BROWNSTOWN
Brownstown Central reduced the Clarksville Generals to privates Friday night with a 63-36 win in a football game that had at least one play that will go down in all-time annals.
The Braves were in command most of the Mid-Southern Conference contest, but Clarksville will get a lifetime highlight out of one play that can only be truly sorted out by film replays.
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Students of the game have heard of “fumblerooski” plays, but they are performed on purpose as a strategy to fool the opposition. One second quarter play in this one provided erratic social distancing from the football.
What began as a Braves running play in their own territory ended 77 yards later with a Clarksville touchdown and involved probably up to seven player touches and three distinct fumbles.
On one play.
Brownstown back Lucas Hines had watched a replay by the time the final gun sounded and still wasn’t positive what exactly happened. Apparently, he didn’t have time for slow motion.
Senior Nicholas Robbins, who had already scored a Brownstown touchdown on a 70-yard interception, fumbled the original handoff and the ball then became the equivalent of a greased pig contest at a county fair. Nobody could hang onto it for long. Clarksville’s Jake Cummings concluded the bizarre sequence by running the last four yards into the end zone.
“It was wild,” Robbins said. “I don’t even know what happened. I hit that guy.”
Robbins on a double-reverse handoff from quarterback Kiernan Tiemeyer, the interception and a short run. A variety. Wild also described Robbins entire game with those three touchdowns, a pivotal role in the fumble adventure, but also and 101 yards rushing.
“I got the ball more than I usually do,” Robbins said.
Since he did have the fumble despite all of the other success, Robbins called his game filled “with ups and downs.”
That fumble play left watchers dizzy, but in between, Brownstown (5-1) bullied its way through the line of scrimmage was a tag-team of running backs.
In addition to Robbins, Lucas Hines and Jayden Steinkamp stampeded up and down the turf, too. Hines, who finished with 175 yards in all, had more than 100 yards at half-time. He added three touchdowns to the mix and Steinkamp, who finished with 91 yards running from scrimmage had two TDs.
While it may have looked it at times, Hines said Brownstown, which totaled nearly 400 yards rushing and pushed the play clock into running time once it built a 35-point lead at 49-14, could not score at will.
“Not every time,” Hines said. “Clarksville changed up its defense sometimes.”
Brownstown did lead the entire game, 7-0, 14-0, 21-7, 28-14, 35-15 at the half, 42-14, 56-20 with Clarksville being pesky on offense with periodic big gains, especially some banked by back Robert Lamar. But Clarksville never really threatened to get too close.
Although Clarksville fought throughout, there was much less drama than in last week’s Braves 43-42 victory over Seymour that had three lead changes in the last minute.
Hines was surprised his rushing total was so high.
“Well, yes and no,” he said. “I am pretty tired.”
The victory sends Brownstown into a showdown against Silver Creek on the road next Friday in a a must-win situation if the Braves wish to capture the league crown. Clarksville, which lost to Silver Creek 70-0 Sept. 25, is 3-4.
“Big game,” Hines said.
It terms of determining the league championship for 2020, that is definitely true and the Braves’ attention swiftly began focusing on next weekend’s road trip.
“The biggest game of the season,” Robbins said.