; INT
Devon Hunter - 18Car. 62Yds; 3Rec. 25Yds; 8 Tackles (6 Solo), TFL
Germeek Knight - 4Rec. 20Yds; 6 Tackles (5 Solo), PBU
Johnathan Griffin - 1Rec. 22Yds.
Brandon Manley - 7 Tackles (4 Solo), TFL
Gerrien Christopher - 6 Tackles (5 Solo), INT
Detrick Perkins - 6 Tackles (5 Solo)

Matthew Hatfield has covered football and basketball since 2004 for VirginiaPreps.com, part of the Rivals.com Network, and is a staff writer for Tar Heel Illustrated. Check out Hatfield’s Twitter page for more sports related updates, and you can also read his work in the Suffolk News Herald. To contact Matthew, please e-mail hatfieldsports2k4@yahoo.com, and don’t forget to listen to him every Saturday at 10 AM on ESPN Radio 94.1, plus watch him on the Cox 11 Sports Report.