The 2006 7th Grade Dragons traveled to ECS to play the Eagles in the opening game of the season. Early on, the Dragons moved the ball effectively between the 20 yard lines but normal first game miscues bogged the drives down and kept the game close until midway in the second half.

Kevin Hall took the opening kick for the Dragons and returned it out to the 43. QB Grant Smithl brought the Dragons to the line where TB Chase Clarke popped it off right tackle for 5 yds. The drive continued with Chase Clarke and Kevin Hall running the ball with good blocks provided by Hunter Bradley and Ryan Pacer. On third & 9 at the ECS 27, the ECS defense broke through and dropped QB Grant Smith for a loss back to the 35 thus forcing a punt.

The Dragon D held when on third and 10, Conner McCay dropped the Eagles QB for a 1 yard loss, forcing ECS to punt on fourth and 11.  TB/WR Kevin Hall returned the punt to the 39. Three plays later, FB Hayden Bowen got his first carry of the season popping up the middle for three yards and a Dragon first down to end the first period of play.

The Dragons executed a good sweep play that was called back on a questionable hold/block in the back penalty to move the Dragons back to the 34 yard line and facing first and 18. TB Kevin Hall got 9 yards off left tackle but was only able to muster 1 yard in the next two carries. Facing fourth and 8 from the 24, QB Grant Smith was again sacked by the ECS defense.

The ECS Offense had two consecutive motion penalties to move them back to first and 20 from their own 22. An incomplete pass followed by a 17 yard completion forced the ECS into a quick kick back to the Dragons. On first and 10 from the 30, TB Kyle Beard rumbled for 4 yards followed by a roll-out right pass from QB Grant Smith to TB Kevin Hall for 8. An illegal participation penalty (12 men broke the huddle), forced the Dragons into a second and 15 situation. A good sweep left by Chase Clarke resulted in a fumble as Clarke fought for extra yardage trying to squeeze out a first down on the play. 

Again, the Dragon D rose to the occasion. After another ECS false start, Bradley Kraemer put strong pressure on the QB while Jacob Fisher hit the ball carrier forcing a fumble which Hayden Bowen recovered for the Dragons.  The Dragon offense was not able to put anything together and were forced to punt on 4th down. P Grant Smith hit a nice punt that was downed at the ECS 7 yard line. After two ECS plays, the first half ended scoreless for both squads.

The Eagles took the 2nd half kick-off and exploded down the home sideline for a “wake me up” return for TD. The PAT was ruled “good”, with the emphasis on ruled.  The Dragons were quickly down 7-0 after completely dominating ECS in the first half.   On the ensuing kick off an alert Ethan Moss recovered the ECS squib kick to put the Dragons in play at the 50 yd line.

On first down, Wes Evers got 2 yds follwed by 4yds on a rollout pass complete to Kevin Hall. Two hard runs by Chase Clarke moved the chains. With first down at the ECS 26, FB Hayden Bowen and L Hunter Bradley paved the way for an 8 yd gain. From the 19, TB Kyle Beard followed FB Hayden Bowen through the big hole that Hunter Bradley had opened up and churned all the way down to the 1 yd one. Kyle Beard was rewarded with the 1 yd TD run on the next play blasting through the 4 hole.  The 2 pt conversion play was denied and the ECS lead had been shaved to 7-6.

The Dragon kick off team punished the ECS return man with Brandon Hicks, Wes Evers, and Justin Berard headhunting on the play.  On first down, ECS was dropped for a 1 yd loss. The next play saw DB Brandon Hicks going “old school” and making a Ronnie Lott-style power interception in front of the receiver on a Bang-Bang play. 

Taking over at the ECS 42, the Dragon Offense decided to go “old school” also and began pounding the ball into the ECS defense. On the ninth play of the drive, facing fourth and 11 from the 19, Grant Smith dropped back and hit a streaking Kevin Hall on a post pattern over the middle. Hall, the ECS safety and the football arrived simultaneously. The resulting collision found Kevin Hall with possession at the 1 yard line. Two plays later the Dragons made it 14-6 with TD and PAT runs by Chase Clarke.

The Dragon kick-off team again punished the ECS return man with hard tackling led by Will Austin and Justin Berard.  The Eagles lost 2 yards on the first play and on second down, Dylan Shockey recovered an ECS fumble to put the Dragon offense in business at the Eagle 25.

On first down, TB Chase Clarke blasted off the right side for a sprint to the endzone.  Clarke ran it in for the 2 pt conversion and the lead was extended to 22-7 with 3:00 minutes left to play.  Hayden Bowen made a big stop on the ECS return man on the following kick-off.

On first down, defensive lineman Dylan Shockey dropped the ECS runner after a 2 yard gain. On next down, Shockey teamed with Vincent Smith for a one yard smack down loss on the play. One play later the horn sounded to signal the Dragons first win of the season, 22-7, over the ECS Eagles.

The Dragon Defense played an outstanding game. The Offense got cranked up after a bit of first game jitters and provided the margin of victory for the team.  Jacob Fisher, Ryan Pacer, Hunter Bradley, John Yelvington, Grant Earl, Dylan Shockey, and Vincent Smith turned in some hard-nosed plays on both sides of the line. The Dragons had 49 offensive snaps compared to only 19 for the Eagles. Except for one breakdown, the Dragon Special Teams played a very good first game of the season.

Next up, Germantown Red Devils at home on Tuesday night….Go Dragons!

With starting tailback Chase Clarke still on injured reserve, defensive stalwart Hayden Bowen stepped up and paced the Dragons with two TD runs behind the hard-nosed line play of Grant Earl, Hunter Bradley, John Yelvington, Wilson Howard, and Ryan Pacer.  QB Grant Smith hit APP (All Purpose Player) Kevin Hall for the third Dragon score.

The Dragons were led onto the field at Cordova Stadium and promptly won the toss as indicated by game captains Kyle Beard and Will Austin. The Dragons received the opening KO and on first down, Wes Evers took the toss sweep left and scampered for a quick 12 yards. The play was called back forcing the Dragons into a first and 15 from the 20 yd line. Same play was called and Evers sprinted down to the Cordova 49. There the Dragons cobbled together a gritty 12 play, 80 yard drive culminating in Hayden Bowen’s 1 yard dive over left guard. The PAT was denied and the Dragons led 6-0 with 2:32 remaining in the first period.

Grant Smith’s kick-off traveled to the 20 yd line where Kevin Hall and Wes Evers smashed the Cordova kick returner down at the 22.   The Wolves were met by an angry Collierville defense. After a first down Cordova penalty, Hayden Bowen dropped the ballcarrier for a ½ yd loss followed by recovered Cordova fumble. Will Austin then slashed into the backfield and stopping the ball carrier cold ultimately forcing the Wolves to punt from their own 17 having realized a -5 yards on their first offensive series.

On first down from the 32, Wes Evers made an outstanding run including three broken tackles. A holding call reduced much of his inspired run and the Dragon offense bogged down in the series and were forced to punt. After two plays for negative yardage, the Wolves converted on fourth and ½ yard for their first first down of the game. Two plays later the Dragon D forced the Cordova RB to cough up the ball giving the Dragon Offense first down at the 11 yard line. On first down a mixup in the Dragon backfield pushed the Dragons back to the 13.  QB Grant Hall then called play action and promptly hit his favorite target, Kevin Hall, for the scoring strike. Feeling so right, it couldn’t be wrong Smith fired it back to Hall for the 2 point conversion. The Dragons led 14-0 with 57 seconds remaining in the half.

On the ensuing KO, Conner McKay slammed the Cordova return man down to put an exclamation mark on the Dragon’s physical dominance of the first half. Three plays later,with no time on the game clock, Kevin Hall knocked the Cordova running back out of bounds to save a potential score and to complete the first half of play.

Cordova took the 2nd Half KO back to their own 44 and moved the ball to the Dragon 45 where Will Austin and Hayden Bowen strung out a Cordova double-reverse to allow Wes Evers to drop the ball carrier for a 2 yd loss. Another loss put Cordova in a fourth and 17 situation in which they inexplicably attempted to convert and were expectedly stopped after a 4 yard gain.
Taking over at their own 47, the Dragons were able to grind it down to the Cordova 20, but two holding flags in the drive ultimately caught up with them forcing them to give up the ball at the Cordova 19. Three plays later, after -2 yards in offense, the Wolves punted and the Dragons took over at the Cordova 29. On first down, Kevin Hall took the toss left and scampered down to the 14. Will Austin tore off 8 yards down to the 5 yd line where Hayden Bowen scored his second TD of the night.  Bowen then bowled in over the left side of the O line for the PAT, putting the Dragons up 22-0 with 4:15 left in the game.

Hunter Bradley’s kick off was covered effectively by Andrew Smith who continues to shine on special teams.  Cordova started at their own 38 and immediately tore off a big gainer down to the Dragon 22. On second down at the 17, Dragon defender Cody Bell barely missed a big interception. On third down, Preston Myers tackled the Cordova QB for a loss which ultimately forced the ball over on downs to the Collierville offense. With new personnel in the game, the Dragons fumbled the ball back to the Wolves at the 19 yard line. Cordova then managed a TD and the PAT was good. With 1:29 remaining in the contest, the Dragon lead was narrowed to 22-8 which was ultimately the final reading on the board.    

The win propels the Dragons into an undefeated match up with the Houston Mustangs next Tuesday night at Houston.

The Dragons packed their perfect record and traveled to Houston to take on the undefeated Mustangs in a huge match up.  Game captains Hunter Bradley and Ryan Pacer called the opening coin toss and elected to receive. Kevin Hall covered the kick off at the Dragon 40 yd line.  The Dragon offense found tough going against the huge Mustang line and linebackers. After four downs, Grant Smith punted away after effectively handling an errant snap.  The Mustangs were flagged for holding on first down and attempted a toss sweep throwback to the QB that was incomplete.  On the next play, Kevin Hall recovered a Houston fumble to put the Dragon O back in business at the 38 yd line.

Again, it was four downs and out as this match-up was quickly developing into a slugfest. Grant Smith punted to the 11 yd line and with the return, the Mustangs were in play at the 27.  Houston’s offense could not get untracked and recorded a fumble and a motion penalty before Kevin Hall put a big hit on the Houston ball carrier forcing fourth and 4 at the 44 yd line.  Hall received the punt at the 25 and returned it out to the 47. The Dragons adjusted their offensive set and came out in the Power I formation in order to better attack the larger Houston defense.  A Chase Clarke double-power yielded a couple of yards and set up a play action pass from QB Grant Smith to APP (all purpose player) Kevin Hall on a quick 11 yard gainer. Again Chase Clarke carried the ball for four yards which set up a 35 yard pass completion from Smith to Hall on a roll-out with a deep crossing pattern for the first and only score of the game.  PAT was no good and with 6:44 remaining, the Dragons held on to a 6-0 lead.

On the following kick off, Andrew Turner hustled down the field and tackled the return man after only a 3 yard return.  Approaching halftime Houston put together an impressive 16 play drive down to the Dragon 15 yard line.  In the first four downs, Will Austin made an impressive stop on a sweep play outside which was followed by a big hit in the backfield by Hunter Bradley that stopped the Houston play for no gain.  The next set of downs saw Hayden Bowen and Justin Berard  punish the Mustang ballcarrier.  With Houston facing a third and 6 at the 46, Chase Clarke and Wes Evers teamed up to stop the play short of the first down.  Houston went for it on fourth down and forced the Dragons offsides with a hard count.  With time winding down in the half, Will Austin, Hayden Bowen, and Kevin Hall all stepped up and made impressive defensive plays on consecutive downs. With 19 seconds left in the half and the ball at the Dragon 15 yard line, the Mustangs threw an incomplete pass and attempted to down the ball to kill the clock but fumbled the snap and the half ended with the Dragons holding on to a precarious 6-0 lead.

The Dragons kicked off to the Mustangs to start the second half and Blake Cobb wasted no time in smashing the kick returner  with a big special teams tackle. On second down, Hayden Bowen and Vincent Smith teamed up for a big tackle up the middle followed by Kevin Halls 1 yard gain tackle on third down forcing the Mustangs to punt.  After a four and out series for the Dragons, the Houston offense seemed to come alive. The Mustangs garnered three first downs in five plays and were inching into the red zone. Then Blake Cobb slammed the Houston RB down in the backfield for no gain which set up Kevin Hall’s big interception at the 12 yard line which he returned out to the 45.  Again the Dragon offense was stymied and were forced to punt after 4 downs.  The Mustangs drove the ball down to the Dragon 20 yard line where facing third and 9, they elected to attempt another pass play but the Houston QB was nailed by John Yelvington and Jacob Fisher on a coverage sack.  On fourth down at the 26, the Houston pass was incomplete giving the ball back to the Dragons.  Again the Dragons were forced to punt which was covered extremely well by a hustling Bradley Cramer.

Houston took over at the Dragon 49 yard line with 1:30 remaining to play but could only move the ball to the 46.  Big plays were exhibited by Justin Berard who sacked the QB for a 1 yd loss as well as Kevin Hall nearly getting another interception. With fourth and 14 at the 46, Houston’s last gasp was an incomplete pass with 15 seconds remaining in the game.  QB Grant Smith lined his offense up at the 46 yard  line and promptly took a knew to seal the victory.

In an extremely hard fought and well-played game, the Dragons prevailed in heavyweight slugfest against a much larger opponent. Big plays were turned in by a number of players and the Dragon D and Special Teams did an extraordinary job in preserving the six points the offense earned in the first half.     

The undefeated Dragons traveled to Briarcrest for the final game of the regular season with intentions of wrapping up the division title and a slot in the championship game. Briarcrest, nursing a one loss record, saw this as an opportunity to upset the Dragons and possibly secure a place in the championship game.  Game fans witnessed two outstanding halves of football. The Briarcrest fans witnessed an outstanding first half for the Saints and the Collierville faithful witnessed an energized half of football for the Dragons in the second half.

Collierville’s game captains, Ben Potter and Ethan Moss, won the toss and elected to receive the kick-off.  QB Grant Smith brought his Dragon offense out with first and 10 at the 31.  An aggressive and attacking Briarcrest defense kept the Dragons off-balance resulting in a quick four and out that netted zero net yards in the series.  Flying sky-high the Saints took Grant Smith’s punt and shocked the Dragons for a quick TD. On the PAT, Hayden Bowen stopped the Saints QB short of the goal line. With 5:44 remaining in the first quarter, the Saints were up 6-0.

Chase Clarke took the Saint’s kick off and returned it out to the Briarcrest 48 yard line. With good field position, the next two plays saw the Dragon running backs getting hit in the backfield and netting only 2 yards. Facing third and 8, QB Grant Smith rolled right and scrambled down to the 35 yard line to give the Dragons a fresh set of downs.  Two negative yardage plays and an incomplete pass forced the Dragons to punt from the 38.

The Dragon D seemed to come alive with Hayden Bowen and Hunter Bradley making key defensive stops and Hayden Bowen saving a TD on a 17 yd run down to the Dragon 49.  From there, Bradley Kraemer strung the toss sweep out and allowed Wes Evers to make the stop for a 5 yard loss.  The very next play, the Saints called toss sweep left that resulted in a 54 yd TD run for the Saints. A flag was thrown right at the point of two questionable blocks that allowed the ball carrier to run unmolested down the home sideline to the endzone. Expecting a holding or block in the back call against the Saints, the Dragon faithful were astounded that the penalty was against the Dragons for a facemask infraction.  The PAT pass was good and with 7:48 remaining in the first half, the Saints extended their lead to 14-0.

Following the kick-off, the Dragons put the ball in play at their own 36. The Dragons shifted into a Power I formation yet the normally hard-nosed Dragons could not overcome the Briarcrest momentum and were forced to punt on fourth down.  Briarcrest lined up at their own 44 and immediately stunned the Dragons with a sweep right that garnered 56 yards and another TD for the Saints. The PAT was good and the Dragons now trailed an amazing 22-0 with 5:17 left in the first half.

On the following kick off, Will Austin tore off 20 yards to put the Dragons in good field position at their own 48. Following a negative yardage play and an incomplete pass, the Dragons only gained 2 yards in the series and were again forced to punt.  About this time, the Dragons began to wake up. 

Hayden Bowen made a big stop on a misdirection sweep throw back that lost one yard for the Saints. On second down, Bowen fought off two blockers and tackled the ball carrier 4 yds short of the first down marker. Kyle Beard then made a TD saving tackle on the next play but the Saints gained enough for first down.  On first down, the Saints hit on a big pass play all the way down to the Dragon 29.  Facing third and 6, Jacob Fisher nailed the Saints QB forcing 4th down. With time winding down in the half the Saints elected to go for it on fourth down. Great defensive line pressure forced an incomplete pass thus giving the Dragon the ball on downs.  The Dragons attempted a double-reverse that was shut down as time expired in the first half of play with Briarcrest completely dominating the game and leading 22-0.

The Dragons seemed to come alive at halftime and charged back to the sidelines to start the second half.  The Dragons lined up for the second half kick off and Grant Smith squib kicked the ball and a hustling Hayden Bowen recovered the ball in front of the Briarcrest coaching staff at the 41 yard line.  On first down, Grant Smith rolled out on a QB keeper and sprinted down to the 19 yard line.  Chase Clarke then tore off 11 down to the 8 gaining a Dragon first down.  On third down, Clarke scored from 5 yards out. Smith rolled out and converted the PAT to narrow Briarcrest’s lead to 22-8 with 5:53 left quarter three.

As the stunned Saints lined up to receive the Dragon kick off, everyone in the stands could feel momentum shifting. Smith again squib kicked it to the same spot and again the Dragons recovered the ball in front of the Briarcrest coaching staff.  The Dragon O came out for business. With the Saints linebackers “cheating” and stacking the tackles, Grant Smith hit Will Austin on third down for a big gainer down to the 25 yard line. Facing third and four at the 21, QB Grant Smith hit Kevin Hall for a key reception down to the 5 yard line. Kevin Hall came in as QB as Grant Smith was woozy after a big hit on the previous pass play.  The Dragons were looking at first and goal at the five and Briarcrest was intent on shutting down the off tackle runs and were stacking accordingly. Chase Clarke bulled off right tackle for three yards and then the Dragons quickly recognized no middle defensive responsibility and called a QB keeper over the center. Kevin Hall scored in an unmolested run.  The PAT failed but the Dragons had made it a one score game with the Briarcrest lead diminished to 22-8. More importantly, the Saints were visibly rocked on their heels and the Dragons were controlling the second half.

A Dragon pooch kick was recovered by the Saints on the following kick off.  On first down, Will Austin and Wes Evers teamed up on the tackle for a 1 yard loss. An incomplete halfback pass and an outstanding play by Kyle Beard to bottle up the scrambling Briarcrest QB forced a fourth down punt.

Kevin Hall returned the punt 12 yards to put the Dragon offense back on the field at the Briarcrest 49.  On first down, Chase Clarke followed his blocks over right tackle and rambled for 21 yards down to the 28. From there the offense bogged down and the Dragons were forced to turn the ball over on downs at the 25. The Dragon defense came out and played hard nosed tackle football. Hayden Bowen, Justin Berard, Jacob Fisher, Bradley Kraemer, and Wes Evers all made key defensive plays in this series. Facing third and 13 at their own 29, the entire Dragon defense tackled the ball carrier to force a fourth down punt.  With time winding down and starting from midfield, two penalties and an incomplete pass found the Dragons facing fourth and 15 from their own 45.  The Briarcrest defense, looking for a trick play or misdirection, caught the Dragons for a 10 yard loss on a double-reverse.
Taking over at the Collierville 35, Wes Evers made a TD saving tackle after a 15 yard Saint gain. Briarcrest tried to punch it in on the Dragons, but found tough sledding and determined to preserve their win and simply ran the clock out.

While the Dragons suffered their first defeat of the season, it was clearly evident that this team has a depth of character and talent as they rallied and controlled the second half of play after being completely dominated in the first half.  The true sign of a champion is whether or not he can get up after being knocked down. This Dragon team not only got up off the canvas, but fought within inches of taking this game away from a very talented and well-coached Briarcrest squad. 

Bad News
The regular season ended with the Dragons tied with Houston and Briarcrest for first place. 
Good News
The good news is the Dragons were chosen to play in the championship game Monday night against ECS. 
PREDICTION
This squad has enough talent and character to win the overall championship. With the bitter taste of their first loss still fresh, this team should be very focused and determined that no team will take their hard-earned championship from them.  Come out and support the Dragons Monday night in the championship game at ECS.

GO DRAGONS!