SouthWest Edgecombe holds off archrival Tarboro

SouthWest Edgecombe coach Raymond Cobb walked the length of the 50-yard line Friday night with ice cubes trickling down his back.

Cobb had just finished receiving a cold splash of ice water from his players, but he shook off the celebratory bath and looked a few of Tarboro’s players in the eye and gave them a message.

“Two state champions,” Cobb said as he shook hands.

It’s not a far-fetched thought even though there is more than a month of football remaining to work toward those goals, and after SouthWest Edgecombe’s 22-16 victory over Tarboro, both squads left the field knowing there could be better days ahead for both programs.

“They’re a great football team down there,” Cobb said of Tarboro. “They’re certainly going to be heard from in the little 2-A.”

That might be the case when the state playoffs begin, but it was of little solace to Tarboro (8-1, 3-1 EPC) after it lost for the first time this season and, most likely, let its chance for an Eastern Plains Conference title slip away to its neighborhood rival.

Javon Brown scored two touchdowns, and he rushed for 95 yards as SouthWest Edgecombe (10-0, 5-0 EPC) claimed at least a share of the conference title with a win over Tarboro for the fifth consecutive season.

The Cougars scored the game’s first 16 points and held on in the final minutes. Tarboro drew to within six points with 5:47 remaining in the contest, but SouthWest Edgecombe converted three first downs and drained all but 10 seconds off the contest before it turned over the ball on downs.

Tarboro quarterback Jamias Williams ran for 38 yards on the game’s final play, but he was stopped by a group of SouthWest Edgecombe defenders just past the 50-yard line.

“I’m proud of our team for sticking in there and making the plays we had to make to win the football game,” Cobb said.

Tarboro’s Damarius Harper rushed for 123 yards and one touchdown, while Williams finished 4 of 6 for 45 yards and one touchdown.

“I thought we could have come in here and played a little bit better, but they’re a good football team,” said Tarboro coach Jeff Craddock, whose team turned over the ball twice.

“Now that the game’s over, I wish SouthWest (Edgecombe) the best of luck, and I hope they can finish the deal.”

More than 4,000 fans attended the contest deemed The Function at the Junction. It was a testament to high school football in Edgecombe County.

Perhaps, there will be bigger games ahead for both teams, who will play in two separate divisions of the NCHSAA 2-A playoffs, but next week counts, too.

SouthWest Edgecombe wants to finish what it started in the conference.

“We can’t slack up because we know Greene Central isn’t going to play around with us,” Brown said. “We have to come back next week and play hard.”

Jessie H. Nunery can be reached at 407-9951 or jhnunery@coxnc.com

SouthWest Edgecombe 22

Tarboro 16

T0277—16

SWE8860—22

First Quarter

SWE — Javon Brown 2 run (Chris Ellerbe conversion), 6:41

Second Quarter

SWE — Brown 18 catch from Ellerbe (Brown conversion), 4:25

T — Safety, 0:02

Third Quarter

T — Damarius Harper 6 run (Ricardo Arias kick), 3:27

SWE — Tytrel Hopkins 43 run (conversion failed), 0:29

Fourth Quarter

T — Markel Howell 16 catch from Jamias Williams (Arias kick), 5:45

Te_SRitSWE

12First downs18

37—207Rushes-yards45—291

45Passing yards62

4—7—0Passes3—3—0

252Total offense353

2—1Fumbles-Lost2—2

2—10Penalties-Yards1—6

Individual Statistics

Rushing — T: Damarius Harper 22-123; Jamias Williams 2-42; Chris Lane 5-17; Brandon Richardson 2-12; Brandon Dozier 5-8; Lakevious Battle 1-5. SWE: Javon Brown 18-95; Quandre Pittman 12-65; Tytrel Hopkins 7-74; Javelle Jenkins 5-39; Chris Ellerbe 3-18.

Passing — T: Jamias Williams 4-6, 45; Maliek Lawrence 0-1, 0. SWE: Chris Ellerbe 3-3, 62.

Receiving — T: Markel Howell 2-19; James Corey Jr. 1-16; Lakevious Battle 1-14. SWE: Javelle Jenkins 1-22; D.J. Lyons 1-21; Javon Brown 1-18.