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The Tornado Subsides Mail Tribune / Andrew Mariman Jesuit avoids late Tornado rally to garner state crown By Greg Stiles EUGENE � The trouble with a great football team is that it�s hard to put away. North Medford proved that last week when it stung Churchill in the final minutes of the Class 4A state semifinals. The Black Tornado found itself on the other side of the equation Saturday afternoon in the finals at Autzen Stadium. Every time North Medford got a leg up on Jesuit, the Crusaders bounced back with lightning speed. And when the co-No. 1 Crusaders went on top for the first time with 4:26 to play, the Tornado lacked the counterpunch that had put them to within one win of their ultimate goal. Jesuit scored the final 17 points on a crisp, relatively dry afternoon en route to a 38-28 victory before 8,123, denying the Tornado its first state title since 1993. "I�m sure when I watch the films, I�m going to see one of the finest teams I�ve seen," said North Medford coach Rod Rumrey of the Crusaders. "Their skill players are outstanding, and their line is extremely physical." Yet the No. 3 Tornado not only hung tough, it didn�t trail until the last 4� minutes, when John Daily blasted a 43-yard field goal to give Jesuit a 31-28 advantage. "We knew Daily was a great kicker," Rumrey said. "We told our players that any time they got inside the 35, he had a very good chance of making it. "The thing I liked was that there were still four minutes left, just the right amount of time for one North�s offensive line gave Foreman plenty of time throughout the day, and this play was no different. Foreman delivered the ball when Jesuit defender Mike Hass turned to the outside and Poulton caught it inside the 20 and went in untouched. "We saw in the first half that their defensive backs were biting hard to the seams and the outside post corners," said Foreman. "We told Travis to stay on the hash, and it worked perfectly." But as it had throughout the day, Jesuit snapped back in rapid fashion. On North�s first three TDs, the Crusaders countered in 26 seconds, 6:12 and 32 seconds. After North made it 28-21, Jesuit needed only 1:18 to erase the Tornado�s final lead. D.J. Jackson burst 25 yards over left tackle for the score and Dailey tied it. "(North) came at us big time," Jackson said. "They just kept coming at us. We had to keep our composure and play our hardest when we were down." North drove to its own 40 before bogging down on its ensuing possession. The Tornado had a notion to go for it on fourth-and-one. But back-to-back delay penalties forced a punt. Jackson, who rushed for 159 yards and two TDs on 29 carries, then packed the ball six straight plays before McGrain tried to hit him on an underneath route on third-and-five at the North 26. Jackson was unaccounted for on the play but dropped the ball on what would�ve been a touchdown. Even though Dailey had missed one PAT kick and nearly a second, there was no indecision as Jesuit called for a field goal. Dailey was 68 of 73 on PATs this season and had hit seven of eight field goal attempts, with a long of 50. The 43-yarder was never in question, making it 31-28. There was no panic on the North sideline; things had been worse a week earlier, when it trailed Churchill 28-15 inside the last five minutes. "We believed until the very end," said North linebacker Alan Borelli, who sacked McGrain three times. The two teams traded series, and North got the ball back at its own 31 with 1:01 to play. A penalty moved the ball to the 36 but as happened frequently to Jesuit opponents this season, Hass provided a crushing end. The Metro League�s defensive player of the year picked off a pass at the Jesuit 48 and returned it down the right sideline for the final score. It was his seventh interception and sixth returned for a touchdown. "I was trying to make something happen there, and I ended up scoring," said Hass, who had seven touchdowns in Jesuit�s 55-20 quarterfinal win over Central Catholic. "I just made a break on the ball and was able to get to the end zone. "At halftime, we knew we had better get it together because we didn�t know if we�d have much time to score." The Tornado couldn�t have asked for a better start to the game. It took the opening kickoff and drove 80 yards in eight ground plays for a touchdown. Phil Ouellette had carries of 34 and 14 yards, and Curt Stout smashed 17 yards to Jesuit 1. Foreman carried twice, scoring over center Dan Crawford and left guard Justin Baehmann. Brown�s kick made it 7-0, 3� minutes into the contest. Jesuit tied it two plays later when Kyle Faulk dashed up the middle, survived a jarring hit by Mike Olson and ran 74 yards for the TD. The teams exchanged punts, but Dailey shanked one, leaving the Tornado with a first down at the Jesuit 23. But a fumble on first-and-goal at the 7 by Stout ended the drive. Justin MacLauchlan put the Tornado back on top early in the second quarter on a 35-yard dash behind blocks from Scott Myers and Ouellette. Jesuit responded with its most time-consuming march of the day as it went 73 yards in 14 plays. Tight end Matt Hammond hauled in the touchdown pass from McGrain just beyond a diving Poulton�s reach. But Dailey hooked his kick left and the Tornado remained ahead 14-13. Ouellette gave North its biggest lead with 53 seconds left in the half on a 62-yard screen down the left sideline. "They blitzed from the outside and the guy that usually would be covering me wasn�t there," Ouellette said. "Scott Myers came over and gave me huge block, and Justin Baehmann was running down the sideline with me." Again, Jesuit struck back quickly. On second-and-10 from the North 49, Faulk caught a pass and made it inside the 10 before Olson stripped the ball loose. It dribbled out of bounds at the North 1, and on the next play, Jackson dove into the end zone. He did likewise on the conversion to tie it at 21-21 seconds before intermission. "I wasn�t worried," Jackson said of North taking the early lead. "But I knew they were a tough team, and in big games like this, you have to keep the momentum." The momentum came later, along with a state championship. For the Tornado, it was a disappointing way to end an otherwise memorable season. "I thought all of our players played with tremendous heart," Rumrey said. "We had to play with the greatest effort today to have a chance." Reach reporter Greg Stiles at 776-4483, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.