Ewing High School Football
Ewing 38 Princeton 6 GO MIGHTY BLUE DEVILS! 6-1 Riverside home Friday night 10/29 at 7 PM
Darryl Griffin, Ewing run all over Burlington City
By ADRIAN FEDKIW
BURLINGTON CITY — Darryl Griffin’s favorite NFL player is Michael Vick. He wears the No. 7 in his honor. Griffin sure played like Vick in a 56-21 Ewing win over Burlington City.
Griffin had five touchdowns on the night. He had 119 yards on the ground in just seven carries, and 91-yards passing. All of this came before halftime; he did not play in the second half.
“I bring a lot to the offense,” said Griffin. “I know our offense. I’m a dual threat, the passing and the running.”
Ewing took a 49-0 halftime lead.
Griffin struck on just the third play from scrimmage. He bounced a quarterback draw to the outside and used his Vick-like straight-line speed the rest of the way for a 63-yard touchdown run.
Griffin showcased his arm strength on Ewing’s second possession. Griffin threw a dart on a deep out-route to his favorite target Tre Murrill. Murrill eluded the initial hit, and scampered his way down the sideline for a 54-yard score.
Murrill caught two balls for 67 yards.
Ewing linebacker Jamil Adams intercepted Pedro Perez on the ensuing Burlington City possession. Just a few plays later, Griffin willed his way in from four yards away for his second rushing touchdown. This made it 21-0 Ewing, late in the first quarter.
Things got worse for Bulington City in the second quarter.
Ewing’s Bernard Drew led the way on the Blue Devils fourth touchdown. He totalled 36-yards rushing on the seven play drive. Griffin capped off the drive with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Ronald Valentine.
Drew rushed for 81-yards on the night on eight carries.
“The offensive line makes everything possible,” said Drew. “I capitalized on their blocks.”
The Ewing defense tallied the next two touchdowns. First, it was Jamil Adams who returned a fumble 72-yards to paydirt. Next, it was Tyquan Crews who jumped a hitch route. He took it 55-yards to make it 42-0 Ewing.
Griffin rushed for his third touchdown late in the first half. He took the designed quarterback keeper 31-yards.
With the Ewing backups playing the entire second half, Burlington City managed to score three touchdowns. The highlight for City was a 49-yard touchdown pass to Kavon Simmons.
Ewing has now scored the third most points in school history. Standing in their way are the 2002, and 1999 teams. The 2010 Blue Devils still have the playoffs to try and become the number one scoring team in school history.
“This game let us build energy for next week,” said Griffin.
“Everything this year, we’ve done as a team, as a family,” said Drew.
Ewing 21 28 0 7 — 56
Burlington City 0 0 13 8 — 21
Scoring
E- Griffin 63 run (Johnson kick)
E- Murrill 54 rec (Johnson kick)
E- Griffin 4 run (Johnson kick)
E- Valentine 15 rec (Johnson kick)
E- Adams 72 fumble return (Johnson kick)
E- Crews 55 interception return (Johnson kick)
BC- Davone Jones 9 run (Ford kick)
BC- Simmons 49 rec (Ford kick failed)
E- 17 (Name not listed) 29 run (Johnson kick)
BC- Perez 1 run (2 pt good- Simmons rec)
Ewing 27, Robbinsville 21
By Kevin MaloneyIt’s no secret that Ewing’s Daryl Griffin is one of the most dangerous game-breakers in Mercer County.
But with Ewing engaged in a much-closer-than-it-probably-should-have-been battle with winless Robbinsville late in the third quarter, the Blue Devils leaned on their standout to make a big play.
Not only did Griffin make the big play, but dazzled along the way.
Griffin’s 65-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter proved to be the difference in a 27-21 victory as Ewing remained undefeated and kept Robbinsville out of the win column yet again last night at John B. Housman Football Complex in Ewing.
“I saw a cutback lane. I look to score every time I touch the ball. There I was just looking for the cutback lane.”
The win gave Ewing its first 4-0 start since 2002.
Griffin, who had played a hand in all 12 of the Blue Devils’ 12 touchdowns entering the game, totaled 222 yards of offense and three touchdowns. He carried the football 14 times for 154 yards and completed 3 of 6 passes for 68 yards and two touchdowns.
Bernard Drew got Ewing on the board first ripping off a 61-yard touchdown on the Blue Devils’ second play of the game.
“I saw (the hole),” said Drew, who had 13 carries for 138 yards. “I have to give credit to Terrell (Reynolds) for the block. He made the block and I followed it.”
Griffin threw the first of two touchdowns to Tre Murrill late in the second quarter, a 26-yarder following a blown coverage. The second, an 11-yard stop route to Ron Valentine, capped a three-play 86-yard drive on the final Ewing possession of the half.
“It’s a lot of fun,” Griffin, who’s totaled 998 yards of total offense and 15 touchdowns through three games. “I’m happy. It’s taken a lot of hard work to get here.”
Quarterback Brett Dawidowski had a big night in what was probably the best performance from Robbinsville all season.
The junior completed 9 of 13 passes for 182 yards and three scores. The first was a six-yard score to Ryan Zuzcek late in the second quarter to help draw the Ravens within one score.
Dawidowski found Zuzcek again, this time on a 57-yard screen pass on the Ravens’ first possession of the second half. He tried engineering a comeback by hitting Jordan Hankins on a screen pass that he took 24 yards for a touchdown.
Robbinsville attempted an onsides kick on the ensuing possession but Ewing recovered. The Ravens had one more drive but Griffin picked off a Dawidowski pass just shy of the end zone.
Griffin and Ewing, which had lost three fumbles in the second half, used a 10-play, 48-yard drive that chewed up 5:39 to run out the time remaining on the game clock.
Zuzcek had 10 carries for 57 yards and caught four passes for 89 yards. Hankins had 18 carries for 67 yards and snagged four balls for 61 yards.
Ewing High 2010 football preview
Skill players have not been the Ewing High football team's problem over the last five years.
The Blue Devils have had plenty of talented athletes that have come through the program as of late that ran, caught and threw the ball with the best the Colonial Valley Conference has had to offer.
But all that's produced is back-to-back 3-7 seasons and another 3-7 season in 2006 wrapped around a 5-5 showing in 2007 that resulted in an NJSIAA Group II Central playoff berth.
The problem has been finding that one cohesive unit up front that was consistently going to pave rushing lanes and provide ample time for a passing game to get on track.
Boasting its biggest and most experienced offensive line in years, Ewing may just have the horses up front necessary to reverse its recent fortunes.
"We have a veteran offensive line," Ewing head coach John Bamber, entering his seventh year at the helm, said. "I haven't seen that size and dedication since 2005. They're big, experienced boys up front. I'll take that any day. Ewing's had talent; we've had awesome specialists every year. But that alone is not going to win a championship."
With Bamber expecting two-year starters Alex Bautista and Andrew Jurczynski and Terry Fulton, Jalone Archer and Austin Wolverton -- all starters a year ago -- to assume their familiar spots along the offensive line for the second straight year, the Blue Devils believe they have a foundation up front to build off of.
"We have to do whatever it takes to get the job done," Bautista said, referring to the offensive line. "I'm ready to do it. I know the other guys are ready to do it. We're ready to do whatever it takes to win."
Junior Daryl Griffin, who caught 22 passes for 215 yards last year as a sophomore, slides over to quarterback from wide receiver, giving Ewing one of the most dangerous dual-threat talents under center.
"This is the first time we have a pure athlete playing quarterback who can do two things in both throwing the ball and running with the ball," Bamber said of Griffin, also the starting point guard on the boys' basketball team. "I don't want to put all the pressure on him but he'll be blessed to have an offensive line that Steven Shimko (now at Rutgers) didn't have blocking for him."
Griffin's top target figures to be the team's No. 2 receiver from a year ago in Trey Murrill, who averaged 21 yards a catch on 10 receptions, hauling in four touchdowns last year.
"It changes it in so many ways," Murrill said of having an athlete of Griffin's caliber at quarterback. "We haven't had a quarterback that has the elusiveness that Daryl has. If nobody's open, Daryl can run. He's one of the fastest guys out here."
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