HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: INDIANS SHAKE PESKY TIGERS

JACKSON -- Sooner or later it was bound to happen.

And it finally did.

Twice.

Cape Central played its most spirited game of the season, but Jackson's Mario Whitney bailed out his team with two long runs in the second half as the Indians escaped a huge upset with a 34-24 victory in front of a standing-room only crowd Friday night at Jackson Stadium.

Jackson coach Carl Gross said after the game that Cape Central won the game at the line of scrimmage.

"I really believe that we looked at their record being 2-3 and we underestimated our opponent," Gross said. "They're a pretty doggone good football team."

The Tigers actually held a 17-13 lead with 5:14 left in the third quarter and had the ball at the Jackson 40 with an opportunity to go up by two scores.

But Jackson came up with an interception at the 4:04 mark.

Three plays later, Whitney put Jackson on top with an 81-yard burst to put the Indians ahead 20-17.

On Central's next possession, the Tigers moved the ball and had an opportunity to tie the game, but standout kicker Brian Emmendorfer missed a 37-yard field goal wide left.

Two plays later, with 7:20 to go in the fourth quarter, Whitney broke off a 76-yard touchdown run to effectively put the game away. Whitney ended up with 219 rushing yards on 22 carries, caught two passes for 53 yards and scored five touchdowns.

Other than the two long runs, Central kept Whitney in check. At halftime, Whitney had just 27 yards on 12 carries.

"We really did a good job tonight," Cape Central coach Lawrence Brookins said. "They carried out our game plan which was to get him going east and west. I have to give him credit, though, once he gets those shoulders square, he's tough. He's real tough."

Cape Central's offense was really more impressive than Jackson's.

Tiger quarterback T.J. Erlacker played the game of his life as the usually conservative Central offense took to the air. Erlacker completed 19 of 30 passes for an even 200 yards. He threw two interceptions. Erlacker also was impressive on the ground with 28 yards on nine carries. Those numbers were deceiving however, as he lost 24 yards on a bad snap out of the shotgun.

"He had some really good moments," Brookins said. "I'm proud of him and the rest of the guys. This was a tough loss and we're getting tired of moral victories, but this game will help us down the road. We scored some points and we played well enough to get us fired up."

The Tigers threw the ball much more than normal Friday night and that helped Central's running game. Austin ran the ball 15 times for 51 yards and Central ended up with 99 rushing yards.

With the way the game started, it looked as if Jackson would roll.

The Indians got out to a 13-0 lead in the first quarter after a 30-yard touchdown pass from John Jackson to Whitney and a 5-yard run by Whitney. A 43-yard rumble by Jackson fullback Brad Berry set up Jackson's second score. A missed PAT after Whitney's touchdown held the score to 13-0.

But Central came firing back with 10 unanswered points in the second quarter.

Sparked by a 36-yard run by Erlacker, the Tigers pulled to within 13-7 with 5:33 left in the second quarter when Central running back Jamelle Austin scrambled in from 10 yards out.

A few moments later, Monroe Hicks intercepted a pass deep in Jackson's territory, but the Tigers settled for a 27-yard field goal by Emmendorfer to cut Jackson's lead to 13-10 where it stood at halftime.

Central took the lead on its first possession of the second half when O.J. Turner -- who wasn't figuring on playing after suffering a stinger in his neck last week -- scored from 3 yards out.