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LIVE Updates - Lake Taylor (6-3) at Booker T. Washington (4-5)

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Greetings from Norfolk, VA, where the Lake Taylor Titans (6-3) visit the Booker T. Washington Bookers (4-5) in an Eastern District matchup to close out the regular season finale.

Lake Taylor is no worse than the #6 seed in Class 4, Region A. The Titans should be a #5 seed with a win, opening at Smithfield in the first round of the playoffs. Meanwhile, Booker T. has secured a postseason berth in Class 3, Region A. The Bookers are the #8 seed and will travel to #1 Phoebus at Darling Stadium next week.

Follow Updates here and via my Twitter feed @ hatfieldsports throughout the afternoon as it is a comfortable 63 degrees with a brisk wind.

It'll be Booker T. ball to start. The Bookers are trying to get their first win in this series since 2004.
 
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Booker T. goes 3 and out. First pass is tipped by OLB/DE/TE Corey Holloway (a.k.a. The Gripper). The next two plays are runs by freshman Rodney Hammond - one of the top rushers in the Eastern District - but it ends up short of moving the chains. Bookers punt it away on 4th & 4 from their own 34.
 


A very workmanlike opening drive for Hank Sawyer's Titans on the road. They converted a 4th & 8 from the Bookers 30 when freshman QB Jeff Foster found senior RB Deon Smith in the flat for a screen pass good for 9 yards.

Booker T. was called for three penalties on the drive - two offsides infractions and a roughing the passer on that 4th down that moved the Titans half the distance down to the BTW 11. Malik Newton ran it 5 times for 36 yards on that opening drive.
 


Like the combination of power and speed in which Hammond runs with... he was also very good my last viewing of him at the start of October against Broad Run. He had 3TD's rushing in the second half with the outcome basically known, but he still ran hard.
 
Booker T. is putting together a methodical drive to answer Lake Taylor's first score. But the Titans are helping in the form of three penalties for 25 yards, two of which were offsides as well.
 


A terrific run by Hammond on his touchdown. He was stellar that drive with 63 yards himself. Don't think we'll see a 63-point Titans victory like we did last year or a 56-point margin as we did in 2014 today.
 
Lack of depth starting to show a bit for Booker T. Washington. Both teams don't dress a ton of players, but Rodney Hammond just checked out after a minimal gain - stop made by Tavion Copeland and Lavotnie Hawkins of the Titans.

Hammond has already run 11 times in the first half... and we have over 8 minutes before intermission. He's also going both ways and playing defense, so his energy tank may be getting low.
 


Newton with 9/77 yards, Smith with 5/27 yards and Foster 3/23 yards. Spreading the wealth and the Lake Taylor o-line with Tavion Copeland, Denzel Ewell, Troy Davis, Keon Stith and Jayshaun Brown-Houston are giving them enough running room to operate.
 


The way Copeland has covered ground and been a threat, both in the run game and harassing the passer, has been very impressive. Got decent size at 6-1, 230 pounds. Could be a sleeper for the next level, only a junior.
 
Some stats at the break...

Lake Taylor 18:
Jeff Foster - 7-12 for 76Yds; 3Car. 23Yds. TD
Malik Newton - 9Car. 77Yds. TD; 1Rec. 22Yds.
Deon Smith - 5Car. 27Yds. TD; 2Rec. 5Yds.
Corey Holloway - 3Rec. 39Yds; 5 Tackles (2 Solo)
Tavion Copeland - 8 Tackles (4 Solo), TFL

Titans - 29 plays for 203 total yards (17Car. 127Yds; 7-12 for 76 pass yards); 0 turnovers; 4 penalties for 35 yards


Booker T. Washington 7:
Rodney Hammond - 12Car. 72Yds.
Larry Parker - 2-3 for 22Yds.
Ja'bon Saunders - 1Rec. 14Yds.
Avontae Mitchell - 6 Tackles (3 Solo), 1.5TFL

Bookers - 20 plays for 91 total yards (17Car. 69Yds; 2-3 for 22 pass yards); 0 turnovers; 5 penalties for 30 yards
 


Bookers have new life as Head Coach Darvin 'D.J.' Alexander and OC Jarome Bell make a quarterback switch. You can occasionally catch that ultra aggressive Lake Taylor defense over the middle on a pass play when they load the box and it appears that was the case there.
 


The Bookers made it a bit harder than it needed to be to get in the end zone, running wide and out of shotgun the first two plays, but Parker - back in at QB for a sneak - punches in the score. We've got a ballgame now...
 
We have a Jeremy Blunt sighting here at Booker T. Washington. Blunt is the Head Coach of the Phoebus Phantoms. He and his staff are here scouting because they know they will be hosting Booker T. next week in the opening round of the playoffs at Darling Stadium, either on a Friday or Saturday.
 


The Booker T. defense had arguably its best series of the day as the Titans were looking at decent field position, beginning from their own 47. Mitchell has been a factor in the middle. They looked to take away the inside run / dive and it worked well.

Booker T. will start at their own 20-yard line with 5:02 left in the third quarter. Lake Taylor's lead that was 11 to begin the period is just 4 and the Bookers can take the lead with a touchdown.
 
A bad break for Booker T. as they take a deep shot with Dytorius Fuller on first down, appear to get a pass interference, but the officials huddle and call a PI on both teams. So with it being offsetting penalties, they'll replay the down.
 
Tavion Copeland makes his 10th tackle for the Lake Taylor defense - his 2nd for loss. It ends up putting Booker T. in a 3rd & 8 situation where QB Dytorius Fuller takes a deep shot, but he's unable to connect with his receiver as Donnovan Bishop stayed with the intended target.

This Lake Taylor secondary doesn't use a lot of bump-and-run or jamming at the line of scrimmage, something we've seen from past groups. They are susceptible to getting beat over the top by a prolific pass attack with receivers that run good routes.

The Titans are young on the back end and should be better a year from now as most of the defensive starters are underclassmen. As always, the key is blocking them because if you can't handle their pass rush from a lot of different angles, you're toast.
 
Tell you what, Rodney Hammond definitely loved that half-time break. He got a chance to catch his breath - only ran it 2 times in the second period after 10 rushes in the first quarter. He looks fresher on defense and nearly made an INT a moment ago.

Lake Taylor is facing 3rd & 15 from own 34 and for the second pass in a row they avoid an INT. Titans are punting and this game has shifted to a place where Booker T. can be in position to take the lead - and possibly win it - with a score in the fourth quarter. We were thinking we may be on the verge of a rout when the third quarter got underway too.
 


On the final play of the period after a false start by the Bookers, it is Fuller going to the air and he finds Hammond, who hauls in the deep ball. The defender covering fails to wrap him up as he goes to the ground, then Hammond sprints away for a TD.

More importantly - the Bookers are 3 for 3 on extra points and that's the difference on the scoreboard. They lost to Granby and Norview earlier in the season by three points apiece where missed extra point / 2-point tries plagued them.
 


The key play on that drive was a 3rd & 6 reception for a gain of 16 yards by Javon Harvey - previously the starting QB for this Lake Taylor team who made the switch to WR once the Titans decided to put the freshman Jeff Foster behind center.

The drive starter was also critical and Ikeem Wright caught that - believe it was for a gain of 27 yards. But I'm not 100% positive - we'll try to get video verification of that through the stats later - as I want to say it started at their own 47.
 


A couple of tackles slipped out of by Hammond, who has 3 catches for 144 yards and a TD to go with his 19 rushes for 80 yards and another score. Again, only a 9th grader who has a bright future to say the least.
 


Then on 2nd & 13 from the Lake Taylor 21-yard line - the crowd gets some oohs and aahs as it's freshman vs. freshman with a pass in the back of the end zone by QB Dytorius Fuller to RB Rodney Hammond, covered by Titans LB/RB Malik Newton. Just missed a TD by a hair.
 


How about the job by Dytorius Fuller today in relief? He's 4 of 7 for 165 yards passing - quite an average per completion - and 2TD's. They went back to that Hammond vs. Newton matchup and it worked the second time around.

Hammond is up to 165 yards receiving and 2TD's on catches to go with his 20 rushes for 77 yards a TD run.
 


The Booker T. run defense is hanging tough against the veer after the big return by the Titans. Lake Taylor featuring a couple of freshmen in the backfield, both at QB and RB, on this series and their youth showing a tad. But the Bookers tackling well, too.
 


The young pups step up for Lake Taylor, leaning on that o-line with Tavion Copeland and Denzel Ewell (younger brother of ex-Titans star lineman Darnell Ewell, now at Notre Dame).

Key 2nd & 11 coming from the BTW 11 with 58 seconds left. We just had an injury time-out after Avontae Mitchell, talented freshman LB for BTW, got dinged up.
 


A real creative call by Hank Sawyer, OC Mike James and the Titans there. They go with Harvey, who has experience of running to the edge as a QB, on a reverse and he had all kind of daylight.

Can Booker T. have themselves a finish to remember? Still some time and a chance to get it...
 


The game's first turnover comes at a bad time for the Bookers, but a great time for Lake Taylor. The Titans will share the Eastern District title - if you believe in the district titles still existing these days - with Granby and Norcom. Lake Taylor has long dominated this league, saw their win streak snapped by the Comets, but they will take a four-game winning streak into the playoffs.

Booker T. despite suffering its fourth straight loss showed some things in both the pass and run game that Phoebus will have to be ready for next week.
 
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