Colony's title hopes go South

Oct. 22, 2006

By Jeremiah Bartz/ Frontiersman

ANCHORAGE - During the first eight minutes of the third quarter, the Colony Knights played like state champions.

But South Anchorage was able to overcome the stretch in which Colony scored all 16 of its points, and earned a 26-16 win and the first state championship in the history of its young football program.

The Wolverines built a 13-0 first-half lead, and scored a pair of second-half touchdowns on fourth down in the win. But South's work in the first two quarters proved to be the difference.

&#8220The bottom line is we dug ourselves too big a hole to get out of,” Colony head coach Jamie Mayo said. &#8220We didn't play our game until the second half, and that hurt us.”

Senior tailback Chebon Jimenez rushed for a pair of touchdowns, senior defensive back Regis Price picked off a pass and senior George Percak-Dennett nailed a 38-yard field goal as Colony stormed to a 16-13 lead in the third quarter.

&#8220In the third quarter, we knew what we were playing for. We knew what we had to do. We knew we had a two-touchdown deficit,” Percak-Dennett said. &#8220We knew we had to bust our tails, just to get some respect. In the first half we embarrassed ourselves.”

Led by his lead-blocker, senior fullback Ben Packa, Jimenez rushed for 50 of his game-high 131 yards on the opening drive of the third quarter. Jimenez, the state's leading rusher, capped the drive with a 16-yard touchdown. On the play, Packa leveled South linebacker Devan Anderson. The block allowed Jimenez to bounce toward the left sideline, and the senior dove into the end zone for the score.

&#8220The kid's a truck,” Percak-Dennett said of Packa, who proved to be a difference-maker when on the field for the Knights.

On South's first play of the third quarter, Price snatched a Grant Stophlet pass away from Wolverine receiver Drew Hisey to give the ball back to CHS.

On the following play, Jimenez, once again behind the blocking of Packa, scored a 10-yard touchdown to tie the game at 13-13.

&#8220I think Ben did an outstanding job of running in front of Chebon. That's something we've had in our gameplan all year long. It worked,” Mayo said.

The Knights have shown the single-back, multiple receiver look for most of the season, and went back to those formations, and away from the two-back set, in the fourth quarter.

Percak-Dennett gave the Knights their first lead of the game with a record-setting field goal. Facing 4th-and-4 at the 21-yard line, with just less than four minutes remaining in the third, Percak-Dennett led the Colony field goal unit onto the field. Not only was it the longest field goal the former Colony varsity soccer goalie had attempted in a game, it was the first.

&#8220That was the first time I attempted a field goal ever,” Percak-Dennett said, with a laugh.

He put the kick through the uprights, and set a large-school state championship game record. Former Service kicker Nick Sullivan owned the prior mark. He booted a 29-yard kick during a loss to Chugiak in the 1994 title game.

&#8220If I did that 20 more times, I might make maybe two of them,” Percak-Dennett said.

Steven Anderson scored on a 1-yard run, and Sterling Lopez caught a 45-yard Stophlet touchdown pass in the first half for the Wolverines. The South defense held Colony to 37 yards rushing and 23 yards passing in the first half.

South converted a pair of fourth-and-goal situations in the fourth quarter to seal the win. Hinsey caught a 6-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter, just barely crossing the goal line, to give South the 19-16 lead. Mike Hunsicker padded the lead with a 2-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-goal midway through the final quarter.

The Knights finish the 2006 with a 9-2 mark. Colony won the Railbelt Conference title and advanced to the state title game for the second time in school history.

&#8220It was almost a dream come true,” Percak-Dennett said. &#8220We were so close.”

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.