Lakeside dug an early hole for itself that White Hall's Donte Buckner shoveled deeper during the second half of the Bulldogs' 35-0 mercy rule win Friday night in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs at Chick Austin Field.
Buckner's 146 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 22 carries powered the Bulldogs (7-4) to the quarterfinals of the playoffs. Head coach Bobby Bolding plied the 5A South Conference Champion Rams (8-3) with a heavy dose of Buckner in the second half, calling his senior running back's number 15 times on 10- and 11-play scoring drives that triggered a running clock with 11:55 to play in the fourth quarter.
Buckner ran for 95 yards after halftime, churning through Lakeside tacklers as the Bulldogs featured him on scoring drives of 67 and 74 yards that took more than 10 minutes off the clock.
"Everybody's had trouble getting him to the ground," Bolding said after the game. "We've been force-feeding him all year. He's a soldier. I told him at halftime coming out, we're fixin' to go score right here. You're going to get the rock. Get this game over with, son. You're the guy to do it."
The Rams crowded the line of scrimmage in a last ditch effort to stop Buckner late in the third quarter, but White Hall was ready for the gambit. Buckner, taking direct snaps out of a Wildcat package, lofted a 23-yard pass to Cody Lambert that put the Bulldogs at Lakeside's 3-yard line. He powered over the goal line on the next play to set the final margin.
The Rams offense never advanced into the red zone. Dealond Lewis' 33-yard run on the penultimate play of the night gave Lakeside its deepest penetration, moving the Rams to the White Hall 25. It was only the third chunk play of the night for a Lakeside offense beset by penalties, negative plays and a White Hall defense that squeezed the Rams' running lanes and limited their yards after catch.
Junior quarterback Will Ross completed 10-of-21 attempts for 74 yards. His main target, junior Logan White, was held to 39 yards on four catches. The inefficiency of the passing game contributed to the Rams converting only two-of-nine third down attempts.
"Our plan was to stop their running game, let them throw," Bolding said. "If they catch it, don't give them no YACs. Force them to make perfect throws, great catches. For the most part we did that."
White Hall capitalized on Lakeside miscues to take a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter. TK Walker returned an interception 75 yards to stake the Bulldogs to a 7-0 lead less than three minutes into the game. They pressed the advantage later in the quarter, taking advantage of a short field set up by a mishandled punt snap to go ahead two scores with 11:56 to play in the second quarter.
Buckner ran 25 yards to position White Hall inside the 10, and sophomore quarterback Matthew Martinez capped the drive with a 2-yard keeper.
The Bulldogs converted three third downs on their next drive to string together a 13-play, 69-yard touchdown drive that put them ahead 21-0 with 2:20 to play in the second quarter. Kam Robinson's 33-yard gain on a wide receiver screen on a third down and 21 was the key play. The Bulldogs maneuvered numbers onto the edge of Lakeside defense, and Robinson used the interference his blockers provided to move White Hall into Lakeside territory. Buckner's 3-yard touchdown run finished the possession.
Lakeside was less opportunistic, failing to parlay Chase Norwood's recovery of a fumble on White Hall's opening possession into points or field position. The Rams had a 3:18 edge in first half time of possession but failed to reach the red zone, converting two-of-seven third down attempts and stalling on their final four drives of the half.
Sports on 11/16/2019