Published: September 05, 2008 11:35 pm            

Second-half surge opens Giants past North Central 48-20

INDIANAPOLIS — For the high school games being played at Lucas Oil Stadium, the retractable roof has been kept closed for the opening games. But, the way the Ben Davis Giants came out in the second, they figuratively blew the roof open with a 28-point third quarter outburst to pop the North Central Panthers 48-20 in the opening Metropolitan Conference game and game one of Friday’s KeyBank Bowl doubleheader.

Ben Davis got off to a bit of a slower first half and the Giants found themselves tied 13-13 with the Panthers after North Central’s Trip McFall kicked a 36-yard field goal on the first possession of the second half.

But, it was almost a different Ben Davis team that played the second half, a much more aggressive team that turned in some big plays, and found four different ways to score the five touchdowns in the second half.

“At halftime, we got our focus,” Ben Davis coach Mike Kirschner said. “We challenged our kids to do what was expected of them. We got emotional (in the first half) and did some things out of character for us, like putting the ball on the ground. We had panicked a little bit. I really liked the way we responded, especially defensively.”

The Giants opened their second half with what looked to be methodical run-focused drive. But, after the Giants had reached North Central’s 14-yard line, back-to-back holding penalties set Ben Davis with a first down-and-32 yards for a first down.

However, the predicament didn’t phase the Giants. Phillip Dudley took an inside hand-off, then cut back to the right for the open field and a 36-yard scoring dash. Later on the next offensive possession, Ben Davis pulled further ahead on a run-driven scoring drive as Donte Asher got the last yard and score after the quarterback was pulled down short on a 29-yard bootleg around the left side with just 1:06 left in the third quarter.

But, it wasn’t just the Ben Davis offense that seemed different in the second half. The Giants defense came out and limited the Panthers to minus 10 yards on their next three possessions, plus tacked on their own score — a 15-yard interception by Isaiah Lewis on a pick from North Central quarterback Derek Theims — that score coming between the two offensive drives.

But, the Giants still weren’t ready to call it a quarter. On the last play of the third quarter, Jeffery Garrett took a North Central punt 81 yards for another six points. A game that was tied early in the second was now a 41-13 breakaway.

“The number one thing we tried to do was be physical,” Kirschner said. “We had a great game plan on offense, and got short fields and some interceptions and a punt return, and it just snowballed from there.”

Ben Davis still had one more scoring method ahead with Rice hitting Dudley for a 60-yard play action pass, the Giants’ lone pass completion of the game.

As good as the second half went, the first half had to be a little disconcerting for the Giants’ fans, especially with North Central jumping out to a 10-0 start.

After BD’s Moises Vigueras missed an open 21-yard field goal attempt, the Panthers put together a convincing 10-play, 80-yard drive as Theims hit Jeremy Behling for a nine-yard touchdown pass. North Central’s next drive was also good for a score as McFall hit his first field goal for 30 yards.

“I think (the slow start) was from (North Central’s) game plan,” Kirschner said. “It was 13-13 in the third quarter, and (North Central) had executed their game plan. They completed some passes and got some kids behind us — that was a credit to their coaching staff and the way their kids played.”

The Giants regained their footing in the second quarter as Wright put the Giants on the scoreboard with a 21-yard run, then Allan Garrett gave Ben Davis a 13-10 halftime edge with a 48-yard interception off Theims.

And with North Central and a first MIC win out of the way, the Giants were quickly turning attention to next week — another likely showdown of unbeatens at Warren Central.

“Our focus has to be under control, and handling the pressure,” Kirschner said. “I’m not sure if we’re close, but we’ll find out.”

        

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