You could tell early in the game that GAR coach Paul Wiedlich, Jr.  knew that this game was going to be a shootout.  GAR fell behind, 7-0, with only 11 ticks off the clock when Corey Popovich returned the opening kickoff 65 yards for a score.    On GAR’s first possession, rather than punt, Coach Wiedlich  decided to go for a first down from their own 40 yard line early in the game on a 4th and 7.     Most would think that a bit peculiear. They failed to make the first down and gave the Warriors good field position.   Not a problem—Wiedlich had a feeling that plenty of points were on the way.  And they were.

GAR amassed 484 yards of total offense, including 209 yards rushing by Darrell Crawford and 172 yards rushing by Dwayne Wright.  They outlasted the Warriors, 53-44 in an epic shootout.

GAR was able to move the ball at will on the Warriors using a multitude of weapons.   Not only did Wright have a career rushing night, Crawford added 95 yards completing 8 out of 10.    Several of those passes were during critical third down plays that went for scores.

The floodgates opened for GAR when they put up 27 points in the second quarter and took a 33-23 lead at halftime.  After an unproductive first quarter, the Warrior offense heated up and Nick O’Brien gained over 100 yards alone in the second quarter.    Even though the Warrior offense got on track, there was no semblance of a defensive stop on the horizon.      

It looked like the game could get out of hand, when GAR took the opening kickoff from the second half and scored in less than a minute, making the score 40-23.    However, to their credit, O’Brien and company did not give up.    They stormed right back and scored 14 points in the third quarter, tightening the score to 40-37 going into the fourth quarter.    At that point, it was anyone’s ballgame. Warrior team captain Nick Bartoli could be seen extolling his troops to play a fourth quarter that would live in Warrior history.

However, GAR’s offense was unstoppable.  A 32-yard touchdown pass from Crawford to Powell put the Grenadiers up by 10 points early in the fourth quarter.  46-36.   After a key interception by Jordan Zezza, the Warriors responded with an O’Brien 11 yard run, tightening the score to 46-44 with 7:44 remaining.   If ever a defensive stop was needed, this was the time.  But it was not to be, GAR showed why they are district champions.  They drove the ball down the field, and scored with 3:32 left in the game, making the score 53-44—putting the game out of reach.   

Nick O’Brien’s performance was once again, both gritty and breathtaking.  He ran for 319 yards on 36 carries.  Yes, there were those long runs where he make you think you are watching a video game. But also there were those tough five yard gains up the middle that are every bit as important.  Everyone in the house knew that O’Brien was getting the ball one way or another and he still could not be stopped.   In addition, O’Brien made some critical throws to Cody Schmitz and Jordan Zezza for big plays.

In the end, it was not enough.   The Warriors should be proud of their performance.   They were beaten by an outstanding GAR team who were the better team, if only by a slim margin.    The team showed a lot of character when they went down by three scores early in the second half, and then stormed back to make it a two point ball game. 

It was a great game and a noteworthy season.    At the beginning of this year, not many people predicted that this team would compete for a district championship game.  And they came ever so close to pulling it off.  

Congratulations to the Warriors and the coaches for making 2011 a memorable season.      Nick Perugini

WILKES-BARRE – Three touchdowns on five offensive plays.

That sudden burst of points gave GAR a cushion that Wyoming Area chased Friday night but ultimately couldn’t overcome.

Quarterback Darrell Crawford scored on runs of 60 and 29 yards, and running back Dwayne Wright added a 46-yard TD score, allowing GAR to overcome a small deficit and eventually win its second consecutive District 2 Class 2A title with a 53-44 victory.

“It came to us … I don’t know what it is,” GAR coach Paul Wiedlich Jr. said. “Both teams have heart. Our kids wanted to repeat, and God willing we were able to do it. Words can’t express how happy I am.”

GAR (11-1) will play the District 11 champion at 7 p.m. Friday at Spartan Stadium in Kingston in the first round of the PIAA 2A tournament. Northern Lehigh (10-1) plays at Pen Argyl (11-0) at 1 p.m. today for the D11 title.

Wyoming Area finished its year at 7-4, failing to get its first district title since 2003.

The Warriors managed to cut the deficit to 40-37 on fullback Jeff Skursky’s 1-yard TD run at 2:27 of the third quarter. But GAR answered that score and another by Wyoming Area, an 11-yard touchdown run by Nick O’Brien with 7:44 remaining that cut the GAR lead to 46-44.

O’Brien finished with 36 carries for a game-high 319 yards. He also threw for 74, accounting for all but 8 of his team’s yards from scrimmage.

“A couple times defensively we needed one more step or one more stop or one more play,” Wyoming Area coach Randy Spencer said. “We just didn’t get it tonight. We took our chances. We didn’t leave any bullets in the gun.”

GAR fired away in the second quarter to take a 33-15 lead, the biggest of the game.

After Wyoming Area went up 15-13 on a 24-yard run by O’Brien, Crawford scored on the first play after the kickoff, putting on some incredible jukes at the 10-yard line to complete his 60-yard score.

GAR’s Andres Jones recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff, and three plays later Crawford ran down the right sideline for a 29-yard TD. The after Crawford returned a punt 31 yards, Wright ran a pitch to the left side for a 46-yard score.

Crawford finished with 209 yards on 17 carries.

“We came in confident that every drive we had to go down and score,” Crawford said, “because they were coming down and scoring.”

Wright ran for a career-best 172 yards on 21 rushes. He had just eight carries when the teams played on Oct. 22.

“I just took care of my opportunities when I got the ball,” Wright said.

The 53 points were the most scored by a winning team in a D2 championship game since the tournament began in 1992. The 44 points were the most surrendered by a winning team, leaving the Grenadiers knowing there is plenty of work to do prior to states.

“A lot of mixed emotions,” GAR defensive end Shakir Soto said. “We made a lot of mistakes we’ve got to fix going into next week playing Northern Lehigh or Pen Argyl.”

Soto ended the wild game that saw 14 touchdowns scored. He forced a fumble on what turned out to be Wyoming Area’s final possession of the game. Linebacker Ivan Jackson recovered and GAR used four plays to run out the clock.

Wyoming Area will play GAR for the District 2 AA crown on Friday night, 7pm at Wilkes-Barre Memorial Stadium.     The Warriors will be looking to avenge their 37-30 loss to the Grenadiers during the regular season.  The Warriors have not captured a District title since 2003. 

Since defeating the Warriors in Week 8, GAR has cruised to wins over Nanticoke (68-0), and Meyers (38-6), and disposed of Lakeland, 42-21, in last Friday’s first round of the playoffs.   The Warriors have traveled a rockier road with a 50-17 win over Northwest, and a 24-21 loss to Pittston Area.  Last week, the Warriors defeated Mid Valley 35-28 in a game that wasn’t decided until the fourth quarter.

The first game between GAR and Wyoming Area was a high scoring affair.  The Warriors took a 23-22 lead into halftime, but two second half fumbles were enough to sink Wyoming Area.   In that game, both Wyoming Area and GAR moved the ball up and down the field at will.   GAR amassed 22 first downs, and 427 total yards.

It’s pretty obvious what the keys to this game will be for Wyoming Area.  First, hold on to the ball.   The Warriors cannot afford any turnovers.  Secondly, the Warrior defense must play better than it did the first game.    They need at least to slow down Crawford and company –something that no one has been able to do this season.   And finally, the Warriors must move the ball on offense with the same proficiency that they exhibited in the first game.  Easy,right? 

During the first game between the two, the Warrior defense concentrated on containing Darrell Crawford –trying to keep him from breaking the big play.   In that narrow respect, they were fairly successful.    Crawford gained 135 yards on 23 carries—well below his 10 yard per carry average.   However, the Warriors were gashed by Dwayne Wright for 54 yards and Lucas Benton for 84 yards.  In addition, GAR QB's had all day to pass as the Warriors did not rush him.   GAR ended up passing for 140 yards.  The “contain” approach did not achieve the desired results.  So perhaps we will see more defensive pressure exerted by the Warriors.

On offense, Wyoming Area will need to get its inside running game back on track.   They had a good game against Northwest, however the going was tough against Pittston Area and Mid Valley.   Skursky, Popovich, Kintz, Bouie, and Schmitz will have to step it up in order to take some pressure off of Nick O’Brien—who will certainly be the focus of GAR’s attention.    Of course, the success of the offense will ultimately depend on the big guys up front on the offensive line.

Well—not too much else to say about this.  The Warriors have a good shot.   See you on Friday Night—Nick Perugini