No. 13 Dorman Shocks No. 3 Byrnes

By Mitch Stephens

MaxPreps.com

ROEBUCK, S.C. – Walt Canty said he wasn’t going to remove his jersey.

“I’m going to sleep in it tonight,” he said.

Ashlin Butler was reduced to uncontrollable tears.

“We just wanted it so much I guess,” he said.

And reserve junior lineman Phillip Coffey, long after most of the 16,000 frenzied fans had departed Dorman High School’s picturesque stadium, laid flat on his back like a snow angel smack dab in the middle of the 50-yard-line.

Gonna sleep there kid?

“No,” Coffey said. “I’m just soaking it all in.”

There was much to digest following Dorman’s ultra-emotional 35-28 victory over arch-nemesis Byrnes (Duncan) in a battle of national powers.

In a setting that resembled a heated Southeastern Conference college clash, the Cavaliers ended a nine-year, seven-game draught against USA Today’s top-ranked team by riding two long Butler touchdown runs, three second-quarter interceptions – one returned by Canty for a touchdown – and a stingy, sure-tackling defense  

Butler, a 5-foot-11, 170-pound track star, set the tone with a 72-yard touchdown sprint over right tackle on Dorman’s first play from scrimmage, catapulting the Cavaliers to a 27-0 lead late in the second quarter. He finished with 190 yards on 23 carries and three scores helping end Byrnes’ 23-game win streak.

Though sloppy and penalty-ridden Byrnes (8-1) never stopped battling and scored the game’s final three touchdowns to close to 35-28 with 2:28 left on Marcus Lattimore’s second 1-yard TD run.

But Dorman (9-0), ranked 13th in the country by MaxPreps, ran out the clock with Canty, arguably the game’s best all-around player, converting a 4th-and-1 play to finish off the Rebels.

“There was no way they we were going to stop me,” Canty said. “We needed just one yard to win this game. I can’t describe the feeling.”

Dorman coach David Gutshall was cautiously elated, thrilled that the Cavaliers finally got the Byrnes monkey of their back and beat “the No. 1 team in the country” (MaxPreps had the Rebels No. 3), but wary that his team will see this team again.

“You have to give (Byrnes) credit, they didn’t stop playing,” Gutshall said. “You can tell they are champions. We didn’t want them to get on the field one more time.”

The win might have been costly because Clemson-bound tight end Brandon Thomas (6-5, 280) went out early in the third quarter with what appeared to be a serious knee injury. Another starting offensive lineman Ricky Smith (6-4, 225) also sat out the second half with a knee injury.

The Cavaliers, who planned to win by smashmouth, overcame the injuries, making the victory even more stirring.

“I’m just tickled for our kids,” he said. “They’ve been waiting for this moment for a very long time. They earned it.”

Much of the credit had to go to Dorman’s secondary as Byrnes quarterback Chas Todd never quite looked comfortable.

The poised and talented junior quarterback, who finished with pretty good numbers (20 of 34, 257 yards), constantly checked off and scrambled because the Cavaliers jumped routes.

Byrnes’ receiving brigade – as talented as they are – rarely found separation.

In the pivotal second quarter, safety Blake Winkles, linebacker Ryan Pruitt and Canty had interceptions, the latter returned 38 yards for a score.

Canty, a 6-foot, 200-pounder who said Thursday his college plans are completely up in the air, jumped a short route, tipped the ball to himself and raced down the right sideline the distance, giving the Cavaliers a 27-0 lead.

“I just read it right and the ball was there,” Canty said. “It went right through my hands really, but luckily in bounced up in the air.”

Dorman also got stellar secondary play from Duke-bound Taylor Sowell and A.J. McLean. Winkles led both teams with 11 tackles, while Pruitt seemed like he was everywhere with nine tackles, three for losses.

Said Gutshall: “(The secondary) is the strength of this team and I think that showed tonight.”

The Cavaliers did a superb job holding down Lattimore, the nation’s top junior running back according to CBS College Sports/MaxPreps recruiting expert Tom Lemming. Lattimore averaged just 3.6 yards per his 20 carries, finishing with 72 yards.

The 6-1, 204-pound stallion had just one run longer than 10 yards, a 13-yarder in the first quarter.

“We did a great job tackling and not giving up the big play,” Gutshall said. “And we got some big plays ourselves.”

Mostly that was Butler, who backed up his early TD run with a scintillating 68-yard TD jaunt with 4:09 left in the second quarter, making it 20-0.

“My offensive line did it all,” Butler said. “They gave me some room and allowed to run.”

After the Rebels closed to 27-7 just before halftime on a nifty four-play 74-yard drive capped by a Torian Richardson 15-yard touchdown run, Dorman talented sophomore receiver Charone Peake answered early in the third quarter.

On a third-and-21 call from Dorman’s nine, junior quarterback Johnny Foster lofted a pretty long aerial that Peake, a 6-3, 185-pound gazelle, pulled down in heavy traffic for a 47-yard play.

Seven plays later, Butler scored his third touchdown on a 10-yard sweep around left end, thwarting any momentum Byrnes had secured with its late halftime touchdown.

“That was a huge play,” Gutshall said.

Butler’s two long runs and the long pass to Peake accounted for 187 of Dorman’s 307 yards. In fact, the Rebels, behind seven tackles each from Skylar Franking and Justin Bright, and three tackles-for-loss by Laffette Dye, actually shut down the Cavaliers most of the night.

Butler had just 50 yards on 21 carries besides the two long TDs.

“But that’s what speed can do,” Canty said. “He’s the fastest football player I’ve ever seen.”

Byrnes, which finished with 396 yards, never stopped fighting and got a 49-yard TD catch-and-run by Nick Jones (five catches, 100 yards) sandwiched in between Lattimore’s two TD plunges.

But, in a sequence that epitomized a frustrating evening, the Rebels missed out on a golden opportunity late in the third quarter when Peake fumbled a kickoff return that was recovered by Katodre Oglesby at the Dorman 32.

Three plays netted nine yards, but on fourth-and-1, the exchange between center and Dodd was mishandled and Dorman took over.

Despite the sequence and loss, Byrnes coach Chris Miller told the Spartanburg Herald he was proud of his team’s effort.

“I was extremely proud of them,” he said. “I told them after the game that they were true champions, because another team that was down 35-7 at halftime in front of this many people, might have hung it up. Our kids fought back.”

Said Butler: “Hey, they’re a great team and they battled back and we might very well face them again. But we’re just going to enjoy this right now. This is our night. This is a great night for Dorman football.”  

E-mail Mitch Stephens at mstephens@maxpreps.com.

Dorman 35, Byrnes 28

Byrnes    0  7  7  14  - 28

Dorman  7 20 8   0   - 35

First quarter

D – Ashlin Butler 72 run (bo Lindsey kick), 10:02

Second quarter

D – FG, Lindsey 32, 11:07

D – FG, Lindsey 28, 5:28

D – Butler 68 run (Lindsey kick), 4:09

D – Walt Canty 38 interception return (Lindsey kick), 1:31

B – Torian Richardson 15 run (Jordon Miller kick), 0:37

Third quarter

D – Butler 10 run (Canty run), 7:27

B – Marcus Lattimore 1 run (Miller kick), 2:08

Fourth quarter

B – Nick Jones 49 pass from Chas Dodd (Miller kick) 6:29

B – Lattimore 1 run (Miller kick), 2:28

Team statistics

First downs: Byrnes 23, Dorman 9

Rushing attempts-yards: Byrnes 36-139, Dorman 40-260

Passing: Byrnes 20-34-3-257, Dorman 1-3-0-47

Total offense: Byrnes 396, Dorman 307

Fumbles-lost: Byrnes 1-0, Dorman 2-1

Possession: Byrnes 25:43, Dorman 22:17

3rd down conversion: Byrnes 8-15, Dorman 1 of 11

Penalites: Brynes 10-72, Dorman 8-73

Individual statistics

Rushing

Byrnes: Lattimore 20-72, Todd 12-42, Richardson 1-15, Jones 1-10; Dorman Butler 23-190, Canty 9-49, Johnny Foster 7-17, Quenton Tucker 1-4.

Passing

Byrnes, Dodd 20-34-3-257; Dorman, Foster 1-3-47.

Receiving

Byrnes, Jazz King 6-71, Jones 5-100, Lattimore 4-44, Ricco Sanders 4-10, Richardson 1-4; Dorman Charon Peake 1-47.

Tackles

Byrnes, Skylan Franklin 7, Justin Bright 7, Corey Miller 5. Dorman, Blake Winkles 11, Malik Crate 10, Ryan Pruitt 9.