Wake Forest (NC) vs. Southfield (MI)

“Titans Take Title!”

The multi-threat Wake Forest (NC) Titans rolled to a 29-6 win this morning against a gritty Southfield (Michigan) team in the Tomlin Conference Division II Jr. Pee Wee National championship game this morning at Disney Wide World of sports.

The Titans tallied early in this one to go up 8-0. In the second quarter, they had the Falcons pinned back at their own goal line, but according to Titan Head Coach Andy Garrity, “We made a mistake and came with an all-out blitz. They blew up the middle on us and took it to the house. “ The Falcons fired out, all right, and rolled 98 yards for a touchdown. “Needless to say, that was the last time we blitzed everybody today, “ smiled Coach Garrity.

In the second quarter, with the score 8-6 Titans, Wake Forest drove all the way down to the Falcons five yard line . With 8:08 to go in the first half, they pounded the ball over left tackle for their second touchdown. The PAT was good on a run to the left side, and the Titans led at the half 15-6.

In the third quarter, the Titans and Falcons battled back and forth with no more scoring. But, in the 4th quarter, the Titans took control. “These are kids, “ said Coach Andy, “and their emotions go up and down with every play. We just seemed to gain confidence on one big series in that fourth quarter, and their defense got a little bit worn down.” Driving all the way down the field, Wake Forest scored its third TD on a blast off-tackle from the five yard line. Again, the run for the PAT was good and the score with 8:14 to go in the game stood at Titans 22- Falcons 6.

The Titans then played heads-up ball to recover a crucial on-side kick on the Falcon 42 yard line. Counter plays off tackle and a big sweep to the right side brought the ball down to the Falcons five yard line. Then, with 4th down and goal to go, the Titans quarterback dropped back and lofted a beautiful pass to his wide receiver who made a leaping catch in the corner of the end zone for the touchdown. The PAT attempt was no good. But, the Titans had too much offense, and too stringy a defense, for the Falcons today. As the clock ran out, the Titans had preserved their victory 29-6, and captured their first ever Pop Warner National championship.

“We have 34 kids on our team and 7 coaches,” said coach Andy Garrity. “ This is only our third year with Pop Warner. It's our first trip to Nationals and we won it all. It doesn't get any better than this.” Andy's team came well prepared for this one. After going 12 and 0 in the season, they came down to Florida earlyto Disney (last Saturday) and were well rested for their challenging week. “ This is a once in a lifetime achievement for these kids. We were ready, and we really appreciate the opportunity to play some great teams down here,” said Coach Andy. Congratulations to both the Wake Forest Titans and the Southfield Falcons on great seasons and a fantastic showing at Pop Warner Super Bowl Week-2005!