Dwight Jackson led defense with 3 sacks!
With fans behind the Miami Central bench saying don’t disappoint us again they finally pulled off the biggest win in school history. The Rockets fell behind 16-0 in the first half. The game was taking on the look of many other Rocket losses versus Northwestern. That all changed when the Rockets raced down the field and cut the score down to 16-8. With about 6 minutes left in the half Central scored again and made it 16-16. Going into halftime the rockets had to feel real good about their chances as they were going to get the ball first. The Rockets came out in the second half and completely dominated Northwestern as they scored twice and put the game away 29-16. The Bulls had one last chance to come back but came up short near the Rockets goal-line. The rockets took the ball down the field as they milked the rest of the clock away and the players and the community started to celebrate.
ESS first look is at the Miami Central Rockets. For the first time in school history the Rockets are now the favorites to win the state title. They have had good teams before but this year they are led by super talented quarterback Jeff Godfrey. Even when the Rockets went down 16-0, Godfrey never panicked. He just took his team down the field and cut the lead down to 8 points for Northwestern. Then before the half he put together another drive that tied the game at 16. With less then a minute remaining in the half Godfrey had another chance to put Central up but he threw and interception. In the past the Rockets would have folded when they fell behind 16-0. Not this team as Godfrey came out in the second half and helped put Northwestern away.
Another star for Miami Central was Brandon Gainer. He ran hard all night long and late in the game wore the Bulls defense out. What Gainer showed was patience. He took what the defense would give him. He showed great balance, vision and quickness as the Bulls defense could not slow him down. If he continues to play like tonight, the Rockets will be tough to beat. He gives the Rockets balance on offense and that along with a deadly passing attack makes them almost unstoppable on offense.
The Rockets are more then a two man team on offense. The other players to watch out for is receiver Charles Gaines Jr, Durrell Eskridge (2011) and Devonte Freeman. All three will be heavily recruited next year. In the coming weeks each one will play a roll in Miami Centrals offense.
Along with these weapons you can’t forget about senior receiver Joshua Reese. He had a big time touchdown grab that helped Central get back in the game.
While offense wins games, defense wins championships. The Central defense is the best in school history. Led by defensive end Dwight Jackson, he had three sacks and put constant pressure on Teddy Bridgewater. He also made plenty of plays in the Northwestern backfield.
Along with Jackson, Miles Pace, Marcus Fairley, Oliver Vigile and Labranden Richardson all made life difficult for the Northwestern offense.
For Miami Northwestern this was the earliest they have been knocked out the playoffs in ten years. They were impressive to start the game as their lead went to 16-0 early in the first quarter. Junior quarterback Teddy Bridgewater got off to a hot start as he led the Bulls to two early scoring drives. Bridgewater played well through the first half. In the 2nd half Bridgewater struggled as Central defense swarmed him. He tried to make plays but everywhere he turned seemed to be a Rockets defender.
Teddy’s favorite target on the night was Michael Lee Harris. He helped put the Bulls up 16-0. It was his play in the first half that helped slow Central down. He continued to show why so many teams are recruiting Harris.
Not only did Harris play well so do his teammate Eli Rodgers. The talented junior receiver/running back/ defensive back should be Northwestern go-to receiver next season. He made a great catch and run which put Northwestern up 16-0. When he gets the ball in his hands you expect something good to happen. Look for him to have a break out season in 2010.
On defense the Bulls just were not the same as past seasons. They have tons of talent on defense but if not for a Jermaine Reve interception before halftime the score could have gotten out of hand. The Bulls were unable to get pressure on Central all night and it finally caught up to them late in the game.
Final thoughts: What is ironic is the Central coaches were telling their team to act like they have been there before when the final seconds ran out. Central has never been this far so you would have thought they would have celebrated. Instead Miami Central had a business like attitude and held off on celebrating. This is a team that has been on a mission in 2009. While they lost their first game against Northwestern this years team seemed different. They were much improved on defense and if not for a complete meltdown in game 1 this result may have happened much earlier in the year. Look for Rockets to now play much more at ease and roll to their first state title game. Up next is a much improved South Dade team who upset Southridge High.
For Miami Northwestern this was bound to happen sooner or later. They had been to three straight title games until this season. With a return of Teddy Bridgewater and Eli Rodgers on offense they should be back in 2010. They also return stars on defense like Jermain Reve, Lydon Edwards and Albert Doyle. This should be a very good defensive team next year. For the Bulls to make a return trip to the state title they must find a running attack to take pressure off of Teddy Bridgewater. If they do that there is no doubt that this team could be back in Orlando in 2010.
