North Duplin junior running back Carell Phillips scored the game-winning touchdown with 71 seconds to go against Hobbton on Friday evening. (Rudy Coggins|mountolivetribune.com)
NEWTON GROVE — Hobbton came within 71 seconds of pulling off the biggest upset on the Carolina 1A Conference football scene this season Friday evening.
Carell Phillips dashed the Wildcats’ aspirations.
The junior running back delivered the game-winning touchdown – a 40-yard gallop – and preserved North Duplin’s unbeaten campaign with a 34-31 victory.
The Rebels (9-0 overall, 4-0 Carolina) locked up the automatic bid to the NC High School Athletic Association playoffs, which kick off Nov. 15.
Seedings will be released Nov. 10.
“Just a heckuva an accomplishment for these young men and a testament of the work they’ve put in this season,” Rebels head coach Hugh Martin said. “Last night, they found a way to make to some key plays, so I’m just really tickled for them right now. They’re deserving of it.”
North Duplin entered the contest without three defensive starters — Rahmear Gates, Ethan Turnage and Donovan Armwood. Gates and Turnage sat out due to injury. Armwood’s mother sadly passed away.
“We had our backs against the wall just a little bit with that,” Martin said. “Noa [Quintanilla] stepped up at ‘Mike’ linebacker, helped us limit the run game up front. Carell and Vance [Martin] both had to split time at safety. Marcus Hill, defensively on the interior, got a whole lot more snaps.
“He runs to the ball really well. It was great to see them have the opportunity to take what they’ve been learning and go apply it in the game.”
And what a game it was, too.
Phillips’ 49-yard scoring run provided North Duplin with a two-touchdown advantage barely three minutes into the second half.
Hobbton wouldn’t go away.
The Wildcats reeled off 18 consecutive points that started with a touchdown in the closing seconds of the third quarter. A bad snap on a fourth-and-1 play set up another TD.
North Duplin drove into the red zone on the ensuing possession and stalled. Hobbton marched 86 yards and tallied the go-ahead score with 90 seconds on the clock.
Down 31-28, the Rebels — much to Martin’s delight — kept their composure and made smart decisions.
It started on the kickoff.
Garris Warren let the ball roll out of bounds and Martin elected for a re-kick. He felt confident that either Phillips or Warren would gain considerable yardage on the return.
Working at midfield, quarterback Luke Kelly rolled out from center, lost control of the ball and it bounced back into his hands. The senior broke off a 10-yard run that resulted in a first down, which stopped the clock and moved the chains.
Phillips scored on the next play. Already over the 2,000-yard mark for his career, the junior concluded the night with 266 yards and five touchdowns on 34 totes.
“Carell did what Carell does,” Martin said. “Vance Carter’s fake was as good as it could have been, he pulled I don’t know how many defenders to him because he was committed to being a great teammate. He deserves credit to maintain composure to make that play.”
Hobbton wasn’t done.
The Wildcats took over and completed a short pass. They attempted a hook-and-lateral on the next play. Outside linebacker Branson Martin tackled the “hook” player, who tried to connect with the “lateral” man. The ball bounced free and Warren smothered the pigskin with 42 seconds to go.
North Duplin took over and ran out the clock.
The Rebels amassed 345 yards of total offense — all on the ground. Carter churned out 53 yards on 13 rushes, while Bryan Zambrano added a hard-earned 19 yards on six tries.
The Wildcats managed a paltry minus-3 yards rushing on six attempts, but accumulated 298 yards and five touchdowns on 17 of 29 attempts through the air.
North Duplin eagerly anticipates the 14-day layoff.
“We need to heal up some bumps and bruises,” Martin said. “We’re going to take advantage of the open week, continue to work on things we need to do better for us. I’ve already broken down the film, pulled out some clips so we can sit down [Monday] and look at those things.”
You may reach sports writer Rudy Coggins at prepswriter2@gmail.com or call/text 919-709-9257.
North Duplin 34, Hobbton 31
Scoring Summary
First Quarter
ND — Phillips 78 kickoff return (kick blocked), 11:48
H — Thompson 20 pass from Clegg (kick good), 9:35
ND — Phillips 36 run (Phillips run), 4:30
Second Quarter
ND — Phillips 24 run (Quintanilla kick), 2:39
H — Thompson 51 pass from Corbett (pass failed), 1:51
Third Quarter
ND — Phillips 49 run (Quintanilla kick), 9:40
H — Johnson 43 pass from Corbett (pass failed), 0:54.6
Fourth Quarter
H — Thompson 25 pass from Corbett (kick failed), 10:30
H — Thompson 16 pass from Corbett (kick failed), 1:30
ND — Phillips 41 run, 1:11, (kick blocked)
