It went exactly as planned. When Goochland has a big lead, the Bulldogs want to grind the clock. Just suck the life out of the opposition by holding onto the ball for what seems like forever.
The Bulldogs did it in the third quarter Saturday during their 41-14 victory in the Division 2 title game, piecing together a 99-yard drive set up by a Jordan Jefferson interception that looked and felt like a championship drive by the time it was all said and done.
“We knew they had a lot of speed going east to west but we knew we could get them north and south,” said Goochland linebacker and wide receiver Nathan Adams. “So we just tried to pound it, five yards per clip, run that clock and get a methodical drive.”
When Goochland head coach Joe Fowler is ready to put together a drive like that, he turns to David Dyer.
“He just asks me if I’m ready to grind it out,” Dyer said. “And I give him an “ok, let’s go. It’s just a great feeling getting the ball on my hands.”
Dyer is the Bulldogs’ closer. A bruising back that bursts through the middle with power and authority. While Mitchell Brice, Jefferson and Mason Engel all got carries and picked up big yards on the drive, Dyer got four of the last five touches including the drive-capping 2-yard touchdown run.
The Bulldogs got out one particularly tough situation on the drive where back-to-back penalties left them facing a second and 25. Then Jefferson hit Engel for a 19-yard gain just before Brice ripped off a 30-yard run. Suddenly Goochland was out of trouble and threatening to score again as the Bulldogs kept pushing the envelope against Essex and kept the Trojans’ previously explosive offense on the sidelines.
Crackback attack
While Adams is right, the Trojans were fast, the Bulldogs had a ton of success to the outside on student body left/student body right type sweeps that are a staple in the Bulldogs’ offense. In fact, in the first half they led to big runs including a Mitchell Brice touchdown.
Part of the reason those plays turned into big gains is the fact that Adams and Trace Nixon are crackback block experts. On the sweep, the two wideouts head nearly parallel to the line of scrimmage and explode on strongside linebackers flowing toward the play.
“The guy doesn’t even see you and you come down and earhole him,” Adams said. “It’s pretty fun and it’s a really good block to bust the play open.”
Both wideouts, but especially the vicious Adams, laid block after block while rarely getting thrown too—something they’re used to at this point in the Bulldogs’ offense. Goochland completed three passes with two going to running backs Brice and Engel while Adams had the other for five yards.
“Their role isn’t to catch the ball, their role is to block,” Fowler said. “They bust their tails every play and that’s what makes us go.”
Other notes…
The Bulldogs’ defense surrendered just 12.8 points per game during the playoffs, holding Wilson Memorial and Essex to a grand total of 14 points, all by Essex, in the state semifinals and finals. They picked off a slew of passes too, including two Saturday….
The Goochland football team is a complete community effort, but one family’s effort is pretty unique. Three Doczi brothers suited up for the Bulldogs — Chase (sophomore), Noah (freshman) and Michael (senior) — while their mother, Susan, serves as the Bulldog mascot.
