Football - James Kenan wins 1-AA state championship

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on December 14, 2013 11:15 PM

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WINSTON-SALEM -- Once James Kenan overcame its shaky offensive start, West Montgomery's defense fell apart at the seams on a rainy and miserably cold Saturday afternoon.

Marcelias Sutton did most of the damage in the Tigers' goal-line package on the slick BB&T Field turf. The N.C. State commit grinded out a game-high 186 yards and two touchdowns during a 42-14 victory over the Warriors in the 2013 N.C. High School Athletic Association Class 1-AA championship game at BB&T Field.

Sutton earned MVP accolades and helped No. 1-ranked James Kenan achieve perfection (15-0 overall), and claim its first state title since 2007.

"Other than them scoring to start with and the kickoff return (for a touchdown), I can't think of anything that went too bad for us tonight," James Kenan head coach Ken Avent Jr. said. "It was just outstanding. I thought we played great tonight."

Great, indeed.

West Montgomery quarterback Caleb Drake directed a game-opening, 87-second drive that ended on Suave Pegues' 3-yard scamper. It was the lone offensive touchdown scored by the Warriors, who were held to 104 yards of total offense the remainder of the contest.

The Warriors finished with a playoff-low 179 yards and lost the time of possession battle by nearly 13 minutes. Kenan limited West Montgomery to seven first downs and forced three turnovers.

"They were very fast on defense, very fast on offense and physical up front, too," West Montgomery head coach Nick Eddins said. "They play against great speed down East, their linebackers are quick and their secondary is quick. They got to some things quick."

Down 14-7, James Kenan switched to its goal-line package on its next offensive series and powered its way to 35 consecutive points. Daniel Montoya's 21-yard gallop and JaQuan Williams' two-point run gave the Tigers a 15-14 advantage they would never relinquish.

Keevon Miller's fumble recovery set up Dominique Barnes' 1-yard touchdown sneak. Barnes added another 1-yard sneak and Williams broke free for a 67-yard run during the offensive surge. Sutton emerged the primary workhorse on every possession and picked up critical first downs on long-yardage situations.

"We were feeling pretty good right there," Eddins said of the kickoff return. "They answered like a great football team does and then our first turnover occurred. They took advantage of that and it kind of snowballed from there. We didn't execute as well as I think we can."

Sutton capped the scoring with a 1-yard run five minutes into the third quarter. The Tigers amassed 433 yards of total offense -- all on the ground on an eye-popping 60 rushing plays.

"I was up for it," Sutton said of the goal-line scheme. "Coach called it, so I was going to go in there as hard as I can. I just knew if we keep doing this, there is no way in the world that we're going to lose.

"We had to hold onto the ball and keep pounding it at them. The offensive line was outstanding and I wouldn't have done what I did without them."

Williams and linebacker Juan Hooper were named the Wendy's offensive and defensive players-of-the-game, respectively. Williams rushed for 174 yards on 14 carries. Hooper had eight stops and recovered a fumble.

The Tigers became the first Carolina Conference team to win a state championship since Hobbton in 1993. It is the third in program history and second with Avent Jr. as head coach.