By Brandon Jones
Eel Daddy
INDIANAPOLIS – Special teams were the story in the fifth and final contest of 35th Annual IHSAA Football State Finals held Nov. 24 at the RCA Dome.
The feel-good story of the 2007 Class 5A campaign was the second-ranked Pike Red Devils and their deep run into the postseason. But Saturday night, first-year coach Derek Moyers’ previously undefeated Red Devils walked out of the dome with their first loss of the season in a 16-7 defeat at the hands of No. 6 Carmel.
Pike got on the scoreboard first in grand style on a 52-yard strike from senior quarterback Josh Carpenter to fellow senior wideout Jeremy Turner on a crossing pattern left to right with 3:21 left in the opening period.
But from there it was all blue & gold as the Greyhounds (13-2) rattled off the game’s final 16 points en route to their sixth state championship.
Pike (14-1) definitely did not help its cause as a couple of key special teams miscues led to points for the white-and-blue-clad ballers from Indy’s suburban northside.
The contest began with both squads trading punts, but Carmel was winning the battle of field position by a decisive margin.
“The difference in the game was when we had big plays, we had penalties,” Moyers said. “Plus we had zero field position all night long. A lot of that had to do with the kicking game.”
The ’Hounds appeared ready to strike first as they set up at the Red Devils’ 34-yard line. But it was not to be as senior tailback Aaron King coughed up the pigskin after appearing to have the necessary yardage to pick up a crucial first down.
Pike junior Troy Smith caused the fumble and fell on it, setting up the aforementioned score from Carpenter to Turner on the fifth play of the ensuing drive. The drive was kept alive by a 20-yard completion from Carpenter to Turner on 3rd and 13.
If Pike was nervous in its first-ever state finals appearance, it did not show as the Red Devils were on top 7-0 with 3:21 to go in the opening quarter following senior Dustin Weber’s extra-point kick.
“We got down 7-zip but the kids didn’t blink,” said Carmel coach Mo Moriarity, whose ’Hounds answered right back with a 15-play, 67-yard scoring drive.
The Greyhounds picked up five first downs en route to the score before junior QB Morgan Newton found rarely used tight end Jacob LaRosa in the end zone from two yards out.
Senior Cory Kemps’ extra point tied the score at 7 with 8:23 to go in the first half.
Pike then appeared to be driving for the lead as a roughing-the-passer penalty kept the Red Devils’ drive alive, as did a 26-yard scamper by senior running back Ryan Taylor five plays later. But three straight incomplete passes by Carpenter (the last on fourth down) gave the ball back to Carmel at its own 31.
Yet Carmel could not do anything with the ball as the Pike defense (as it had done all season long) made a stop. After a Pike punt, however, Carmel took over on its own 48 (back to that whole “winning the field position” thing) with just under 45 seconds remaining in the half.
A couple of quick sideline passes to senior running back Kurt Freytag put the ’Hounds in prime position for a score before halftime. A late-hit penalty on Newton added 15 yards onto the end of a scamper by the quarterback, and Carmel was in business.
The Greyhounds would be stopped and forced to attempt a field goal, but little did they know at the time that points in this contest would come at a premium as both defenses were playing great. Kemps (who would go on to set a state finals record for number of field goals in the contest) booted one in from 30 yards out as time expired, and the Greyhounds took a 10-7 lead into the locker room.
Things got very interesting in the second half with a number of edge-of-the-seat plays, but turnovers would doom the Red Devils.
“In the playoffs our defense has really been playing well … best of the year,” said Moriarity, whose stop troops held Pike to just 53 yards rushing and 195 yards overall. “You have to be able to win with offense, defense, or special teams, and tonight it was mainly defense and special teams.”
Following a tradeoff of punts, Pike took over at its own 23. After a first-down run netted zero yards, Carpenter forced an errant pass into double coverage. It was picked off by Carmel sophomore defensive back Chase Varndell, and he took it the other way for what appeared to be a 33-yard touchdown.
But it was called back for a block-in-the-back penalty on the return.
Luckily for Pike, Carmel looked out of sync on the ensuing possession as the Greyhounds could not take advantage of the gift of field position at the Pike 16. After a failed reverse in which junior wideout Troy Stratford fumbled but the Greyhounds recovered, Carmel faced a 3rd and 11 at the Pike 14.
Enter Pike senior defensive back Kendall Flemings.
Newton escaped the oncoming pass rush from the Pike defensive line and took a chance in looking for his favorite target, senior wide receiver Jordan Brewer, at the goal line. But Flemings stepped in front of the pass and took it away.
His return to the Carmel 20 likewise was called back as a personal-foul penalty meant the Red Devils would start at the Pike 35. They could not take advantage.
After managing to pick up a first down on a 13-yard connection from Carpenter to Turner (84 yards on four catches), Pike was forced to punt four plays later. When the snap bounced off the fingers of punter Weber, he could not escape the Carmel pursuit as the 230-pound defensive lineman was tackled on his own 42.
A 23-yard sideline connection from Newton to Brewer (three catches, 45 yards) on 3rd and 10 kept the drive alive, Carmel could manage but five yards on its next three plays. Kemps was called out once again to tack on points to Carmel’s total, and he did.
The strong-legged 6’1” right-footer (three of his four kickoffs were for touchback) connected once again, this time from 32 yards, to put the Greyhounds on top 13-7 with 1:23 remaining in the third quarter.
Credit must be given to the Pike defense. They once again stepped up to the challenge and kept their offense in the game by stalling a Carmel offense that had been averaging nearly 38 points per game.
But penalties and miscues again reared their **** – and, ultimately, fatal – heads on Pike’s next possession. A beautiful 26-yard run by Taylor was called back for an illegal block, backing Pike up inside its own 10.
Three plays later, the Pike special teams unit took the field and once again self destructed.
This time the snap hit the ground, and all Weber could do was fall on it. The bad news being that Weber was standing at his own 28, from where Carmel took possession.
Once again, Moyers’ defense was up to the challenge. Though Carmel did get a first down, the drive stalled when Newton could not pick up the first down with his legs on a third-down opportunity.
But as he had all night, Kemps bailed the ’Hounds out. Kemps knocked another one through the uprights, this time from 25 yards out, and Carmel now held a two-possession lead at 16-7 with 8:41 to play.
“We do have one heck of a kicker,” Moriarity said of Kemps, whose only 3-pointer all year long had come in Carmel’s 32-31 Week 3 loss to Center Grove. “He’s been kicking well all year long, even though he hasn’t had to hit many field goals.
“When two teams are as evenly matched, it’s going to come down to something like the kicking game, and that was the case tonight.”
Pike managed to advance the ball to midfield on its next possession, but the Red Devils could not convert as Newton (he’d entered the game as a defensive back in the second quarter) picked off Carpenter’s desperation fourth-down gamble with 6:23 remaining.
That was Pike’s last decent shot as Carmel improved to 6-2 all-time in state championship contests.
“We wanted to get back and win one,” Moriarity said, whose team fell 35-14 in last year’s 5A final to Warren Central. “The last one (championship) was in 1989, and it feels good to be a part of bringing that back to Carmel.
“We got close last year, and this year we got it.”
Though Newton ended up with just 77 yards passing on 9-of-20 accuracy (he added 62 yards on the ground), fans were highly impressed with his poise and arm strength.
“Morgan is a very special 16-year old, and he is going to get a lot of attention in the coming months,” Moriarity said.
Carpenter, meanwhile, finished 9 for 26 for 142 yards for the Red Devils, who ended a magical season that brought the school’s first-ever sectional, regional, and semistate championships.
“I hope no one takes anything away from our players tonight,” Moyers said. “No one in the state of Indiana thought we would be here at the beginning of the season. If we continue to do the things we did this year, there is no doubt that we will be back.
“The penalties came back to haunt us, and we turned the ball over too many times. If you ask Carmel, that was the best defense they saw all year. The defense kept us in the ball game.”
Pike’s Lowery named mental attitude award winner
Following the contest, Pike’s Cameron Lowry was named the winner of the Phil N. Eskew Mental Attitude Award in Class 5A football by members of the IHSAA Executive Committee. Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, the IHSAA’s corporate partner, presented a $1,000 scholarship to Pike High School in Lowry’s name.
Athletically, Lowry is the team’s leading blocker and is a four-year starter at left tackle for the Red Devils. He has been named Junior All-State by the Indiana Football Coaches Association, Bloomington Herald All-State, All-Conference Indiana, and All-Marion County by the Indianapolis Star. Besides football, Lowry also has thrown the discus and shot put for the school’s track & field team.
The son of Orlando and Penny Lowry of Indianapolis also is a member of the school’s symphonic orchestra, and he made an appearance earlier this season on the HoosierAuthority.com High School Sports Show.
Academically, Lowry rates among the best students in his class of 595. He maintains a spot on Pike’s honor roll and is a member of the National Junior Honor Society. He plans to study pharmacy at a college to be decided.
The award is presented annually to a senior participant in the state finals who was nominated by his principal and coach and has demonstrated excellence in mental attitude, scholarship, leadership, and athletic ability. It is named in honor of the IHSAA’s third commissioner, who served the association from 1962-76 and helped initiate the state tournament in 1973.
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