Millwood starts slow, then rolls past Dibble for win
With a margin of victory 26 or more points all season, Millwood had not faced the adversity that Dibble presented to it in the first quarter.
Yet the defending Class 2A champion channeled its experience handling difficult opposition — its scout team.
Millwood overcame its unsteady first quarter with four consecutive second-quarter touchdowns as it overwhelmed Dibble with a 42-0 victory Friday night.
But the home fans were concerned early as Dibble looked like a team thinking an upset in the first quarter, making Millwood uncomfortable in ways it hadn’t experienced all season.
Despite the challenging start, Millwood finished the game with a running clock as it outgained Dibble 333-18. As his team met afterward on the field, Millwood coach Darwin Franklin repeatedly praised his scout team for preparing the first team for the difficult opening quarter.
“My biggest question mark before this game was how we would respond,” Franklin said. “Coach (Chad) Stone has a great team at Dibble. They wanted the ball first, got it, and they hit us in the mouth. But it was much like our scout team did. This victory lies heavily on them.”
Dibble’s offense earned two first downs on its first drive with runs of 12 and nine yards. The Dibble defense did its part, too, as it forced a turnover on downs and forced Millwood into a fourth down situation just past midfield as the scoreless first quarter ended.
However, the start of the second quarter onward was night and day from the first. Millwood running back Marcus Major ran for the first down followed by a 3rd-and-15 conversion inside the red zone. Major finished the 16-play drive with a one-yard run.
Meanwhile the Millwood defense that had given up big runs on the first drive was immediately in the backfield on every play onward. From the second drive onward, Dibble had only one first down (via penalty) in the first half.
“The beautiful thing about small-school ball is that guys play on both sides,” Franklin said. “What you do on offense will help you on defense, and vice-versa. It was huge for them to respond, keep pressing and not get down.
“I love that about these guys. They never let their highs get too high and their lows too low.”
With the win, Millwood advanced to the quarterfinals. It will play at Vian next Friday.