Football: Stone Bridge Storms Back for 69-50 Win Over Yorktown to Claim 8th Regional Title

By Dan Sousa
Viva Loudoun
Ashburn (Nov. 24, 2012) - Stone Bridge High School football coach Mickey Thompson was asked over and over again after Friday's Northern Region Division 5 title game if he was worried his Bulldogs had fallen too far behind Yorktown in the match-up of unbeaten teams.

When it was 16-7 Yorktown after the second Stone Bridge first half turnover? Nope

When it was 23-7 Yorktown after the third Stone Bridge first half turnover? Nope

Surely, when it was 29-7 Yorktown with 9:30 still to play in the first half and Stone Bridge having committed four turnovers!?!

Ah, again, Nope.

Thompson did wonder when his team was going to start showing their true colors in front of the sunshine-lit late November crowd.

"I wondered how many more times could we fumble ... it was a mess," said Thompson, who wasn't worried because he knew exactly how many points his team, which dominated both lines of the scrimmage, could put up on the Patriots.

"If they put up 60, we are going to lose," said Thompson.

And as usual, as the saying in Ashburn goes, "Mickey knows football" and the Bulldogs didn't just snap out of their slumber but went on a roll for the ages, scoring 55 unanswered points including a 33-point Arena-football like third quarter blitz to beat Yorktown, 69-50.

Stone Bridge (13-0), which has now won six Northern Region titles since 2005 and eight regional titles since 2002, will travel to Hanover (9-3) on Saturday, Dec. 1 in the Division 5 state semifinals. Lake Taylor, which destroyed 4-time defending state champion Phoebus, 44-0, is at North Stafford in the other semifinal.


Despite Yorktown's 29-7 lead Saturday -- which had the giddy Patriot fans chanting "This is Our House" and serenading dazzling junior running back M.J. Stewart (5 TDs, 284 all-purpose yards) -- the Bulldogs had yet to have been stopped by the Patriots defense as Stone Bridge had coughed up three fumbles and an under-thrown ball on the goal line.

The next eight Stone Bridge possessions results in eight Bulldog touchdowns. 55 points in just under 23 minutes. It was such a Stone Bridge comeback that the final score is actually misleading ... it wasn't as close as 69-50.

By the time Stone Bridge senior quarterback Ryan Burns (Stanford recruit) broke the school mark for passing yards in a season with 2,365 (breaking Patrick Thompson's record of 2,337 set in 2007) with a 90-yard TD throw to junior D'Ante Yarborough the Bulldogs led 62-29 with 8:06 left to play and Thompson put his second units into the contest the rest of the way.

The exception might have been speedy senior Rassaun Goldring who returned a kickoff 87 yards for at score after Yorktown's third TD of the fourth quarter. Earlier Goldring had ignited the third quarter barrage with a 41-yard punt return for a score and he had a 42-yard interception return to set up another score.

Goldring was just one of three Bulldogs with three touchdowns in the win as Sterling Dailey scored on three shorts runs from inside the 10 and Yarborough had a 40-yard scamper for a TD as well as a 20-yard TD reception to go with the 90-yard highlight reel score.

Burns finished with 174 yards passing on just 5 of 7 and Dailey gained 154 yards on 25 carries.

While Stone Bridge climbed back into the contest with two drives to finish out the second quarter and cut the Yorktown lead to 29-22 at the break, it was the Bulldogs defense that came out of the shed fired up in the third quarter, not allowing Yorktown a  single yard on their first seven snaps of the third and holding Yorktown to a total of nine yards in the quarter on 16 plays.

3rd Quarter: 33 Points in 12 Minutes
*Yorktown lead 29-22 to start the quarter and receives the kickoff -- the first of six touchbacks in the quarter by Bulldog kicker junior Brendan Smedley who was kicking with the wind. 12:00 on clock.
*The first snap is a botched play that loses the Patriots six yards. A pair of incomplete passes follow and Yorktown must punt from their own 14.
*Goldring fields the low line drive punt and sprints 41 yards for a potential game-tying TD.
*Thompson, having promised his team at halftime that they would force a 3-and-out to start and then score ... and then go for 2-points to take the lead ... goes for two but Burns is stopped short on a run and Yorktown still leads 29-28. 11:01 on clock.
*On Yorktown's next snap, Stewart fumbles and the ball is scooped up by Stone Bridge defensive lineman Jon Allen (Alabama recruit) who bulldozes his way to the Patriot 9. 10:51 on clock.
*Three plays later, Stone Bridge senior fullback Christian Strahin scores from the 1. Another failed 2-point conversion leaves Stone Bridge ahead 34-2. 9:51 on clock.
*Yorktown quarterback junior Will Roebuck is smacked hard three straight times on three incomplete pass attempts as the Bulldogs bull rush past the Patriot offensive line. A short punt gives Stone Bridge good field position at the Patriot 46. 9:01 on the clock.
*Six straight Stone Bridge runs brings the ball to the Yorktown 20 and that frees up Burns to find Yarborough for a 20-yard TD. PAT good to make it 41-29 SB. 6:44 on the clock.
*For the first time in the quarter, Yorktown picks up positive yardage with six yards on two running plays but SB holds on third down to force another punt. SB takes over at own 35. 5:57 on the clock.
*Yorktown can not stop the Bulldog running game and SB reels off the 65 yards in seven plays with four different backs featured. Yarborough jets around the corner and streaks 40 yards for the score. PAT is good to make it 48-29 Stone Bridge. 2:37 on the clock.
*Yorktown faces 4th-and-1 at its own 29 and opts for a fake punt but Goldring steps in front of the pass and returns the ball to the Patriot 13. 1:04 on the clock.
*Two plays later, Dailey dives in from the 1. PAT is good. Stone Bridge leads 55-29. 0:30 on the clock.
*The quarter ends two plays later to leave Stone Bridge with 33 points in 12 minutes.

The opposite of Stone Bridge's dream third quarter was the Bulldogs nightmare start. After marching down for a game-opening score, Stone Bridge gave up 29 straight points to Yorktown. Here is how it happened:

Bulldog Nightmare: 4 Possessions, 4 Turnovers, 22-Point Deficit
*Leading 7-0, Stone Bridge looks sharp on defense as they throw Yorktown for a 7-yard loss to start the first Patriot series and then Allen swats down a pass, but on third down Yorktown dives into their bag of tricks and pulls off a 70-yard hook-and-lateral TD play. Roebuck hit Nick Yore on a 5-yard curl who then flipped to Steward sprinting down the Yorktown sidelines and he went 65 yards untouched to tie the game 7-7. 8:12 1st quarter.
*Two plays later, Goldring fumbles and Steward recovers at the Stone Bridge 31. 7:29 1st quarter.
*The SB defense holds Yorktown to a field goal. 10-7 Patriots lead. 3:59 1st quarter.
*SB is cruising to a go-ahead score when Burns' pass at the goal line is intercepted by -- who else -- Stewart. 2:07 1st quarter.
*Four plays later, Roebuck hooks up with Yore for a 52 yard pass play that includes a bonus 12 yards on a SB late hit on Roebuck. That puts the ball at the SB 12. Allen smothers Stewart for a 5-yard loss to ring up 3rd-and-12 but Stewart hauls in a swing pass, and scores to make it 16-7 Yorktown. PAT is blocked by Allen. 11:25 2nd quarter.
*Stone Bridge fumbles away the ensuing kickoff with Yorktown recovering at the SB 24. 11:16 2nd quarter.
*Roebuck finds Yore for a 34-yard TD pass on the very next play. PAT is good. 23-7 Yorktown. 11:07 2nd quarter.
*On Stone Bridge's first snap after the TD, Dailey fumbles with Yorktown recovering at the SB 28. 10:46 2nd quarter.
*Three plays later, Stewart makes a nasty cut to turn a 3rd-and-5 ordinary sweep into a 23-yard jaw-dropping TD. Allen again blocks the PAT. Yorktown leads 29-7. 9:30 2nd quarter.


Stone Bridge 69, Yorktown 50

SCORING SUMMARY

Teams	1	2	3	4	FINAL
Yorktown	10	19	0	21	50
Stone Bridge	7	15	33	14	69

Team	Period	Scoring Play	Conversion
B	1st	2yd run by Sterling Dailey	Brendan Smedley kick
Y	1st	70yd pass from Will Roebuck to M.J Stewart	Charlie Wall kick
Y	1st	24yd Field Goal by Charlie Wall
Y	2nd	15yd pass from Will Roebuck to M.J Stewart	Kick Blocked
Y	2nd	34yd pass from Will Roebuck to Nick Yore	Charlie Wall kick
Y	2nd	23yd run by M.J Stewart	Kick Blocked
B	2nd	7yd run by Sterling Dailey	2pt Conversion good
B	2nd	4yd run by Ryan Burns	Brendan Smedley kick
B	3rd	41yd punt return by Rassaun Golring	2pt Conversion No Good
B	3rd	1yd run by Christian Strahin	2pt Conversion No Good
B	3rd	20yd pass by Ryan Burns to D’Ante Yarborough	Brendan Smedley kick
B	3rd	40yd run by D’Ante Yarborough	Brendan Smedley kick
B	3rd	1yd run by Sterling Dailey	Brendan Smedley kick
B	4th	90yd pass from Ryan Burns to D’Ante Yarborough	Brendan Smedley kick
Y	4th	65yd run by M.J Stewart	2pt Conversion No Good
Y	4th	13yd run by M.J Stewart	2pt Conversion Good
Y	4th	70yd pass from Will Roebuck to Micah Gregory	Charlie Wall kick
B	4th	87yd kickoff return by Rassaun Goldring	Brendan Smedley kick

RUSHING -- INDIVIDUAL

BULLDOGS	Carries	Yards		OPPONENT	Carries	Yards
Sterling Dailey	25	154		M.J Stewart	20	141
Rassaun Goldring	6	29		Will Roebuck	6	-2
Christian Strahin	6	26		Arturo Brown	5	21
Collin Buckley	5	18		Tyler Donnelly	2	7
D’Ante Yarborough	5	86		Micah Gregory	1	-7
Tylon Lynch	3	17
Ryan Burns	1	4
Chance Frye	1	-6

PASSING -- INDIVIDUAL

BULLDOGS	Att	Cmp	Yds	Int		OPPONENT	Att	Cmp	Yds	Int
Ryan Burns	7	5	174	0		Will Roebuck	28	14	315	0
Joe Thompson	1	0	0	0		Joseph McBride	3	1	35	0
						Riley Wilson	2	0	0	1

RECEIVING -- INDIVIDUAL

BULLDOGS	Catches	Yards		OPPONENT	Catches	Yards
D’Ante Yarborough	3	119		Nick Yore	5	124
Jimmy Higgins	1	44		Micah Gregory	5	99
Jake Kuzbel	1	11		M.J Stewart	4	92
				Bennett Vogelsang	1	35

RETURNS -- INDIVIDUAL

BULLDOGS	Ret	Yds	TD		OPPONENT	Ret	Yds	TD
Kickoffs					Kickoffs
Rassaun Goldring	3	117	1		Micah Gregory	2	30	0
Tylon Lynch	1	22	0		M.J Stewart	2	19	0
Sterling Dailey	1	21	0
Punts					Punts
Rassaun Goldring	2	48	1		M.J Stewart	1	34	0
Interceptions					Interceptions
Rassaun Goldring	1	42	0		M.J Stewart	1	0	0
Recov Fumble					Recov Fumble
Jon Allen	1	12	0

KICKING -- INDIVIDUAL

BULLDOGS	Kicks	Yds	Avg		OPPONENT	Kicks	Yds	Avg
Kickoffs					Kickoffs
Brendan Smedley	11	591	53.7		Charlie Wall	5	241	48.2
					Philip Greco	2	70	35
					Team	1	15	15
Punts					Punts
Brendan Smedley	1	45	45		Philip Greco	5	158	31.6

PLACEKICKING -- INDIVIDUAL

BULLDOGS	FGA	FGM	Long	Pat Att	PAT Made		OPPONENT	FGA	FGM	Long	Pat Att	PAT Made
Brendan Smedley	0	0	0	7	7		Charlie Wall	1	1	24	5	3