Capitals run over Blue Devils

Columbia freshman quarterback Kynicholas Tyler hands off to senior tailback Chris Payne. Rushing the ball on almost every play, the Columbia Capitals warded off a feisty Dreher team 21- 6 on Thursday, September 4 at Memorial Stadium. Chris Payne and Damario Jeffrey each rushed for long touchdowns and over 170 yards apiece pacing the Capitals' 400- yard rushing night.

Payne started the scoring early for Columbia with a 61- yard touchdown scamper just eight minutes into the game. Dreher struggled to get moving offensively as its up- the- middle runs and screen passes simply were not fooling the seasoned Capital defense. But on the last play of the first quarter, Columbia had a punt snap go over the punter's head and gave the Blue Devils the ball on the Capital 20 yard line. Dreher was unable to get much traction and an incompletion in the end zone on fourth down turned the ball back over to Columbia at the 11 yard line.

Jeffrey showed his Division I speed on the Capitals' second play as he burst through the defense on the left side and used a quick cut back to the right to find open field. Out- sprinting the Blue Devil defense, Jeffrey's 89- yard run put the home team ahead 14- 0 early in the second quarter. The Capitals would not score again until the fourth quarter.

Blue Devil quarterback Jackson Edwards drops back to pass . Meanwhile, Dreher was able to sustain several short drives with the determined running of Devante Sims and Sheldon Van Dyke. Sims ripped off a 31- yard run late in the half, but Dreher quarterback Jackson Edwards was intercepted on the very next play by William Gillberry. Columbia drove the length of the field, trying to score another touchdown before the half ended. Their drive stalled at the one yard line as time expired with the Blue Devil defense having fended off the last minute attack.

Dreher had an opportunity to put points on the board in the third quarter but missed on a 42- yard field goal. Columbia responded with a missed field goal of its own after Dreher's Farrington Huguenin made a big stop on another Jeffrey run for Columbia.

The Blue Devils were again stymied on fourth down, this time inside their own 30 yard line, early in the fourth. Columbia responded with runs by Antonio Wilson and Lorenzo Boyles, straight up the middle. Boyles found the end zone for a 21- 0 lead with just less than six minutes to play.

With time working against them, Dreher rattled off three exciting plays in a row with a 25- yard pass to Chad Jasper and two quarterback keepers by Edwards of over ten yards. But another fourth down try fell incomplete in the end zone. Columbia tried to run out the clock and took a knee on fourth down with just 14 seconds to play.

Dreher took advantage of the slimmest of opportunities with four consecutive throws to the end zone from the 12 yard line in the final 14 seconds. After four incompletions appeared to end the game, a facemask penalty gave the Blue Devils one last, untimed chance. The fifth pass was completed to Bud Jeter who fell into the end zone for the first Dreher touchdown of the season, bringing the final score to 21- 6.