Sam Morris / Las Vegas Sun
Centennial football players Coby Newton, Chris Johnson, Trajan Pili and Austin Turley Thursday, July 26, 2012.
Friday, Oct. 26, 2012 | 12:15 a.m.
Prep Sports Now
Is the short week unfair for playoff teams?
Las Vegas Sun sports reporters Ray Brewer and Case Keefer are pumped up for all the high-stakes games going down Thursday night. But why can't they be played on Friday?
With a home playoff game on the line, Centennial overcame a lackluster start to the game and went to the air in a 21-14 victory against Legacy. The victory gives Centennial the No. 2 seed in the Northwest League and a home game against Durango while Legacy fell to the third seed and will have to travel to Palo Verde in the first round.
Early in the game it didn’t appear Centennial would have what it takes to win on the road. Legacy was stuffing the run and the Bulldogs struggled to come up with a counter.
“My hats off to Legacy, they came out ready to play. They were tough,” said Centennial coach Leon Evans, whose team earlier this season won 31-0 at Durango.
A key point came right before halftime when Centennial scored with just 16 seconds left in the first half to take a 14-7 lead. That swung the momentum and, after giving up another touchdown, the Bulldogs were able to take the lead for good in the fourth quarter when Brandt Honda caught his third touchdown of the night.
Evans said he believed the players learned from the mistake of not coming out prepared to play early in the game. It’s something they can’t afford to do again in the playoffs, though if they do at least they’ll have the home crowd there to rally behind them.
“That’s huge for us,” Evans said. “We have great support here, we have a great following.”
Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.
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