Tivy (Kerrville, Texas) junior quarterback Johnny Manziel ran for four touchdowns and passed for another four during Friday night’s 63-56 victory over Pflugerville Hendrickson in the second round of the Class 4A-Division II state football playoffs.
However, he put the icing on the cake by catching the winning 39-yard touchdown pass from wide receiver Mikhail Ironside on a rain-soaked field with 3:54 left in the wild shootout.
The 6-foot, 185-pounder ran 30 times for 205 yards and four touchdowns, while also completing 17 of 28 passes for 247 yards and four touchdowns. He accounted for 491 of the Antlers’ 509 yards and all nine of their touchdowns.
Through 11 games, Manziel has carried 201 times for 1,271 yards (6.3 average), completed 165 of 268 passes for 2,169 yards and 14 touchdowns and caught four passes for 73 yards and one touchdown.
“He’s been great all year," Tivy head coach Mark Smith said. "I’m not sure this was his best game. In his worst game, they dropped balls all over the place. I could name a guy who dropped three. If I played him on defense, he’d be our best safety.
“He has a great arm, great feet and knows how to elude problems. He’s a dadgummed competitor – maybe the most competitive player I’ve ever coached. He’s a heck of a baseball player and golfer. If he played basketball, he’d be the starting point guard.”
Photo by Ralph Mawyer
Johnny Manziel Tivy
* It’s Texas, folks – Southlake Carroll nipped Allen, 35-34, in double overtime before an estimated crowd of 40,000 at Cowboys Stadium.
* Fontana Summit, which had split its first 10 games, ended California’s longest active winning streak (38 games) with a shocking 48-36 victory over Perris Citrus Hill. Junior Montigo Alford (5-10, 185) lit the spark by rushing for 124 yards and four touchdowns. The SkyHawks will be practicing on Thanksgiving Day for the first time in their history.
* Down to its No. 3 quarterback due to injuries, Shattuck (Okla.) lost to Deer Creek-Lamont, 16-12, ending its national-record 93-game winning streak in 8-man football.
* Canyon del Oro (Tucson, Ariz.) junior Ka’Deem Carey (5-9, 184) set a southern Arizona single-game record by rushing for 427 yards and six touchdowns during a 63-35 victory over Glendale Apollo.
* In Colorado, Louisville Monarch outlasted Loveland, 37-31, in a four-overtime thriller.
* Despite playing without five starters who were dismissed earlier in the week and starting a freshman quarterback, Melbourne (Fla.) nipped Santaluces, 4-0, on a pair of safeties.
* Old Mill (Millersville, Md.) handed Gambrills Arundel its first loss, 58-55, in the Class 4A East regional. Brad Cummings, who had missed four of five PAT kicks, booted the winning 29-yard field goal in overtime. Senior Josh Furman (6-3, 202) led Old Mill with 414 yards on 42 carries and six touchdowns. Arundel senior receiver Ronnie Harris (6-0, 170) caught 20 passes for 293 yards to set a Maryland public school record with 114 catches this year.
* Myrtle Beach junior quarterback Everett Golson (6-0, 160) completed 27 of 36 passes for 444 yards and eight touchdowns during a 55-13 rout of North Charleston.
* In a battle of unbeaten Michigan powers, Sterling Heights Stevenson edged Clarkston, 37-35, on a one-yard touchdown pass from Jason Fracassa to Dylan Cooper as time expired. Stevenson will play unbeaten Detroit Catholic Central Saturday for the Division I state title.
* Senior Mike Davis (6-1, 185) caught four touchdown passes and intercepted two passes to spark unbeaten Skyline (Dallas, Texas) to a 41-36 victory over DeSoto. He has committed to LSU.
* Fort Thomas Highlands senior running back Austin Collinsworth has been named winner of the Paul Hornung Award as the No. 1 player in Kentucky. In just nine games, the 6-foot, 180-pounder has carried 140 times for 1,199 yards and 19 touchdowns.
* Harold Strauss, who has won 229 games, will retire as head football coach at Colton (Calif.) at the end of this season, but will remain as athletic director.
Volleyball streak at 75
Bloomfield Hills Marian defeated Portage Central, 3-1, to win Michigan’s Class A state volleyball championship. Marian finished with a spectacular 77-2 record and a 75-match winning streak. Five-foot-11 Marian senior Alexandra Cocklin, an Akron University recruit, was named Michigan’s Miss Volleyball.
* Julie Perry has retired as volleyball coach at St. Ursula (Cincinnati, Ohio) after winning eight state titles and over 500 matches during her 29-year career.
National swim records
Minot senior Dagny Knutson set two national records during the North Dakota state swim meet. Rated a rare six-star recruit by Swimming World Magazine, Knutson set records of 1:53.82 in the 200-yard individual medley and 48.15 in the 100-yard freestyle.
Soccer win streak broken
Gahanna Lincoln nipped the nation’s No. 1-ranked boys soccer team, Cleveland St. Ignatius, 4-3, in a shootout to win Ohio’s Division I state title. The marathon game was scoreless through regulation play and two overtimes. Lincoln moved to No. 3 in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll, while Ignatius – which had won 31 straight games - dropped to No. 8. The new No. 1 is St. Thomas Aquinas (Overland Park, Kan.).
Lincoln’s 6-foot-6 goalie, Ryan Grimme, “saved the game for us,” coach Dwayne Marshall said. In 23 games, he allowed just four goals, had 56 saves and posted 19 shutouts. Losing goalie Joe Kalt set a state record with 44 career shutouts.
Rosa breaks own record
Though he’s just a junior, Joe Rosa of West Windsor-Plainsboro North continues to set cross country records in New Jersey. He ran an outstanding 14:56 to win the Meet of Champions and erase his own course record of 15:04. His twin brother, Jim, placed second in 15:15.