By By KEVIN TRAVIS
Sports Editor
The smallest football-playing school in the state is playing mighty big right now.
Creswell High School, with just 111 students, has enjoyed an abundance of success in recent years. Coach Wayne Rodgers, who has been at the school for some 30 years, has led his Tigers to consecutive Tideland Conference championships.
This year’s team might be a little more special, however, as Creswell went through the season without a loss for the first time. Creswell romped over the competition en route to a perfect 10-0 overall record, including an 8-0 slate in conference play.
“It’s just great to go 10-0 with this group of guys,” said Rodgers, who has nine seniors on this year’s squad. “It was truly amazing. They put in a great effort this year. We had a lot of young guys step up.
“After Friday night’s game, I told the guys that if they didn’t win another game, they have accomplished so much in the last four years.”
Creswell, which earned the No. 2 seed for the N.C. High School Athletic Association Class 1-A state playoffs, has 23 fewer students than the second-to-lowest football playing school, Mattamuskeet (134).
Despite the low numbers, Creswell has churned out some athletes, including last year’s WDN Defensive Player of the Year, Raphael Owens. He led the Tigers to a 10-2 overall record last year.
This year’s team has already matched that win total. They’ll look to add to the win column Friday night when the Tigers battle the Northside Panthers (3-8), a No. 15 seed, in the first round of the state playoffs.
The Tigers will be at home throughout the playoffs as long as they keep winning.
“(Playing at home) is very crucial for us,” Rodgers said. “Not having to travel makes it easy. The less time we spend on the road is better. It makes a big difference.”
Creswell earned that high seed by going undefeated and outscoring the competition, 382-56. (The Tigers won one game by forfeit.)
The Tigers have used a balanced offense in averaging 42.5 points per game.
Jaquan Bryant (827 yards rushing, 11 TDs) and Timell Sawyer (823 yards rushing, 9 TDs) have led the Creswell ground attack. Gary Blount has been effective running (421 yards, 7 TDs) and catching (19 for 424 yards, 8 TDs) the ball.
Quarterback Danvonta Phelps has completed 29 of 52 (55.8 percent) passes for 527 yards, throwing three touchdown passes and four picks. He’s added 173 yards rushing and three scores.
Rodgers has had to adjust the game plan a bit each week, but the game plan has proven successful time and time again.
“Each game got a little tougher for us to run,” Rodgers said. “We are undersized so we just had to make some adjustments. The guys have been stepping up and grinding things out, picking up three or four yards at a time instead of getting big runs.”
The defense has been just as impressive, giving up just 6.2 points a game. In the last seven games, the Tigers have surrendered just 22 points (3.14 points per game).
“We’ve been making adjustments and limiting the big plays,” Rodgers said. “We’ve been trying to take away certain things.”
The defense is led by Shaton Basnight (96 tackles), Timothy Roughton (95 tackles), Xavier Owens (15 sacks) and Justin Phelps (four interceptions).
Roughton wasn’t able to play in the regular-season finale. Rodgers is hoping to have him back for the playoff opener.
The Tigers are also dealing with the loss of Tommy Cherry, who had 75 tackles and four sacks before breaking his ankle against Columbia.
“He was our only linebacker and was our back-up quarterback,” Rodgers said of Cherry, who also handled some punting chores. “That’s a big loss for us. When we lose one player, it’s like losing four positions.”
Creswell has been able to overcome some adversity on its way to the perfect record, which makes it all the sweeter for Rodgers.
“It was a great accomplishment,” Rodgers said of the unbeaten record. “It just makes you want to go on and work harder. That’s what coaching is all about — not the wins, but putting in that hard work and seeing it pay off. That’s just special in a lot of ways.”
The Tigers have had a dedicated fan base supporting them throughout the season.
“It’s even better this year (than last year),” Rodgers said. “The fans have been great. They’ve been coming out and have been great. We’ve had a fan bus for every away game. I can’t say enough about the fan support.”
The community support and play of his team keeps the affable veteran coach smiling.
“It’s just a joy to see their success,” Rodgers said. “A lot of people are behind them. The church community feeds (the team) every home game. People have been volunteering to jump in and help. It’s been great.
“I want to thank everybody for being a part of this. We all have that Tiger pride.”