PERKINSTON – Sumrall didn’t have many answers for Stone as the Bobcats suffered a 41-6 loss in the first round of the Class 4A playoffs.
It also didn’t help that Sumrall was without head coach Shannon White, who had to miss the game with flu.
“It’s different for sure,” Acting head coach Chris Fortenberry said. “He’s our offensive play caller and our head coach. That’s a big difference in the game and with everything that we do. These guys can coach. They do this for a living and are good at what they do.
“They know the game plan, so they know what they are doing too. Coach (White) knows that, and he trusts us to do our job. Tonight just wasn’t the night. It wasn’t a very good night for us."
Sumrall could not crack 100 yards of total offense as the Bobcats accumulated 90 yards on 47 plays. By comparison, Stone totaled 250 yards of offense on 47 plays. Notably, Sumrall held the Tomcats to 88 rushing yards.
The Sumrall defense kept the Bobcats in the game early on as the only potential scoring drive for Stone ended in a miss field goal, which kept the game scoreless at the end of the first quarter.
However, Stone’s passing game ignited in the second quarter, with quarterback Connor Tice leading a 10-play, 78-yard drive that ended with him scoring on a 1-yard run to go up 7-0. A quick three-and-out by Sumrall then helped the Tomcats get back on the board as Tice hit Andrew Bradford for an 11-yard touchdown.
A fumble on Sumrall’s ensuing drive helped Tice find Bradford again on a 29-yard touchdown as time expired for the half. A failed two-point conversion gave the Tomcats a 20-0 lead. Tice finished the game 13 of 19 and tossed for 163 yards and was responsible for three scores, while Bradford hauled in eight catches for 102 yards and two touchdowns.
“They have a really good offense, and they are good at what they do,” Fortenberry said. “When you get to this time of the year, if you have a good quarterback, then it shows up. He is probably the best quarterback that we have played all year. He showed up tonight and threw the ball really well. He beat us inside with some slant routes and stuff like that. I think early on, that was the difference in the game more than anything. The run game, we handled pretty well.”
Sumrall's most promising drive of the half had the Bobcats reach Stone’s 24-yard line but resulted in a turnover on downs as a penalty killed the momentum. Sumrall finished the half with 36 yards, 32 of which were gained on one pass play.
In the second half, Stone pulled away with a pair of special teams plays. The Tomcats got back on the board by blocking a punt and returning it for a touchdown.
Sumrall’s lone touchdown came after that score as the Bobcats drove 61 yards and reached the end zone with a 5-yard touchdown run from Trevor Daniels at the start of the fourth quarter. Daniels led Sumrall in offensive production as he ran for 54 yards on 19 carries.
Yet a pair of touchdowns by Stone’s Chasden Collins, who scored on a 2-yard touchdown and then later with a 60-plus yard punt return for a touchdown to seal the 41-6 win.
Sumrall finishes the season 6-5, while Stone extends its win streak to seven straight and advances to play North Pike in the second round of the playoffs.
“We thought we had a good group coming out of spring,” Fortenberry said. “We knew it was going to be different losing 21 seniors last year with this being a very young team and with the majority of them being ninth and 10th graders. They did a good job. I think we learned a lot this season. We are definitely going to grow on it. It’s good to have returning players back.
“(We graduate) nine seniors. It’s a small class, but we have gotten a lot out of them. They have come a long way. They have really helped us. The seniors have played really good ball for us despite being low in numbers.”
