By Monty Campbell
Killeen Daily Herald
WACO – The storybook season of the Copperas Cove football team continues to add chapters as the Dawgs knocked off the Aledo Bearcats 35-12 in a rather unsuspenseful Division I-4A semifinal Saturday afternoon at Waco ISD Stadium.
This marks the first time in school history that the Bulldawg football team will be playing for a state championship in any classification.
Cove plays San Antonio Alamo Heights next Saturday in the championship game. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at the Alamodome in San Antonio.
Alamo Heights (13-1) defeated previously unbeaten Rosenberg Lamar Consolidated 42-14 Saturday night at Round Rock ISD Stadium in the other semifinal. The Mules haven't lost since dropping their season opener, 27-19, at home against Georgetown.
"Today, I thought that we really played a full 48 minutes against a ballclub that has a dynamic offense," Copperas Cove coach Jack Welch said. "This season has been kind of like a storybook, where every week we continued to tell the kids to play a full game – 48 minutes. It finally came to fruition today."
The turning point in a game that was close initially came when Cove, leading 15-12, used some trickery to score its third touchdown. Then the defense took over and frustrated the Bearcats the rest of the afternoon, rejecting two long drives deep into Cove territory.
Quarterback Robert Griffin set the wheels in motion late in the second quarter when he scrambled out of the pocket and completed a 30-yard pass for a first down to running back Jerrard Millsap. Griffin followed that with a pitch to Logan Brock, who in turn passed to a streaking Donn'ell Greer across the center of the field for a 38-yard touchdown.
Rather than attempt a 37-yard field goal with a stiff wind to its back, Aledo chose to go for it on fourth-and-two and was stopped for no gain by a bunch of Bulldawgs with just 30 seconds remaining in the half.
Two Millsap runs of 21 and 12 yards gave the Dawgs another scoring opportunity. Griffin found Rashad Hawk on a 42-yard pass and, after spiking the ball with two seconds left, Kyle Matthews gave the Dawgs a 25-12 lead with a 22-yard chip-shot field goal.
Early on, it appeared that Copperas Cove (12-2) was going to be in a dogfight for 48 minutes as Aledo took the opening kickoff and drove 80 yards in just 2:37.
Jack Bryant capped the six-play drive by hauling in Cole Loftin's first pass of the game and tip-toed 60 yards past the Bulldawgs on the sideline.
Aledo (12-2) missed the extra-point attempt but led 6-0.
Copperas Cove responded with an impressive 12-play, 52-yard drive on its first possession.
Brian Jones began the drive by losing 3 yards on an end-around, but ended up sealing the envelope with a 9-yard touchdown reception from Griffin with 4:01 left in the first quarter.
Griffin was 4-of-5 passing for 50 yards during the drive. Mathews followed with the extra point and Cove had a brief 7-6 lead.
Once again, the mammoth offensive line for the Bearcats moved Dawg defenders out of the way en route to an 11-play scoring drive in which Aledo never threw a pass. Loftin was the main workhorse on the drive, carrying the ball eight times for 73 yards and gave his team the lead when he scored from the 4.
In an attempt to make up for the failed extra point, Aledo chose to go for the two-point conversion, but was denied as the Bulldawg defense stiffened.
Unlike their first drive, which featured Griffin passing the ball, the Bulldawgs began establishing the run on their second possession of the game. Millsap, who ran for 154 yards on 17 carries, was the beneficiary of some large holes opened up by his front five and broke a handoff 70 yards up the middle of the Bearcat defense for another Cove touchdown.
Leading 13-12, Welch called for a two-point conversion attempt and it paid off when tight end Logan Brock made a one-handed catch of Griffin's pass.
Both teams came out empty with their first opportunity of the second half, and when Kenton Day intercepted a pass intended for Hawk, it appeared that the Bearcats had gained momentum.
A 22-yard run by Loftin on third-and-20 pushed Aledo across midfield, but Loftin then threw an ill-advised pass toward the middle of the field and Cove's Joseph Leary swept in and intercepted the ball as time was winding down in third quarter.
The Dawgs appeared to score again as Hawk leapt over the outstretched arms of Day on the first play of the final period, but the officials ruled that Hawk had pushed off.
All was not lost for Cove, though, as Mathews connected on his second field goal of the game, a 37-yarder.
The Bearcats made one last push on the ensuing drive. Loftin's running led his team to the Cove 4-yard line, but once again the Dawg defense stopped Aledo on fourth down and ended any hopes of a comeback. Loftin finished the game with 137 yards on 23 carries.
Stopping Loftin on that fourth down play refreshed the Dawgs hopes of winning a state championship.
"Their (Aledo's) offensive line is so good, but our defensive line played the best that it has all year," Welch said. "The bottom line, though, is he (Loftin) is the real deal. He ran real hard tonight and is a good ball player."
Millsap closed the scoring on a 2-yard touchdown run, his second of the night, with 52 seconds remaining.
