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| Thomas Broussard made an inspiring visit. |
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| Teammates react to Broussard. (Photos by Marla Collins) |
If the surprise appearance of Big Tee didn’t ensure the St.
Paul Pioneers defeated the Texas Bullets, the iron will of quarterback Cleve
McCoy, wide receiver Delane Woods and the Pioneers’ defense damn sure did.
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| McCoy on the move. |
In a dominant performance by the Pioneers offense, defense
and special teams, St. Paul won its third national championship since 2009 –
and second in the past three seasons – by rolling over the higher-ranked Bullets
41-14 in the USA Bowl Spring/Summer National Championship in Daytona Beach,
Fla.
The Pioneers received a gigantic emotional boost at the
start of the game with the appearance of lineman Thomas Broussard and his
family. Broussard had recently been hospitalized with kidney failure and will
probably need a kidney transplant. His visit to Florida was an unexpected joy
to the 40-plus Pioneers who made the trip.
McCoy and company then made sure the happiness continued.
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| Juice Akins scored first Pioneers TD. |
The South Carolina State graduate passed for more than 250
yards, threw for three touchdowns and ran for two more. Woods, in his first
game back after breaking his collarbone earlier in the season, had more than
125 yards and a touchdown receiving, often keeping drives alive with clutch
catches at the chains before striking the Bullets deep with a 4th
down touchdown reception to end the first half.
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| Woods' touchdown to close first half. |
And the Pioneers defense? Tasked with slowing the nation’s
top quarterback and the Semi-Pro Offensive Player of the Year, the Pioneers
defense not only got in the Bullets’ way – they nearly slammed the door shut.
Texas, in running up its record to 17-0, averaged more than 40 points a game
coming into the USA Bowl. St. Paul held them to 14 points. And with three
interceptions, three sacks and a fumble recovery by the kickoff team, the
Pioneers kept Texas from ever posing a threat.
The score was 14-0 Pioneers after the first quarter; 27-7 at
halftime and 41-14 with five minutes left to play. Each time the Bullets
scored, the Pioneers answered to keep momentum.
It started with linebacker Corey Brenner’s acrobatic
interception on Bullets’ quarterback Justin Willis’ first pass of the game. It
continued with interceptions by safeties Terry Jones and Jake Lindsey that
snuffed out Bullets’ drives. And all game long, the Pioneers’ defensive line
harassed and battered Willis, sacking him three times – Rob Wills, Jeff
McGaster and Brandon Murdock recorded sacks – and putting him on the ground
more times than could be counted.
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| Brenner set the stage with pick. |
That was the strategy, defensive coach Jim Walsh said.
“Willis was the playmaker of their offense. They ran everything through him. If
we could control and contain him, we had a chance to win.”
When it looked as if the Bullets would score to narrow St.
Paul’s 14-0 lead, defensive tackle Jeff McGaster snuffed out the threat. Texas
had a 4th and 1 at the St. Paul 6-yard line and seemed poised for a
touchdown when McGaster, the Pioneers MVP for 2014, blasted through the
guard-center gap and tackled the Bullets’ ball carrier for a 3-yard loss.
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| Jeff McGaster stuffed Bullets' best chance. |
Texas would score once more, in the second half, but they
never really threatened again. Using a controlled pass rush that sought to keep
Willis penned in, the Pioneers kept him from hurting them with big plays. Pioneers
linebackers – Bill Quistorff, Brenner, John Robinson and Tierre Thompson – were
mostly kept in coverage and asked to pursue sideline to sideline.
They did their job well.
Willis had two touchdown passes in the game. He had thrown
for more than 40 during the season.
But the Pioneers’ offense proved dominant as well.
From the
start, McCoy’s play was crisp and his decision-making decisive. He threw
receivers open, hitting his spots with great accuracy. And when the pass was
not there, he ran and hurt the Bullets with his legs.
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| Brandon Murdock and Devin Waters applied pressure. |
Woods, in his first game back after breaking his collar bone
during the regular season, looked like an NFL receiver all night. He ran great
routes, came back to McCoy when the quarterback was in trouble or, as on the
last play of the first half, simply streaked past the supposedly speedier
Bullet defensive backs.
Woods and McCoy were named the game’s most valuable players
by the USA Bowl.
But there was plenty of credit to go around. Running backs
Isaac Odim, who had a touchdown run and a touchdown reception, and Riza
Mahmoud, who tallied nearly 100 yards, were their clock-eating, defense
bruising selves all game. Running behind fullbacks Daryl Davis and Andy Folz
and a physical offensive line, Mahmoud and Odim kept the Bullets from keying on
the passing attack.
Receiver Donte Pettis played both offense and defense,
grabbing passes for key first downs and stopping Bullets’ receivers as a nickel
back.
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| Heiser added another national title. |
Juice Akins, a fleet receiver who was new to the Pioneers in
2014, caught McCoy’s first touchdown pass of the game to give St. Paul a 7-0
lead. Odim caught McCoy’s last touchdown pass of the game on a swing pass to
close out the scoring and ensure that Head Coach Mark Heiser got his third
Gatorade bath in a national championship game.
Heiser took over as head coach for the 2008 season. The
Pioneers won national titles in 2009, 2012 and, now, 2014.
Kicker John Ostertag was named special teams player of the
game, although other players made key contributions – including Vernon
Johnson’s forced fumble that Davarus Branigan recovered to set up the
Pioneers’ second touchdown.
“This really was a complete victory, by our entire team,”
Heiser said afterwards. Missing several starters in key positions on defense,
the Pioneers had to improvise and use players – such as tight ends Rob Wills
and Eric Baumgartner – on defense.
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| Odim running hard. |
“They really came through for us,” Heiser said.
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| Bill Quistorff held down the middle on D. |
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| Mahmoud and Woods were impact players. |
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| Jones had a pick to kill a Bullets drive. |
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| Final score. |
