Woodson-Friendship Can't Be Beat

The 36-28 overtime victory by H.D. Woodson over D.C. charter school Friendship Collegiate on Friday was perhaps the best game in the District since Ballou beat Dunbar, 34-33, in the 2006 Turkey Bowl.

Critics of athletics at D.C. schools might highlight the abundance of penalties (Friendship was flagged 13 times; Woodson was penalized 10 times) or the absence of any sort of kicking game (each team had a punt that went for negative yardage), but any football fan had to be entertained by all the playmakers on both sides.

Woodson junior linebacker Nate Robinson, the younger brother of Illinois wide receiver and former Dunbar All-Met Arrelious Benn, was all over the field, recovering a fumble and making three tackles in the backfield. Friendship, meanwhile, seemed to have Woodson quarterback Ricardo Young on the run all night. The Knights had six sacks, including two apiece by linebackers Tyrone Armstrong and Kennedy Ogbanna.

Friendship junior running back Malcolm Crockett showed he is one of the top rushers in the area. After leading Montgomery County in rushing last season as a sophomore at Einstein, Crockett arrived at Friendship this fall and has shown incredible speed against much quicker defenders. Against Woodson, he ran for 158 yards and two touchdowns, including a 60-yarder on the third play of the second half when he blew past a Warriors' secondary filled with Division I college recruits.

Young, the Woodson quarterback, showed something few high school quarterbacks possess: the ability to direct a two-minute drill. He did it twice against Friendship, at the end of each half. Trailing 12-0, Woodson took over at its 25 with 1:43 left before halftime and only one timeout. He scrambled three times to gain two first downs. Then, after a Friendship penalty, he hit Don Hursey on a 34-yard bomb. Two plays later, Young eluded a sack, spun 360 degrees and floated a pass to Deandre Jones in the left corner of the end zone with no time left on the clock.

In the fourth quarter, Woodson trailed, 28-22, with 1:21 left. Young directed a 68-yard drive in which he completed four of five passes, connecting with Darius Redman in the end zone for the tying score with two seconds left. In overtime, he tacked on his fourth touchdown pass of the game for the victory, a 10-yarder to senior Dejohn Evans

"We really wanted this one," Friendship Coach Aazaar Abdul-Rahim said. "I can't say my guys didn't try hard enough, but this one hurt."

Nevertheless, Friendship -- which does not shy away from tough competition, having also scheduled Dunbar, DeMatha, and Linganore -- proved itself to Woodson.

"Oh, they'd definitely be one of the best teams in the DCIAA, no question," Warriors Coach Greg Fuller said afterward.

The Games Go On

Athletic events at D.C. public schools went on as scheduled Friday as the school system implemented temporary measures to provide security at facilities across the city.

The security company for D.C. schools told the school system in a letter Thursday night that it had gone bankrupt and was closed. In response, the D.C. Office of School Security and the D.C. police collaborated on a joint effort to provide school security until a new provider is brought on, which, according to a D.C. schools statement, should begin this week.

There had been concerns Friday that school sports would be postponed because of a lack of security.

Yeager Comes Home

Former Ballou and Coolidge quarterback Emmanuel Yeager, who was slated to play at New Mexico but left school before the season began, has transferred to Bowie State, and last weekend he came off the bench to help the Bulldogs to a 31-24, double-overtime victory over Shaw in the Prince George's Classic.

Yeager completed 15 of 22 passes for 128 yards and two touchdowns, including a 30-yard scoring toss to Larry Dixon in the second overtime, and was named the game's most valuable player.

In 2006, Yeager quarterbacked Ballou to a D.C. Interscholastic Athletic Association title courtesy of a 34-33 victory in the Turkey Bowl, knocking off three-time defending champ Dunbar.