No. 10 Keith tops Southside 43-6 to take series lead
Published 2:17 am Saturday, September 29, 2012
Southside running back Damon Watts is tackled by a Keith defender during Friday’s game at Southside. The Bears defeated the Panthers 43-6 to take the all-time series lead in the long-running rivalry. -- Shane Gaut
The No. 10 Keith High Bears improved to 5-0 (3-0 Class 1A-Region 3) on the season Friday night by defeating their cross-county rival Southside 43-6 in the 39th meeting between the two.
The Bears’ win broke the tie between the two teams in the all-time series, and gave Keith a total of 20 wins to Southside’s 19.
“We started out slow but once we hit our first big play, we got our feet under us and were able to create running lanes. It’s a great win for us,” said Keith head coach Harry Crum.
The Bears fumbled the ball on the first play from scrimmage on their opening drive, turning it over on their own 40-yard line. Southside’s Nathan Tyus recovered, giving the Panthers great field position. Casey Pullom rushed for 35 yards on his first carry, setting up a first-and-goal from the Bears’ three, but it would take three attempts before James Mcneil punched it in to give Southside (1-4, 1-2 Class 3A-Region 1) their only lead of the night 6-0. Following the touchdown, the Panthers used some trickery and William Franklin recovered an onside kick, putting Southside’s offense back on the field. They failed to take advantage by going three and out.
Keith began its next possession from its own 20, and was able to muscle the ball 80 yards to the end zone. Rodney Ellis got the toss sweep and sliced his way through defenders to tie the game, 6-6 with 7:21 remaining in the first quarter.
The next score would come with 5:12 left in the first half.
Keith quarterback Maurice Crumpton hit a wide open Charles Johnson down the sideline for a 50-yard touchdown pass, giving the Bears a 12-6 lead.
Johnson wasn’t quite finished. He intercepted Southside’s Khamari Gibbs on the Panthers’ ensuing drive, running it back 26 yards to score his second touchdown of the evening.
The Panthers couldn’t answer and the half ended with Keith leading 20-6.
Southside received to start the second half and was able to move the ball, but penalties and turnovers seemed to melt away any progress they made. Keith would go on to score three more times and walk away with their third straight victory over the rival Panthers.
“Turning the ball over just killed us tonight but we’ve got to keep fighting and run hard, something good will happen,” said Southside head football coach Daniel Flowers.
