Ah yes......"The Call" from the '05 Amherst County playoff game. The one play that fans from other schools love to trot out as indisputable proof that Salem always cheats for everything it ever wins. Thanks for bringing that up; it's probably been a few months, so it was overdue to be discussed again.
Yes - there was a highly controversial call with about 1:50 left to play in regulation. Actually, it wasn't even that controversial - it was unarguably the worst call I've ever seen in a game in person, and one of the two or three worst overall, including games I've seen on TV. I've never heard any Salem fan dispute that fact. It was an inexcusably horrendous call. Salem's Tony Spradlin made a great diving catch, but landed about three (not five) yards out of bounds. No part of his body was close to landing in play. Yet, the official ruled it a touchdown.
No - Amherst did not lose the game on that play. Here are the facts that most people, particularly Amherst County fans, choose to omit, as they doesn't fit the narrative:
~That bad call moved the score to 14-13, Amherst. Salem still had to kick the extra point to tie, and as any of you who have ever watched a high school game on a frozen November night know, that is far from being automatic.
~There was still 1:50 left on the clock after Salem tied the score at 14.
~Amherst had at least one timeout left, maybe two.
~Amherst had an excellent kicker; might have been all-state (not sure on that detail).
~After failing to score in the last 1:50, Amherst still had every chance to win in overtime.
Let's recap - Amherst County had 1:50 left, the capability to stop the clock, an outstanding kicker, and all they needed was a field goal to win. When the game went to overtime, Amherst still had their fair shot with the ball, and all they managed to do was false start on their own field goal attempt (and there was no disputing that call). It's my own opinion that Amherst failed so miserably after the blown call because their head coach, usually supremely cool and confident, completely lost his sh*t, and his team followed suit. Understandable for a minute or two, but Abell totally lost sight of the fact that he still had a winnable game. At some point, you've got to show the kids that yes, terrible breaks may come your way, but you can still overcome.
Also, for all you conspiracy theorists, the guy who made the horrendous call in the first place wasn't a Salem or Andrew Lewis guy. His last name was Foutz, and his brother was the head coach at Cave Spring. Our hated rival from Roanoke County, where Salem is roundly despised. So, I doubt Mr. Foutz was looking to do the Spartans any favors. He certainly didn't, in the long run.
To be quite honest, I fervently wish he had just made the correct call to begin with. Salem was the better team, and probably would have won anyway. Even if they hadn't, we wouldn't have seen the resulting rise of the "Salem Cheats!!" cottage industry that thrived for the next few years after that game (especially on this very website), and lives on to this day in all the "better make sure you beat them by four TD's" and "worst place for officiating" type of comments.
Hey, you wanna beat Salem at Salem Stadium? Here's a tip: don't come in more concerned with talking trash and taking players out of the game than with making football plays. I, with my own eyes, have seen Salem lose plenty of home games. I saw William Byrd - who has nowhere near the overall talent that GW is claimed to possess on a yearly basis - win in Salem five times out of eleven tries, from '93 to '13. If Byrd can be focused and disciplined enough to do it, maybe the more talented teams can, too?
Just a little postscript to that '05 debacle: the very next season, Amherst County returned to Salem Stadium for the regional championship. The Lancers faced a worse situation than they had the previous year. There was less than 1:30 to play, Amherst needed a TD to go ahead, and had nearly eighty yards to cover. Less time, more yards, worse score than in '05. And yet, despite the fact that "you'll always get cheated in Salem", they got it done, and won the damn game. Amherst won, 25-20.
Sorry to go on so long on this matter. This is the first time I've ever fully responded to all the crap written and said about that long-ago night. It just gets to be a bit much, you know? I'm sure what I've said will tick off a lot of people, particularly our Amherst friends. So be it. All I ask is that the rest of you all read the facts, and then tell me how one play with 1:50 left decided the game.
