No. 3 Southern Durham upset in first round of NCHSAA playoffs
Everything, it seemed, had gone wrong for Southern Durham in its playoff opener against Gray’s Creek: back-breaking penalties, defensive lapses, five interceptions by quarterback Omari Smith.
With 17 seconds left, though, the third-seeded Spartans had one play to change that and avoid a devastating loss in the first round of the NCHSAA 3AA playoffs.
After forcing a fumble in the last minute of the fourth quarter, Smith had led Northern Durham on a short, clutch touchdown drive. Trailing 27-26, head coach Darius Robinson opted to go for a two-point conversion and the win.
But when Smith handed off to running back Jaylen Wright, he was stuffed by the Gray’s Creek defense. One failed onside kick later, the nightmare had come true.
The 14th-seeded Bears had marched into Durham County Memorial Stadium and left with a stunning 27-26 upset win over Southern Durham, which entered Friday with a 10-1 record.
“I’m just happy to be here,” Gray’s Creek coach David Lovette said. “Sort of speechless.”
The game was back-and-forth from the start. Gray’s Creek, which runs a no-huddle wing-T offense, scored on its opening drive only for Southern Durham to respond with a five-yard fumble recovery touchdown by Sincere Lecraft.
Zechariah Adams-Duckson scored on an absurd, sideline-to-sideline 50-yard rush for Gray’s Creek. Jaylen Wright of Southern Durham shot back with short rushing touchdown of his own. Both of the Spartans’ extra points were blocked, so they trailed 13-12 late in the first half as Smith inched them toward scoring territory.
With seven seconds left in the first half, a Spartan receiver broke free for what should’ve been an easy touchdown — instead Gray’s Creek linebacker Justin McClintock picked off Smith and raced an unfathomable 98 yards on the last play of the half for a pick-six.
If the wheels didn’t look like they were coming off then, they absolutely did early in the third quarter. Backed up on its one-yard line, Southern Durham tried to set up a wide receiver screen. But Smith fumbled the ball on his drop-back, and a Gray’s Creek defender dove on it in the end-zone for another defensive score.
Down 27-12, the Spartans refused to give up. They shut out the Bears’ offense in the second half and chipped into their deficit with a much-needed fourth-quarter touchdown drive.
The game seemed over when Smith threw his fifth interception near the goal line, but the Spartans got a final chance when Gray’s Creek fumbled trying to run out the clock with 1:04 left.
From there, the Spartans scored a final touchdown before their game-winning two-point conversion came up just short and ended their 2019 season far earlier than they expected.
Records: Gray’s Creek 8-4, Southern Durham 10-2.
Three who mattered
Dalton Patrick, Gray’s Creek: The senior wide receiver/free safety picked off Southern Durham three times. All of them came in the second half.
Zechariah Adams-Duckson, Gray’s Creek: On a night headline by the defense, the shifty senior running back was the Bears’ best offensive player. He scored one long touchdown and also punched in a two-point conversion.
Jaylen Wright, Southern Durham: The junior scored two of the Spartans’ three touchdowns and kept his team within striking distance all night with a combination of speed and power.
Worth noting
- The Spartans’ offense took a major hit because of Smith’s turnovers, but plenty of skill players had great nights: Wright, Sincere Lecraft, Jewalace Holmes, Cinsere Clark.
- Southern Durham had serious issues with its special teams. Both of kicker John Paulino’s extra point attempts were blocked in the first half. That absolutely played a role in Robinson’s choice to go for two late.
- It was the second night in a row a Big 8 conference team lost in Durham County Memorial Stadium. On Friday night, ninth-seeded Southern Alamance routed eighth-seeded Northern Durham, 35-0.
Scoring summary
GC — Ben Lovette one-yard rush (XP blocked)
SD — Sincere Lecraft five-yard fumble return (XP blocked)
GC — Zechariah Adams-Duckson 50-yard rush (James Haggins XP)
SD — Jaylen Wright four-yard rush (XP blocked)
GC — Justin McClintock 98-yard interception return (Adams-Duckson two-point run)
GC — Garrett Crockett 0-yard fumble return (two-point run failed)
SD — Wright 14-yard rush (Omari Smith two-point run)
SD — Smith five-yard rush (two-point run failed)
This story was originally published November 16, 2019 at 10:54 PM with the headline "No. 3 Southern Durham upset in first round of NCHSAA playoffs."
