Colombo, Brockton hit the number
BROCKTON -- Judging by his play calling, Brockton coach Peter Colombo is probably the type of person who hits on 16 in blackjack.
That's essentially what he did in the fourth quarter yesterday against Dartmouth in the Division 1 playoff game at Rocky Marciano Stadium. After the Boxers blocked a Dartmouth punt and recovered on the Indians' 3-yard line, Jamar Greene ran it in for the touchdown to cut the Dartmouth lead to 14-13 with 9:50 left in the game. That's when Colombo anted up and said, "Hit me."
He brought out the offense for the 2-point conversion and called "bone reverse seal." Boxers quarterback Vaughn Askew took the snap, faked a pitch to the right side, then tossed it to Greene on a reverse and the running back brought it to the left pylon untouched. That made the score 15-14, and that's how it ended.
Brockton (6-5) plays Everett in the Division 1 Super Bowl Saturday. The last time they met was in the 2004 Division 1 final, a 22-21 Brockton win.
"We knew that play was going to work," said Greene of the 2-point conversion.
"The kicks aren't guaranteed," said Colombo when asked to explain his decision.
What also didn't seem guaranteed, at least in the first half, was a Brockton victory. Dartmouth running back Jordan Todman, who came into the game leading Division 1 with 25 touchdowns, was put to work on the opening drive of the game. Even though Brockton knew what was coming and placed nine men in the box all game, Todman was unfazed. He carried five times on that opening drive, with the last a 29-yard scamper up the middle in which he broke loose by stiff-arming a defender en route to the end zone for a 7-0 lead.
Dartmouth's defense was effective in the first quarter, as defensive lineman Arthur Fontaine, James Gilchrist, and William Cole blew up the Brockton line and shortcircuited the Boxers' running game.
Dartmouth's second score in the first half came on a textbook sweep to Todman. Todman took the pitch from quarterback Tom Pereira and slid inside a kickout block, angled his way down the sideline, and ran untouched into the end zone for a 50-yard score.
Todman accumulated 150 yards on 12 carries in the first half, but also had one fumble on a miscommunication with Pereira that Brockton recovered in the second quarter.
The Boxers capitalized, with running backs Josh Marsh and Greene finally finding cutback lanes after being stonewalled by an aggressive Dartmouth defensive line in the first quarter. Brockton drove it down the field and sent Sharrieff Hall in motion. The drive culminated in a 32-yard touchdown off a Greene counter run that used the Indians' speed against them -- by the time Greene had the ball, three defenders had already run past him.
In the second half, the Brockton defense effectively took Todman out of the game, as the nine-man box finally produced results.
In the fourth quarter, the Indians forced a Brockton punt with three minutes left.
Dartmouth started the drive on the 50-yard line and got it to the 20 on a throw from Pereira to Sean Sylvia. The Boxers stopped a fourth-and-1, setting up a 30-yard field goal attempt with a little less than 30 seconds left. The kick was long enough, but it was wide right. 