VALDOSTA – At the end of the first half, Valdosta State was struggling, and losing 16-13.
Then, sitting in the locker room at halftime, VSU head coach David Dean told his team how they were going to win the game.
“I said, at the half, that we were going to come out in the second half and run the ball right at them,” Dean said.
The result was VSU going on a 35-0 run to jump on the Indians and establish a dominant Blazer victory.
Taking a lot of credit for the second-half dominance was the offensive line, which not only helped Michael Terry rush for 139 yards and two touchdowns, but also kept quarterback Willie Copeland off the turf.
“I just can’t say enough about the offensive line. They played great,” Dean said.
Terry had another big game, which left him just 30 yards shy of breaking 1,000 yards on the season. His 970 yards put him in seventh place on the single-season VSU rushing list. His two touchdowns also moved him into a tie for eight place on the all-time rushing touchdown list.
Terry now sits just five touchdowns shy of breaking Aaron Jenkins’ record of 15 rushing touchdowns, set in 2001.
So how did the senior out of Americus feel when he knew his number was going to be called a lot in the second half?
“I got excited. I knew the whole game that we could run the ball on them,” Terry said.
At the half, the Blazers were having a tough time with the ground game, but had shown signs of life. Out of their 75 total rush yards, 35 had come on Terry’s eight carries.
Despite nursing a rib injury, Copeland was having success running the ball, too. He had 35 yards on six carries in the first half.
To start the second half, Coach Dean showed the team he wasn’t exaggerating at halftime. VSU ran the ball five straight times, all by Terry. The result was 35 yards and a Blazer first down inside the Catawba 10-yard line. Terry had two more runs, before Copeland connected with Josh Rayam for a five-yard touchdown.
The Blazers continued the trend throughout the third quarter, and into the fourth. Terry ran the ball on nine of VSU’s next 14 plays.
With the running game working so well, the Blazers scored on every possession of the second half. Twice it was Terry finding the end zone.
In all, the Blazers were able to put up 285 rushing yards on 52 attempts against one of the country’s toughest run defenses. Terry finished the game averaging six yards a carry.
In the fourth quarter, fullback Scott Palmer and reserve quarterback Tucker Pruitt ran in touchdowns to give VSU four rushing scores on the day. The 2007 Blazers rank third on the VSU single-season list in rushing touchdowns, and are six scores away setting a school record.
VSU welcomes back North Alabama next week for the national quarterfinals, a team the Blazers beat 27-24 on Oct. 27. In that game, VSU rushed for 143 yards on 32 carries. Terry had 88 yards on 16 carries that afternoon.
Local Sports
VSU offense excels behind running backs, offensive line
- Local Sports
-
-
Lady Packers beat Lowndes, 55-48
The Colquitt County Lady Packers handed the Lowndes Vikettes a second straight loss Tuesday night, 55-48.
Jamesia Jones led Lowndes with 10 points, while Courtne Washington had nine. Tasia Brown finished with eight. -
Braves unveil another alternate home uniform
Hank Aaron recognized the look. Just not the feel.
The Atlanta Braves unveiled a new alternate home uniform Monday that is based on the attire worn when the team moved from Milwaukee in 1966, with Aaron as its biggest star. -
Valdosta native Garland named to Armstrong Atlantic HOF
Armstrong Atlantic State University has announced its latest induction class for the Armstrong Atlantic State University Athletic Hall of Fame. Among the six inductees and one Service Citation award winner is Valdosta native Nikki Garland, who ran cross county and track and field with the Pirates.
-
Freeman, Trojans finalize '12 schedule
The Brooks County Trojans’ football motto is to ‘bring the hammer’ each and every Friday night.
Well, the Trojans now know exactly who they will have to bring that hammer to this upcoming season, as head coach Maurice Freeman recently finalized Brooks County’s 2012 football schedule. -
New York wins Super Bowl
Eli Manning and the Giants one-upped Tom Brady and the Patriots again, coming back with a last-minute touchdown to beat New England 21-17 Sunday night for New York’s fourth Super Bowl title.
- Super Bowl boosts Indy’s image
-
Blazer softball sweeps Nova Southeastern
On Super Bowl Sunday, Valdosta State showed why it has been one of the super teams in the south region for years now.
-
Blazers fall to Saints
Just 24 hours after earning an impressive opening day victory, the Valdosta State baseball team struggled to find a rhythm against North Georgia, as the Blazers fell to the Saints 8-3.
North Georgia pitcher Blake Hobby was a major factor for VSU’s struggles. The senior right-hander held the Blazers to just one run on four hits across his eight innings of work on the hill. -
Tift County wins region wrestling championship
Tift County won the Region 1-AAAAA traditional wrestling championship on Saturday at Lowndes High School.
Tift had three individual region champions, had wrestlers place in the top three in 13 of the 14 weight classes and qualified wrestlers for next weekend’s sectional tournament in all 14 weight classes. Tift earned 184 team points, two points more than second-place Lowndes. -
Wildcats beat Crisp in overtime
Valdosta’s boys basketball team dominated the overtime period, and defeated Crisp County 66-56 on Saturday night at the VHS gym.
The Wildcats outscored the Cougars 17-7 in overtime to pull away for the win.
“Another big win,” Valdosta head coach Antonio Haynes said. “I’m happy for the guys. They played hard. They deserved this win.” - More Local Sports Headlines
-
Lady Packers beat Lowndes, 55-48
