“We had a lot of emotional moments, a lot of team-bonding moments,” said Dunbar senior center Solomon Sidbury, the DCIAA’s player of the year. “A lot of people left the team, and the people you see on the field, they stayed. Stick together and we’ll do a lot.”
Last season, the Crimson Tide fell to Theodore Roosevelt in a game that went to the fourth quarter tied. In its return to the Turkey Bowl, Dunbar turned to its strengths and removed much of the drama.
The Crimson Tide (9-2) struck first with a 48-yard catch and run touchdown from senior Kemond Felder. Ballou (6-6) had a ready answer, knotting the game at 7-7 when Lorenzo Martin broke free from 45 yards out.
From there, the game went to the trenches, and Dunbar took control, its offensive line controlling things up front to establish a punishing rushing game.
“It’s beautiful, man,” said Dunbar running back Dre’aun Wood, named the game’s MVP. “This type of generation we’re in now, they’re going to pass the ball, [throw] screens. But football is going to come down to tackling and running the ball and blocking. … And that’s what we do.”
Dunbar capped a six-minute drive in the second quarter with a short scoring burst from Wood to retake the lead.
Crimson Tide Coach Maurice Vaughn’s steady, methodical approach is not so rigid that it doesn’t allow for an element of risk. That moment came with the contest still a one-score game and a little more than four minutes left in the third quarter. Dunbar faced a fourth and eight and Ballou’s 49.
Sensing a chance to seize control, Vaughn went for it. But as quarterback Brosnan Dukes surveyed the defense, Vaughn didn’t like what he saw and called timeout. Out of the timeout, Vaughn turned to Wood, who took a handoff from Dukes and scampered 49 yards for a score.
Michael Clark added a touchdown in the fourth quarter to seal the game. Soon thereafter, Crimson Tide coaches were having ice chests dumped over them in celebration.
Wood finished with 112 yards on 14 carries as Dunbar piled up 217 rushing yards on 46 attempts. Ballou finished with 57 yards on 17 carries.
The win ensured the season is not over for Dunbar, which will play next week in the DCSAA Class AA finals at Georgetown. The Tide’s opponent will be set this weekend.
For Ballou, the loss capped a journey for Coach Kenneth Brown, at 29 the youngest coach ever to reach the Turkey Bowl. Much of his senior class has been with him for five years, and though they closed with a loss, there were plenty of smiles on the Knights sideline.
“When I got the job, I recruited a large amount of eighth graders, and this is the final process of that,” Brown said. “So they’re seniors, I had these kids since they were pups. … So it’s a true testament.”