PONTIAC – On what would have been a game-winning drive, River Rouge marched inside Pontiac Notre Dame Prep’s 35 yard line and was marching toward knocking off the No. 9 team in Division 4.
But a running game that had gashed the Fighting Irish up and down the field for much of the night was held to three yards on three plays. After Antoine Burgess’ 4th down pass fell harmlessly to the turf, Notre Dame Prep escaped with a 33-30 victory on homecoming.
River Rouge (6-1) falls from the ranks of the unbeaten, while Notre Dame Prep (6-1) officially punched its ticket to the postseason after missing out a year ago.
“We were play away from being where we want to be,” River Rouge head coach Corey Parker said. “At the end of the day, we can say that we were able to stand strong with them, with their pedigree, the kind of football they play, and on their home field on homecoming.
“There’s no question about what we’ve developed here.”
Burgess spearheaded the Panther Sing Wing offense, accounting for three total touchdowns — two passing and one rushing.
“Our thought process is if you’ve got eight guys in the box, our ninth guy has the ball,” Parker said. “Once you put yourself in a situation where you’re going to cover us man-to-man, we can open up the passing game.
“We’re going to trust our system and what we do.”
Aaron Vinson was on the receiving end of Burgess’ first touchdown pass, a 10-yard hookup with 5:19 left in the first half. Giovanni Turner snared the other, a 19-yard pitch-and-catch with 9:13 left in the ballgame.
While River Rouge relied primarily on its ground attack, Notre Dame Prep found success in its aerial assault.
Matthew Durkin tossed three touchdown passes, two of which went to Joshua Johnson. None were more important than their final scoring play, a 51-yard connection with 10:54 to play to give the Irish a 33-24 lead.
Luke Adams ran in a pair of touchdowns in the Irish victory.
River Rogue continually shot itself in the foot with costly penalties, committing a total of 25 on the night. Big play after big play was wiped out by holding calls or illegal blocks in the back.
“This is a dangerous game, you’d rather go get the other guy before he comes and gets you,” Parker said. “We’ll get through this by focusing our technique.”
Trouble followed River Rouge after the whistle as well, as the Panthers were flagged for four unsportsmanlike conduct penalties — including one for taunting at midfield during pregame.
Still, River Rouge had an opportunity to come from behind in the final minutes.
“We were seven yards, three broad jumps, from beating the No. 9 team in Division 4,” Parker said. “And we had an opportunity to do something special at the end of the game. We just have to execute better.”
MI Prep Zone, October 10, 2015