Friday Night Semifinal Recap: Creekside Punches Ticket To The State Championship After 35-6 Victory Over Kell

Creekside cruised to a 35-6 victory at home in the swamp over the Kell Longhorns. The Seminoles used their stifling defense to come up with multiple sacks and shut down the prolific passing attack for the Longhorns. Creekside head coach Maurice Dixon talked about what led to the victory for the Seminoles.

“It doesn't matter the package, it doesn't matter the year we say we're to Creekside football. That's defensive football and running the football. They're going to win games,” said Dixon.

“I attribute everything to Coach May (Kell). He was really good coach. They had a really good skill. They kind of jumbled things on the inside for us. We just took what they gave us and kept attacking until we got our matches outside. And I feel like when you go man against us, you don't have three guys we can cover our guys.”

The Creekside offense was rolling and put up 21 points in the first half, and hit on a lot of big plays down the field, whether it was the passing game or rushing the football. Coming into the game, Kell had one of the more talented defenses you would find, led by Brayden Rouse (Tennessee commit), Jowell Combay (Tennessee commit), Tony Forney (Missouri Commit), and Jalen Williams (Arizona State commit).

“We can beat you however way you want to get beaten. If you want to go too safe to have, we'll run the ball. If you want to lock the box to go man, I don't feel like you can cover my top three, my top four guys. And then, you know, if you want to take that away, I can run Cayden Benson,” said.

Let’s take a look at how the game unfolded.

Game Recap

Latest — Creekside Armani Hill (14) and Gary Walker (1) | Photo Via Najeh Wilkins (SI)

Creekside jumped out to an early 7-0 lead after a bomb from Cayden Benson to Eric Paul Jr gave the Seminoles their first points of the game.

Kell was aggressive early and went for it on 4th and 2 in its own territory. Then the unimaginable happened for the Longhorns with Moonie Gipson going down with a gruesome injury that delayed the game. The four-star running back would be ruled out for the rest of the game. After a 4th and 2 stop, Benson threw another touchdown, this time to Armani Hill in a tightly contested catch. The Seminoles would hold a 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Kell would put together a productive drive before being stopped and having to settle for a field goal that was nailed by Fernando Tavares. Kell would trail 14-3.

Right before halftime, Creekside would march down the field and put together a time-consuming drive. The Seminoles would punch it on a Ced Kelley touchdown run with four seconds left on the clock before the half. Creekside would lead 21-3 at the break.

Coming out of the second half, Kell got the opening stop they needed in the second half, and Creekside was forced to punt. The Longhorns would march down the field and into Creekside territory, but were ultimately stopped on a 4th down.

The Seminoles made the Longhorns pay, and Benson once again found Armani Hill for the touchdown score to extend the Seminoles lead to 28-3 late in the third quarter.

The Longhorns would put together a productive drive at the start of the fourth quarter and got into Creekside territory, but would have to settle for a Fernando Tavares field goal. Kell still trailed 28-6.

On the ensuing kickoff, Kell would go for an onside kick and recover it. Unfortunately, for Kell, their drive would stall out, and they would be stopped on downs, ending any chance they had to come back in the game.

Creekside put the final touches on the game and sealed the victory with a touchdown run by Gary Walker, which would give them a commanding 35-6 lead and the victory.

It was a dominant wire-to-wire victory for Creekside at home that punched their ticket to Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Who stood out?

Creekside WR Armani Hill- He went off on the night for two receiving touchdowns, and continued to come up with big plays for Creekside when they needed them. It didn’t matter if it was man-to-man or zone; Hill was consistently able to make the defense pay with 20+ yard plays down the field. He is the best kept secret in the state and a guy that can take ofver a game whenever.

“I told Armani on Monday, you know, they got a couple of good DBs out there. But I just feel like...He's the most unknown talent in the state. If you try to line up with a man, I think nobody can run with him. And so we got a couple of opportunities where it was one-on-one that we just took it, and we won those matches.”

Creekside QB Cayden Benson- Benson threw for three passing touchdowns in the win over Kell on Friday night. The senior quarterback was in a rhythm throughout the game and consistently hit his throws down the field. Even when Kell brought pressure, Benson had an answer for the defense and would make the right read every time. An underrated part of his game is his ability as a runner. Throughout the night, he ran the RPO (run-pass-option), and oftentimes the defense didn’t have an answer. As they geared up to stop highly touted RB Gary Walker, Benson was able to find seams in the defense and rush for long gains down the field. When it wasn’t there in the passing game, and everybody was covered, Benson leaned on his legs to pick up first downs. He is having the best season of his career and one of the main reasons why the Seminoles are back in the state championship game. As he has continued to ball, more recognition has followed. 247Sports donned him a three-star prospect in the middle of the season after more strong play. Now, he has a chance to deliver the first state championship since 2013 for Creekside.

“Like I told you at the beginning of the year, we go as he goes as long as he takes what he gives us, don't play hero ball; we're the best team in the state,” said Dixon.

Creekside DL Cassius Burch- An underrated player for Creekside who continued to deliver big hits all night while bruising the quarterback. Burch was able to create pressure in the interior and make it an uncomfortable night for Kaleb Narcisse. Burch had a couple of hits on wide receivers, and when Narcisse tried to escape the pocket and bought more time. His relentlessness on the edge and flow to the ball made him a terror. The junior defensive lineman showed out and came up big for his team all night long.

Kell RB Donte Grant- It was a tough night offensively for the Kell Longhorns, who could only muster up six points. A big part of that was losing Gipson to an injury. However, a bright spot moving forward is Donte Grant. Grant made big play after big play, whether it was in the passing game or the running game. He had several rushes of over 20 yards. The biggest one came on a 3rd and 26 when Kell ran some misdirection, and he took off for the long gain down the field to set up the Longhorns in the red zone. When you watch him play, you see great vision, cuts, and speed. Grant doesn’t dance, but quickly gets north and south. He made these big plays against a usually stout defense that takes away opponents rushing attack. One thing is for sure: Kell has a piece to build around next year.

Creekside has been knocking on the door for quite some time and now has made the state final two of the past three seasons. It feels like this is their best opportunity to finish the job under Coach Dixon and capture a title.

“Last time we were excited to be there. This time we are destined to win the 15th game,” said Dixon.

Full game highlights:

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