LYNN – There are certain things that are a given when Thanksgiving rolls around. They’ll be turkey on the table, and the “you-can-throw-the-record-books-out-the-window” cliche will find its way into talk about “the big game.”
The latter is not without merit.When it comes to the Classical-English Thanksgiving game, records can be meaningless, but that wasn’t the case this year. Both teams came into Thursday’s game with 3-7 records and the outcome, a 22-14 Classical last-minute win, reflected just how evenly matched the two teams were, not just on paper, but on the field.With the game tied 14-14 and under two minutes remaining, it looked as if this one was headed for overtime. The Classical defense had forced an English punt, which the Rams returned to their 45 to start what would be their final drive of the game.Classical made it to the English 49 and then got some help from the Bulldogs in the form of a facemask penalty that put the ball on the English 34. From that point on it was the Devin Crayton show. The senior running back picked up 10 yards on his next two carries and then sucked up some serious real estate with a 23-yard run on fourth-and-inches that landed him on the English 1. He scored on the next play and then ran in the conversion for a 22-14 lead with 19 seconds left in the game.English quarterback Lucas Harris tried to make a miracle happen with time running out, but the Bulldogs season ended when Jakeel Brown intercepted Harris with 3.5 seconds left on the clock.”For Lynn, it was a great game,” English coach Peter Holey said. “I’m proud of my kids played and I’m proud of the way the their kids played. It was a clean game. We couldn’t stop Crayton. It was his day.”English had won the last four Thanksgiving Day matchups.”I tip my hat to Classical. It was their time to taste victory on Thanksgiving,” Holey said.Classical coach Tim Phelps said it was tough losing last year because it meant that year’s seniors had never experienced a Thanksgiving win.”When you lose on Thanksgiving you second-guess yourself,” Phelps said. “You’ve been with these guys four years. Sometimes you see them more than you see your family. You don’t want to let them down.”Classical didn’t waste any time getting on the board. On the first play of the game, Micah Dublin broke through for a 52-yard run to put the ball on the English 18. He carried it the next five times to reach the 7 and, two plays later, he snagged a four-yard pass from Matt Lauria. Dublin ran for the conversion to make it 8-0.The Rams didn’t get much time to revel in their success.On the ensuing kick return, English’s Daekwon Shepard ran the ball back 77 yards for a touchdown and he kicked the extra point to put the Bulldogs right back in it at 8-7.English knocked on the door again late in the first quarter, getting the ball to the Classical 12, but the Rams came up with a big defensive stand, stopping English on its next three plays. The Bulldogs attempted to kick a field goal on fourth down, but Classical blocked it.The English defense was equally impressive when the Rams got the ball on their own 25 just before the start of the second quarter and marched all the way to the 4. English rose to the challenge with three big stops including one on fourth-and-goal at the 1.English started the second half much like Classical started the first when on second down, Stevie Collins (89 yards rushing) ran 44 yards for a touchdown. Shepard nailed the extra point and the Bulldogs had their only lead of the game, 14-8.Classical got that one back on its next possession when Crayton (128 yards rushing) barrelled in from the 3. The conversion failed, but the Rams had managed to tie the game at 14-14. The big play on that drive came on third-and-17 when Lauria hit Damien Earp with a 34-yard pass to put the ball on the English 21. Earp finished with three catches for 61 yards.