Jo Byrns ends Cascade playoff run

Some shook their heads in disappointment. Some wondered what might have been. Some wept uncontrollably.

No matter the emotion, it was all a product of Cascade's crushing 22-0 loss to Jo Byrns in the TSSAA state quarterfinals on a terribly cold Friday night at The Stable.

"When you get to the playoffs, you've got to play your best every week," Cascade coach Kenny Parker said. "This week we didn't play our best, and that's why we don't have next week."

The Red Devils, who now host McKenzie in the semifinals, completely dominated the game in the trenches, using the line of scrimmage to grind out 267 total yards compared to 93 for the Champions.

The game looked little like the 15-14 victory Cascade pulled off in Week Nine of the regular season. That was evident from the early stages.

"To shut them out, we never expected that. We expected a real tight football game, a Week Nine," Jo Byrns coach Tom Adkins said.

The Wing-T offense of the Champs that has been their backbone for several years yielded but 28 rushing yards on 19 carries. Senior quarterback Jacob Carkuff was harassed much of the evening the second he dropped back. He completed 8-of-19 passes for 65 yards and was intercepted three times.

Their longest drive of the first half lasted seven plays and 2:51. Of their first five series, two were three-and-out and two more ended in a turnover on the second play.

"Jo Byrns came out and was just hungrier," Parker said. "They whipped us on both sides of the ball. They came out, they were just physical, they took it to us and we just didn't answer.

"We had an opportunity at times to make some plays, but we couldn't get them made."

The Red Devils (12-1) didn't get too tricky with their offense and didn't need to. Most rushing attempts were between the tackles. They supplied a heavy dose of tailbacks Kevin Ashabraner (36 carries, 176 yards) and Brandon Holt.

"We wanted to run the football, keep the game close, run the clock and play good defense and it worked out good for us," Adkins said.

The loss ended Cascade's season with a final record of 12-1, a school best, and they say goodbye to 11 seniors, who compiled a four-year mark of 35-11.

"It's always tough to see your seniors play their last ballgame," Parker said. "We didn't have it tonight. Jo Byrns did a good job. We just didn't bring it.

"These seniors have taken us places we've never been. They've got a lot to be proud of."

That's an understatement.

On top of setting a school record for wins in a season, this team won their first-ever outright region title, made it through the regular season undefeated and no previous team had ever reached the third round of the playoffs.

"Those don't come around very often in high school football," Parker said.

Ashabraner's seventh carry of the first Red Devil drive resulted in a 4-yard touchdown. The series set the tone by spanning 69 yards on 10 plays and taking 6:03.

Their very next possession was a mirror image of their first, only it went 13 plays and Ashabraner toted the rock 10 times. They tripped to paydirt with 5:47 left in the second quarter when Scott Adkins hit a wide open Clint Morris from 18 yards away.

Jo Byrns put the game away and completely took the air out of the Cascade sails with their first drive of the second half. Once again, Ashabraner carried the load with eight rushes. It looked like the Champs got a stop on fourth-and-seven when Gerald "Happy" Johnson stepped in front of an Adkins pass but the ball went off his fingertips and landed into the hands of Morris. The speedy senior turned upfield for the final few steps of a 24-yard touchdown.

Two of the next three Champion drives ended in turnovers.

"Defensively, I can't say enough because we shut out a real good football team, best football team we've played all year," Adkins said of Cascade. "We wanted to make a point, because we've seen them on film throughout the year ... If we score, we wanted to make sure they didn't come right back next possession and score. They did it both times in Week Nine on us in the fourth quarter."

Michael Martin's 18 tackles were tops for the Champs. Tyler Bowen added eight.

The teams are in talks to set up a non-region game in 2009 since the TSSAA's reclassification separates them, including Cascade moving up to Class 2A.

Parker hopes his roster uses this season as a springboard into the future.

"We've got to turn it up. We'll take a little time off, but you get better in the offseason."