Whack's TD run helps Bulldogs advance past Camden

By Allen Etzler
Published in Sports on November 22, 2014 11:22 PM

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aetzler@newsargus.com

PRINCETON -- Adrian Whack walked over to head coach Derrick Minor and told him it was the worst game he's ever played offensively.

And maybe it was.

But he was still pretty darn good.

Whack coughed up the first fumble of his career early in the game that resulted in a turnover. That error weighed on his mind until the first play of the second half.

Whack took a handoff from quarterback Mike Wooten, broke three tacklers and pulled away for a 57-yard touchdown run. The Bulldogs cruised to a 40-22 victory over Camden and are the guests of Wallace-Rose Hill in third-round play of the N.C. High School Athletic Association 1-AA football playoffs next Friday.

"To be able to respond in the second quarter the way we did and then come out from halftime and, on the opening snap, Adrian Whack has that big touchdown run, it just showed the guys to trust in what we're doing," Minor said. "We faced a little adversity and the guys didn't let it get to them. They stepped up to the challenge."

Whack ran for 105 yards and the touchdown on four tries, a feat he never would have dreamed about doing a year ago. But this season has been a revelation for Whack and caused him to set high -- almost too high -- expectations for himself.

"It's because of the team," Whack said. "I have to raise the bar for myself to help these guys get to where they want to go. And this was the worst game I've ever played offensively.

"But we pulled it out ... I knew (on the touchdown run) I had to make up for the fumble and that I had to get to the end zone. It might have been the fastest I have ever run."

Whack wasn't the only player who had to recover from a shaky start.

It started with the opening kickoff when Princeton's special teams unit allowed Camden to return the ball down inside the Bulldogs' 40 and eventually score a touchdown.

Princeton turned the ball over three times in the first quarter, including a safety on a Wooten sack, to trail by 10. The Bulldogs scored 34 of the next 40 points.

But the bounces worried Minor.

The Bulldogs dropped two onside kicks they could have recovered. The defense was beat out by one chain link on a fourth-down play. And seemingly nobody could hold onto the football.

It had potential to be the James Kenan game all over again.

"You know in the third quarter when bounces weren't really going our way, I had a minute with the Lord where I prayed and said, 'please don't let this be like the James Kenan game,'" Minor said. "And I decided you know it's not going to be. I'm not going to let it. We're going to keep being aggressive ... But it did feel like a little bit of deja vu."

Princeton intercepted Camden quarterbacks Noah Tuttle and Brandon Underwood three times, including two picks on the goal line to take away touchdowns. Junior Cam Jackson had two interceptions.

And the offense went to one of the heaviest doses of Johnny Frasier as they have shown all year. The senior workhorse finished with 204 yards on 23 carries and two scores.

Wooten added a rushing touchdown and one passing touchdown on 12 of 19 completions for 191 yards and an interception.