For the past 54 years at the end of every football season in stadiums all over the Diamond State, thousands of Delaware senior football players have walked off the field after their final regular season games hoping to have the opportunity to strap on their helmets and play in front of family and friends one last time at the annual Blue-Gold All-Star Football game.
But for Blue defensive lineman Josh Watson, playing in the annual game meant much more than that.
The 6-foot-5, 255-pound Watson's Dickinson team did not win a game this past fall, so when the final horn sounded and Blue had defeated Gold, 12-0, the win was extra special.
“This game is definitely the highlight of my career," said Watson, who after recording four-and-a-half sacks was named the game's Most Valuable Player. “And not just because we won. This game is all about the kids. I realized that the first day of training camp when we were running around out here and every kid was smiling. That’s what this game is all about.”
The 54th edition of the Blue-Gold All-Star game showcased the state’s most talented senior football players on both sides of the ball. But on this night it was the players on the Blue defense that shined the brightest, giving up just 46 yards on the ground and even less in the air (29 yards) to hold the Gold offense scoreless.
It was a defensive battle from the start, but after several possessions by both teams, Blue scored the only points of the first half when, following one of Gold’s three fumbles, Pencader Charter quarterback Malik White found Tatnall’s Justin Perillo in the back corner of the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown.
St. Mark’s Kyle Sullivan tacked on the extra point to give the Blue a 7-0 lead with 3:44 remaining in the first quarter, a lead it would take into halftime.
Blue started its second possession of the third quarter on the Gold 30-yard line, and four plays later Sullivan converted a 33-yard field goal to put Blue up 10-0 with 8:06 remaining.
On Gold’s next possession, a fumbled snap deep in its own end zone forced quarterback Kenny Anderson (Middletown) to kick the ball out of the end zone for a safety, putting Blue up 12-0 with just over seven minutes remaining in the third quarter.
Gold tried to put together one last scoring drive with 7:52 remaining in the fourth quarter, but Blue’s other defensive lineman from Dickinson, Eddie Stewart, sacked Glasgow’s Chris Cruz to force a fourth and long at the Gold 34-yard line. Cruz dropped back to pass but was chased and tackled by Watson and Jamil Merrell (Hodgson) to end any hopes Gold had of ending Blue’s three-game winning streak.
“It was a special experience for me to coach this team,” Blue coach Jody Russell (Tatnall) said after the game. “The guys were great all week. They embraced the Hand-In-Hand program and understood from day one what this game is all about.”
The common theme heard and seen around the stadium the entire night was about the Blue-Gold All-Star Game being about family, not just tonight but in years to come when "Buddies" --- persons ages 4 - 18 with an intellectual disability --- and participants reunite.
For Watson, whose brother Nigel, 7, was his Buddy in the Hand-In-Hand program, that theme resonated even louder.
“I never understood what this game was all about,” he said with pride when asked about having his brother as his Buddy. “Now I know, and it was an honor to be part of it.”
Game notes: Blue’s Jamil Merrell (Hodgson) was named the game’s outstanding lineman. … Sullivan converted a 33-yard field goal and had two touchbacks. … Caravel’s Travis Perez carried the ball 22 times for 79 yards for Blue. … Officials from the Northern Delaware Football Officials Association volunteered their services for the game. … Official attendance was 5,200. … The 55th game is scheduled for June 19, 2010.
Blue-Gold Awards Banquet The annual Blue-Gold banquet was held on Friday evening to honor all buddies, ambassadors, band members, cheerleaders, and players participating in the game.
The Bob Carpenter, Jr. Memorial Award is presented to the ambassador who demonstrates outstanding leadership abilities in furthering the mission of DFRC and for dedication to the Hand-In-Hand program. This year’s Gold recipient is Drew Lobley of Smyrna High School. The Blue recipient is Tiffany Sharpe from Howard High School of Technology.
The Delaware Interscholastic Football Coaches Association (DIFCA) honored Jason Kollock from Milford High School (Gold) and Jamil Merrell from Hodgson Vo-Tech (Blue) with the Jim Williams Memorial Award for contributing the most to squad spirit and morale during the training period, as voted by teammates and coaches.
The Outstanding Blue-Gold Cheerleaders Award was presented to Brittney Gilewski of Milford High School (Gold) and Erin Dodd of Saint Mark's High School (Blue) for showing outstanding commitment to the cheerleading squad and selfless dedication to the Hand-In-Hand Program.
The Outstanding Band Member Award was presented to Emily Reed of Glasgow High School for outstanding spirit and dedication to the Hand-In-Hand program.
News and Notes: Middletown High’s Ryan Haas, the Blue Hen Conference player of the year, has signed a letter of intent to play baseball at Delaware State University. Haas was an all-state first baseman and pitcher for the Cavaliers, who made this year's state semifinals and finished with a 20-2 record.
Jon Buzby is the Delaware correspondent for MaxPreps.com.
