PREP FOOTBALL: Bush return leads Lebanon to regional title

WISE, Va. –  Lebanon football coach John Adams has compared the 2009 Pioneer football season to a long-running soap opera. 
The latest episode of the Lebanon saga offered another big gulp of suspense.

The Pioneers overcame injuries, four fumbles and a fourth-quarter deficit to defeat traditional power Gate City, 21-12, in Saturday’s Region D, Division 2 championship at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise.

After a 14-year drought, Lebanon has won two straight regional titles. The Pioneers (8-4) host Radford (10-3) Dec. 5 at 1:30 in the Division 2 semifinals.

“It’s been like ‘As the World Turns’ for us,” Adams said. “It’s the weirdest season I’ve ever been through.”
After enduring three months of broken bones, illness and upsets, Adams took time to savor Saturday’s thriller.

“We’ve just had a lot of drama, and we had a couple of players gutting it out again today,” Adams said. “But kind of like last year, we’ve gotten more intense about things over the past month and it’s really paying off for us.”

Few fans could have envisioned the final act of Saturday’s heavy-hitting affair.

Gate City led 12-7 with 3:48 left in the game when Blue Devils head coach Bill Houseright opted to play the percentages. Faced with a fourth-down situation inside the GC 5-yard line, Houseright instructed his punter to run out of the end zone for a safety.

Nick Bush then earned his spot in Lebanon football lore on the ensuing free kick. Running with a mix of speed and abandon, the 6-foot-1 senior made one precise cut and then weaved past the GC defense route to the decisive 59-yard touchdown to give his team a 15-12 advantage.

“We practice returning kicks every week,” Adams said. “Taking the safety and doing the free kick was the right thing to do in that situation. We just made the play.”
Bush was eager for his chance to play the hero.

“They’ve been waiting on me all season to try one, and Coach Adams said I picked a good time to do it,” said Bush, referring to his role as kick returner.

According to Bush, breakdowns in the kicking game contributed to the erratic performance of the Pioneers this season.

“Special teams were killing us ...  and we knew that we had to improve in that area before we could advance,” Bush said. “I didn’t figure that Gate City would try to pull a safety, but I guess things just worked out.”

Houseright took responsibility for the fourth quarter woes of his team.

The Blue Devils stopped a Lebanon drive at the GC 3-yard line with 6:05 left in the game but were unable to mount a drive against the aggressive Pioneers defense.

“I started the whole thing,” Houseright said. “We finally stopped Lebanon down there and I wanted to take a safety. I probably boneheaded that up, but I thought that was the best thing to do. I wanted to give us a little better field position. You can blame that one on me.”

Gate City (10-2) missed a 27-yard field goal attempt on its first offensive series of the game, and then was unable to score from the 1-yard line on its second series after a 12-play drive.

As usual, the GC offense centered on Joseph Vaughn. Following his blockers and running with second effort, Vaughn accounted for 135 yards rushing and two scores on 20 carries. Quarterback Dusty Clark added 58 yards rushing on 13 carries, but the Blue Devils managed 12 just yards passing.

“I’m awful proud of our kids and coaches,” said Houseright, who molded a Clinch Mountain District champion team with just six seniors. “We’ve just got to continue to work and try to get a little better. “

The Blue Devils completed just 15 passes for 200 yards during the regular season.

Meanwhile, balance was the hallmark of the Lebanon attack. Six-foot-1 senior Andrew Jessee has thrown for over 1,500 yards and 22 touchdowns this season, including a 22-yard strike to Nick Smith in the second quarter Saturday. Jessee sealed the win on a 21-yard touchdown run with 50 seconds left in the game.

“We kind of struggled running the ball, so we try to open things up with passes. That’s what has helped us all year and it has carried us to the state semis,” Jessee said. “One part of the game opens up the other.”

Jessee, who passed for 167 yards, led Lebanon with 56 yards rushing on 13 attempts. Dylan Smith, a fearless 160-pound senior, added 46 yards despite battling knee and ankle injuries. Both teams employed a mix of spread and power formations on offense.

“We ran the play pretty good under center, then [Gate City] took that away and we had to go spread,” Adams said. “You’ve got to be able to do both.”

The Lebanon quarterback said the 2009 season has been memorable for several reasons.

“We started the season losing our team leader [Lucas Smith] with an injury, and we’ve had sickness and more injuries,” Jessee said. “A lot of younger players have stepped up, and we’ve all just tried to do our job and play through it. This is the perfect time of the year to get hot.”

Smith, who suffered a broken leg in the second game of the season, was able to play most of Saturday’s game at linebacker.

“It was awesome to be back on that field,” Smith said. “I was a little sore this morning, but I was ready come game time.”

According to Adams, the last state semifinal game played at Lebanon was held in 1994 and featured a game-winning two-point conversion by future National Football League star Thomas Jones of Powell Valley. 

“We’re ready to play at home again,” Adams said.

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