Hawks Still Kicking
By EDUARDO A. ENCINA eencina@tampatrib.com
Published: Nov 26, 2005

SEFFNER - -- Armwood kicker Darren deRochemont began his junior year with heartbreak, his team's 29-game winning streak on the field sailing away with his wide right extra-point kick that sealed a one-point loss to Hillsborough.

"I felt like I let the whole team down," he said. "I never want to have that feeling again. As football players, you have to come out and play your game every Friday."

DeRochemont earned vindication Friday night, hitting three clutch field goals -- of 47, 35 and 27 yards -- and dictating a field-position game in the Hawks' narrow 23-21 victory against Winter Haven in the Class 4A region final at Lyle Flagg Field.

"I thought this was going to be a tough game, but I didn't think it was going to be 23-21," said Armwood junior quarterback Justin Hickman, who ran for touchdowns of 38 and 10 yards in the first half and had a game-high 130 rushing yards on 18 carries. "But hey, it doesn't matter if we win by one point. All that matters is that we're in the next round. We had to start playing smashmouth football, running the ball up the gut and being physical. That's what we do best."

With the victory, the Hawks (12-1) are two wins away from their third consecutive Class 4A state championship. But unlike last year, Armwood must go through South Florida to advance to the state title game Dec. 10 at Dolphins Stadium in Miami . The Hawks must first travel to face Miami Booker T. Washington, the top-ranked team in the state, in next week's state semifinal. The Tornadoes defeated Miami Edison 24-20 Friday night, earning a rematch from last season's narrow 36-35 Armwood victory at Lyle Flagg Field.

"I don't know who we're playing," Armwood coach Sean Callahan said right after the game, "but we're fired up about going to Miami ."

The loss halted upstart Winter Haven (9-4) in its attempt to upset its third straight Hillsborough County team. The Blue Devils had already defeated Hillsborough and Jefferson heading into Friday night, and Winter Haven proved to be a better team than the one Armwood thrashed 42-0 on Sept. 30.

"I told you all along that this was a better team than the one that lost 42-0," Callahan said. "They were the most well-coached team we've played. They made adjustments coming in and they made adjustments at halftime. We had to counter those moves."

Armwood appeared on its way to another rout, running out to a 17-0 lead. The Hawks scored touchdowns -- two Hickman touchdown runs -- on their first two possessions of the game and then tacking on a 27-yard deRochemont field goal.

But the Blue Devils went on to score 21 unanswered points, capitalized by Renard Ellis' punt block return for a touchdown that gave Winter Haven a 21-17 lead.

The Hawks then orchestrated a meticulous 15-play, 56-yard scoring drive that included a roughing the punter call and a fake punt run. That drive ended with a 47-yard field goal by deRochemont.

Yards were tough to come by as the game progressed into the final minutes. But the Hawks received good field possession from a 50-yard deRochemont punt, a three-and-out Winter Haven drive and a 20-yard punt return by Mat Brevi that gave Armwood the ball at the Blue Devils' 25. Four plays later, deRochemont hit what would be the game-winning field goal -- a 35-yarder -- with 8:39 remaining.

"We were just a few plays shy of another win," Winter Haven coach Charlie Tate said. "We gave it all we had. We lost field position and that was really the difference, but that's football."

For Callahan, he was glad he stuck with his kicker through difficult times -- the shank against Hillsborough and several missed field goals during the season.

"Our kicker had a really tough year this year," Callahan said. "He tore cartilage four games ago and he gutted it out and made three big field goals. It really came down to him tonight. … Kickers are unique. You have to treat them differently. You can't kick them to the curb."

A--Hickman 38 run (kick failed)

A--Hickman 10 run (Smith run)

A--FG deRochemont 27

W--Kreamer 15 pass from Jefferson (Smith kick)

W-- Jefferson 2 run (Smith kick)

W--Ellis 20 blocked punt return (Smith kick)

A--FG deRochemont 47

A--FG deRochemont 35