Football: Briar Woods Beats Broad Run, 24-21, in Backyard Brawl 2 to Claim School's First Regional Title

By Dan Sousa
VivaLoudoun Editor

Ashburn (Nov. 26, 2010) - It was the rematch that everybody wanted and "Backyard Brawl 2" did not disappoint Friday night as Briar Woods and Broad Run hooked up in an air show that saw Falcon freshman quarterback Trace McSorley and Spartan junior Connor Jessop combine for 532 yards passing and five touchdowns.

In the end, however, the Region II Division 4 title game came down to a pair of Scott Rolin touchdown receptions and the leg of Briar Woods junior kicker David Clements as his 27-yard field goal with 7:44 gave the Falcons a 10-point cushion and turned out to be the margin of victory in the 24-21 Briar Woods win after Jessop struck for his third TD pass of the game with 3:59 left.

Briar Woods (11-2) will host a state semifinal next Saturday at 1 p.m. Broad Run (11-2) suffered its first playoff defeat in 11 games and ends the year with two losses, both against rival Briar Woods.

On a night when neither team could establish the run game, Briar Woods senior Michael Brownlee picked up 15 of his 68 yards as the Falcons ran the clock out, not allowing Jessop a chance to play the hero. The keys plays that allowed Briar Woods to drain the final 3:59 included a McSorley 11-yard completion to Cameron Serigne on 3rd-and-6 and then a determined second effort by Brownlee on 3rd-and-1 after he was hit initially in the backfield by multiple defenders.

As expected it was an even match with the Briar Woods picking up 319 total yards to Broad Run's 302. While Jessop was striking for 276 yards on 21 of 38 passing, McSorely threw for 256 yards on 16 of 25 Both quarterbacks hooked up twice with the same receiver on spectacular touchdown plays with McSorley finding Rolin twice, the first an all out diving grab for a 19-yard score in the second quarter and the second a 64-yard game-changer just three plays into the second half that erased 14-13 Broad Run halftime lead.

Jessop found Matt Preziotti twice, the first a 28-yard circus grab in the second quarter that saw the Spartan junior receiver bounce into the long jump pit near the end zone but hold onto the football and the second time was in the final minutes of the game when Broad Run fought to keep their hopes of a third consecutive state title alive.

It was not an error free game as both teams had an interception and the Falcons also lost a fumble while Broad Run had a 7-yard punt in the first quarter that set a short 26-yard drive for the Falcons first touchdown of the game.

The Brair Woods defense did not allow the Spartans running game to get going, holding Broad Run to 26 yards on the ground on 22 attempts. While Jessop threw for 276 yards he was under constant pressure, scrambling wildly at times such as the broken play at the end of the half that saw Jessop find Michael Stratton in the end zone with 18 seconds left that gave the Spartans their only lead of the game, 14-13.

Briar Woods erased that quickly in the third quarter as McSorley spotted Rolin across the middle on 3rd-and-8 from the Falcon 36 and the senior WR, picked up a block from Jamal Hill and sprinted untouched into the end zone. McSorley then hit DeVontae O'Bannion for a 2-point conversion to make it 21-14 with 10:58 left in the third.

It appeared that the Spartan defense would get their offense back in the game when Broad Run pinned Briar Woods back to their own 7 late in the third quarter. Taking over at the Falcon 32 after a short punt, Broad Run could not use the field position as two plays later Briar Woods junior linebacker Mark Leith read a Jessop pass perfectly and stepped in front of a receiver for an interception.

After the two teams traded punts, Briar Woods increased their lead to 10 points on a drive that showed good balance as Brownlee, who missed most of the regular season after breaking his foot on the first carry of the year, had runs of 5, 6 and 18 and McSorely had a huge completion to Alex Carter for 33 yards. Broad Run's defense held in the Red Zone but Clements squeezed his 27-yard field goal attempt from the right hash mark just inside the left uprights with 7:44 to play, making it 24-14.

Jessop, who missed most of the regular season with a broken collarbone but had a spectacular postseason, rallied the Spartans with a 59-yard drive that cut the lead to 24-21 with just under four minutes to go but the Falcons would not allow Jessop back on the field and celebrated the school's first ever regional title.

Briar Woods controlled the game early but the Falcons first foray into the Spartans Red Zone came up empty when Spartan linebacker Danny Gallagher intercepted a deflected pass at the Spartan 14 with 6:38 left in the first quarter.

After three straight incompletions and a 7-yard punt, the Falcons were right back in business. The Spartans held, forcing a 39-yard field goal which Clements drilled but the Spartans were flagged for roughing the kicker and BW coach Charlie Pierce took the points off the board and took the ball at the 11. It took Brownlee just two runs to get into the end zone for a 7-0 lead.

Broad Run put together a 9-play drive that appeared to be going somewhere when Jessop scrambled for a first down inside the Falcon 30 on 4th-and-6 but the Spartans were called for holding on the play and forced to punt.

Briar Woods used a 50-yard McSorley to Serigne connection to move down to the Spartan 30 but an intentionally grounding call on the freshman quarterback on 2nd-and-8 halted the drive. Broad Run then drove 81 yards on eight plays with Jessop buying time with a long scramble before spotting Preziotti open in the right corner of the end zone to tie the game at 7-7 with 6:33 left in the first half.

With the Spartans keying on Brownlee, McSorley went to work, completing five straight passes to move the ball to the Spartan 14. On 3rd-and-15, McSorley threaded the needle on the post pattern with a well-covered Rolin stretching out in the end zone for a diving catch. The point after was blocked to put Briar Woods up 13-7 with 2:57 left in the half.

The Falcons then recovered a squib kick that hit a Broad Run defender and bounced back and into the arms of Clements but three plays later the Falcons fumbled at midfield and Jessop too advantage, completing five passes in a two-minute drill and hitting Stratton after a long scramble to make it 14-13 with just 18 seconds to play.

Box
Broad Run     0 14 0 7 - 21
Briar Woods  7  6  8 3 - 24

1 - BW: Brownlee 5 run (Clements kick) 3:50
2 - BR: Preziotti 28 pass from Jessop (Ohneiser kick) 6:33
2 - BW; Rolin 19 pass from McSorley (kick blocked) 2:57
2 - BR: Stratton 24 pass from Jessop (Ohneiser kick) 0:18
3 - BW: Rolin 64 pass from McSorley (O'Bannion pass from McSorley) 10:58
4 - BW: Clements 27 FG 7:44
4 - BR: Preziotti 14 pass from Jessop (Ohneiser kick) 3:59

Rushing
BR: Thomas 10-28, Taggart 3-4, Earl 2-4, Jessop 7-(-10). Total 22-26
BW: Brownlee 24-68, Carter 1-21, McSorley 7-(-20), Team 2-(-6).  Total 34-63

Passing
BR: Jessop 21-38-1 276 yards.
BW: McSorely 16-25-1 256 yards.

Receiving
BR: Preziotti 5-67, Stratton 4-76, Price 4-24, Duncan 3-54, Lindsey 2-24, Barnes 1-17, Earl 1-10, Thomas 1-4.
BW: Carter 6-58, Serigne 4-83, Rolin 3-89, Logan 2-14, Hill 1-12.