McClellan answers Lakeside’s pushes, ends Rams’ dream season
With a pair of second-half stops, the Lakeside Rams were primed to retake the lead and summon more late magic with a fourth-quarter stand.
Lakeside couldn’t get over the hump either time Friday night, and Little Rock McClellan had the right answers.
With a strong performance from junior running back Pierre Strong, the Crimson Lions kept the Rams at bay for a 50-37 Class 5A quarterfinal victory at Austin Field. McClellan reaches the semifinals for the first time since 1994, when runner-up to Pine Bluff, while Lakeside ends a 9-3 season that it hosted two playoff games, beating Forrest City, after a 5A-South co-championship.
“Our guys were fighting really hard, and we just came up a little bit short tonight,” Lakeside coach Jared McBride said. “You have to give them credit. They played hard and didn’t make any mistakes. We just couldn’t quite get back on top.”
After Colt Housley’s fouryard touchdown run and Fisher Alexander’s two-point pass to Ryan Viscardis pulled Lakeside within 30-23 at 5:40 of the third quarter, the Rams (9-3) held McClellan (9-2) on downs on its next possession.
However, they went threeand-out on the next series and the Lions’ response was swift and absolute. Strong carried 36 yards, Bennie Kemp 23 yards with a personal foul tacked on and Trent Lewis 12 yards for a touchdown and 36-23 lead with 24 seconds left in the third quarter.
“If you look at every game Lakeside has played, they’ve fought back in every single ballgame, and they’ve won every single one they’ve fought back in,” said third-yard McClellan coach Maurice Moody. “Tonight we were just resilient, and we played hard throughout.”
Lakeside responded with Alexander passing 28 yards to Kelen Bland and 31 yards to Maurice Bradford. Housley got the last five yards with a show of power and Alexander threw a two-point pass to Michael James. Lakeside trailed 36-31 with 10:37 left but with the big home crowd re-energized.
After exchanging punts, McClellan delivered a couple of haymakers with a 30-yard run by Lewis and a 46-yard touchdown run by Strong with 6:23 left.
“You have to really give those guys credit,” McBride said. “They’re big, fast and physical. They were just better than us tonight.”
Caleb Dean then produced a highlight-reel catch for the Rams, the 5-foot-7 target outjumping two defenders for a 38-yard touchdown grab at 4:36. The Alexander-to-Dean combination earlier connected for 29 yards, getting Lakeside within 22-15 and sparking a previously dormant Ram offense.
Alexander finished 18 of 32 for 236 yards, spreading the wealth among Dean (five for 91), Bradford (six for 77) and Bland (five for 75). The junior quarterback thus cracked 2,000 yards for the season.
“He had a pretty good ballgame and threw the ball well
tonight,” said McBride. “I’m just proud of all of our guys, really.”
Lakeside couldn’t quite recover the ensuing outside kick, and Strong snapped off a a 42-yard run on his final carry. Strong totaled 194 yards and three touchdowns on 17 carries, his two receptions for 42 yards including a 38-yarder for a firsthalf touchdown. He joined Beebe’s Trip Smith as the second 5A back to break 2,000 yards this year.
“He’s been great all year long,” Moody said. “It’s not just tonight. Every time he suits up, he gives a spectacular performance. I’m just proud of him and all of our kids.”
Junior fullback Raoshun Young ran 12 yards for an insurance touchdown with 3:12 left, Strong adding the two-point conversion to set the final margin.
Against Little Rock School District’s largest institution, Central, in the season opener, Lakeside recovered an onside kick and scored two touchdown in the final minute for a 44-42 comeback victory. Such a ploy appeared likely after Alexander connected on passes of 10, 11 and 13 yards following Dean’s kick return to the 39, engineering a drive to the McClellan 10.
The Lions stood tall, however, sure-handed Dean dropping a touchdown pass on third down and Alexander coming up two yards short of the goal on fourth down with 1:37 left.
McClellan picked up its final first down on runs of three and six yards from Lewis and an eight-yard blast from Young on third and one. Lewis finished with 16 carries for 77 yards and two touchdowns, atoning for a 13-yard loss late in the first quarter.
“He turned around and had a short memory,” Moody said. “Once it was over with, he came up to me and said, ‘Coach, give me the football.’ He did what he needed to do, so I’m proud of him, also.”
The Lions both established and stopped the run, netting 319 yards on the ground (despite a 33-yard team loss on an errant punt snap) and holding Lakeside to 116.
McClellan, second seed from 5A-Central, advances to face East top seed Batesville, the home team Friday night.
“Every win for our program has been huge,” said Moody, turning around a team that went 1-9 his first season. “We’ve got it going in the right direction, our kids are playing extremely hard, they believe and they’re playing like it. We’re in the semifinals. Hey, McClellan hasn’t been there in a long time, so we’re just bringing that sense of tradition and pride back to the community.”
Lakeside’s season concludes with its first conference championship since 1975, McBride engineering his second turnaround with the program. The Rams were 1-9 in 2009, before McBride arrived, but made the playoffs in the new coach’s first three years. Lakeside returned this year after a two-year absence.
“It was a special year,” McBride said. “We didn’t know what we had to start the year. We knew we had some kids who fought hard and worked hard. It took us a long way. I’m just really proud of our year and our season. I’m disappointed with the way it finished, but I can’t take anything away from our guys. They came to work every day and played hard for me, and I’m just really proud of them.”