Middleton downs rival Blake in front of more than 13,000 at Raymond James.
By KEITH NIEBUHR, Times Staff Writer
Published September 24, 2005
TAMPA - As far as starts go, this probably wasn't how Middleton had scripted it. The Tigers' first four offensive plays Friday night went as follows:
A 4-yard run.
A pass for no gain.
An interception.
A lost fumble.
Despite Middleton's disastrous begining, there seemed to be no sense of panic on the sideline, no anger, no fear. "We just knew we had to move on," Tigers linebacker/receiver A.J. Jones said.
Middleton did, and Blake paid for it.
In a dominating display on both sides, Middleton emerged with a 24-7 win before an announced paid attendance of 13,135 at Raymond James Stadium. In the process, the Tigers got a little payback for a 2004 loss.
"Their playmakers made plays and ours didn't," Blake coach Sean Washington said.
"That was it."
Middleton's defense set the tone, holding Blake to 117 total yards and five first downs. The Yellow Jackets (2-2) punted eight times and had only three plays that went for 10 or more yards.
Blake went ahead 7-0 in the first quarter on a 3-yard Malcolm Shavers run to cap an eight-play, 40-yard drive, but was effectively shut down the rest of the game.
"We started good," Yellow Jacket Otis Wilson said. "But then the holes started closing up."
Once Middleton's offense settled down, the Tigers (4-1) looked sharp through the air and on the ground. Quarterback Dominic Grooms passed for 154 yards, receiver Quentin Williams had six catches for 122 yards and one score, running back Carlton Jones helped account for two touchdowns (one rushing and another passing), and A.J. Jones hauled in a 22-yard TD reception.
It was Williams' TD that really got things started for the Tigers. From the Blake 41, Grooms lofted a perfect spiral down the left sideline that Williams outjumped the defender for. That tied the game at 7-all early in the second quarter, and Carlton Jones' 17-yard scoring run with 2:58 left in the half made it 14-7. Johan Bos added a 33-yard field goal in the third.
"What I'm pleased with is that we didn't give up," Middleton coach Harry Hubbard said.
