Cameron Yoe Stifles Rockdale in Battle of the Bell
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Updated: October 26, 2019
photos: Steve Thomas
One of the Coolest in Our Cool Name Games
For the 65th time Friday night, arch-rivals Cameron Yoe and Rockdale squared off in the Battle of the Bell.
Entering the game, the Yoemen led the all-time series 43-21 over the Tigers. In recent years, however, the rivalry has been more competitive. The Yoemen won last year’s contest 33-14 snapping a two-game losing streak to the Tigers. Both programs have enjoyed tremendous success in the past decade. Cameron Yoe won three-straight 2A/3A D1 state championships from 2012-2014, and Rockdale won the 3A D1 state championship in 2017. This season, both teams entered at 6-1 overall and 2-1 in district. Both teams’ lone loss came against district frontrunner Troy.
Throughout Friday night’s game, the Yoemen dominated sides of the ball en route to a 31-3 victory. Offensively, the Yoemen rushed for 298 and threw for 112. Defensively, the Yoemen held Rockdale to 301 yards of total offense and forced four turnovers. In the first quarter, running back James DeBose scored on a three-yard touchdown run; and quarterback Braden Brashear connected with receiver Kobe Young on a seventeen-yard touchdown pass to give Cameron a 14-0 lead.
Midway through the second quarter, the Yoemen drove deep into Rockdale territory and appeared poised to increase their lead. However, Tiger quarterback and defensive back Jace Robinson had his first of two interceptions ending the drive. Robinson got the interception after having thrown one himself the previous drive.
In the second half, Cameron Yoe opened the third quarter with a promising drive advancing all the way to the Rockdale seven-yard line. The Tiger defense stood strong, however; and the Yoemen were forced to settle for kicker Axel Martinez’s 24-yard field goal. Rockdale responded with a promising drive of its own, but the Robinson threw his second interception of the night. As with his first interception, Robinson responded by catching one of his own which set the Tigers up at the Cameron 29-yard line.
Despite the excellent field position, however, the Tigers were forced to settle for wide receiver and kicker Ross Loth’s 27-yard field goal. Desperate to swing momentum in their favor, the Tigers then caught the Yoemen completely off guard and recovered an onside kick at the Yoemen 49-yard line. On the next play, Robinson connected with Loth on a 49-yard touchdown pass; but a holding penalty negated the score. After the Yoemen defense forced the Tigers to go three-and-out on that drive, James DeBose found the end zone again on a 16-yard touchdown run. Cameron Running back Nico Vargas added a 28-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter to bring the game to its final score.
With the win, Cameron Yoe improves to 7-1 overall and 3-1 in district. Next week, the Yoemen return ome to face the Manor New Tech Titans. The Titans are 1-7 overall and 0-4 in district following a 75-6 loss to Troy.
Rockdale, meanwhile, falls to 6-2 overall and 2-2 in district. Next week, the Tigers will travel to Jarrell to face the Cougars in a critical battle for the district’s final playoff spot. The Cougars survived 37-35 nail-biter against Little River-Academy for their first district win and are now 4-4 overall and 1-3 in district.
by Steve Thomas
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