Team solidarity attributed to 3rd-round disposal of Devils
Robbinsville – What. A. Comeback.
The Black Knights could have easily thrown in the towel after Swain County punched ahead 24-8 in the third round of the 1A state playoffs Friday. The Maroon Devils never led in the Smoky Mountain Conference title game Oct. 27, so a two-score advantage midway through the third quarter might have seem insurmountable to a lesser program.
But the visitors forgot to take into account one glaring difference, an overarching theme in the 2023 campaign: Robbinsville’s “brotherhood.”
A 22-0 run was capped by Cuttler Adams busting free on a 37-yard touchdown with 1:25 left in the affair, which gave the Knights all the advantage needed to secure a wild 30-24 win.
“We just started clicking on all cylinders,” junior tackle Tytan Teesateskie said. “Our line decided it was time to show up, because we didn’t in the first half: we came out soft, but we decided in the locker room (at halftime) that we were going to come out and smack them in the mouth.
“And we did.”
To its credit, Swain County (No. 9 seed, 11-2) made Robbinsville earn every bit of success Friday.
The Knights welcomed the opening kickoff and spent the next 7 ½ minutes crawling downfield. Soon enough, Robbinsville was on the cusp of scoring first; Donovan Carpenter was tasked with stretching for the finish line on 4th and 1, but officials ruled him down under a yard shy of the mark – even with Carpenter seemingly breaking the plane with the football.
The Devils’ first possession then spilled into the second quarter; Joshua Collins actually fired the opening touchdown of the game to usual-quarterback Reese Winchester on a 37-yard heave.
Robbinsville (No. 1 seed, 12-1) promptly responded with Chase Calhoun’s first touchdown of the evening at the 7:18 mark, a 2-yard carry that knotted the affair at 8-8, following a Carpenter sprint for two.
Lineman Nse Uffort nabbed a Carpenter pass later in the segment and returned it 31 yards to give Swain the advantage once more. Just before the pause, Robbinsville looked poised to tie the game yet again: Bryce Adams leapt into the night air and seemingly hauled in a 6-yard reception with 13 seconds left to go. A yellow handkerchief ruined the proceedings: offensive pass interference forced the Knights to try again, with Winchester happily breaking up the replay at the horn.
“When we went into the locker room, (head) coach (Dee) Walsh kept it simple: he reminded us about this talk of ‘brotherhood,’ but said that now was the time to show it,” Robbinsville quarterback Donovan Carpenter said. “Adversity is nothing when we have the brotherhood we have.
“Those guys having my back like that? I threw a pick-six and when I got to the locker room at halftime, they had my back. They told me, ‘It’s gonna be alright. We got you.’ That’s everything; I don’t have to keep my head down, because they pick me up.”
Still, the visitors cashed in on receiving to begin the third, as Josiah Glaspie broke free on a 33-yard sprint for the Devils’ final torching with 8:23 left in the third. The Maroon Devils led 24-8 after Collins’ dash for the conversion.
Robbinsville glanced at the scoreboard and got to work right away, putting together a comeback for the ages over the final 20 minutes of the game. Cuttler Adams struck on a 2-yard carry with 3:09 left in the third, before toting the conversion into the end zone.
The Black Knights later snuffed out a fake-punt attempt near midfield in the fourth. In turn, Calhoun found the end zone on a 1-yard push, with 6:33 to go. Carpenter again punched in a conversion, which officially tied the knot at 24-24.
After Robbinsville stunted the Devils’ progress once more, Cuttler Adams busted through with 1:25 to go on a mad 37-yard dash, which gave the Knights their first lead of the night. The conversion was thwarted, but Swain County’s season was soon wrapped up in the form of a quick pass from Winchester to Glaspie. Bryce Adams bumped the receiver out of bounds – 1 yard short of the mark.
Cuttler Adams hustled for 147 yards on 29 touches, with two touchdowns to his credit. As a result, his pursuit of the all-time western North Carolina record was trimmed to just 177 yards, as he now stands at 6,455 in his career; Brevard’s Manny Deshauteurs punched 6,632 into the record books from 1997-99.
Swain County suffered its only two blemishes this year at the hands of the Black Knights. Friday, perennial threat Collins was held to just 30 yards on 10 attempts; Glaspie picked up the slack by running for 109 yards via 12 handoffs.
Cavalier return
The exorcism solidifies Robbinsville’s return to the fourth round (Elite 8) of the postseason. After reaching the 1A Western Regional Finals in four consecutive seasons (including winning the state crown in 2019), the Black Knights fell in a 30-27, third-round heartbreaker at Eastern Randolph in 2022.
Robbinsville’s No. 1 billing will allow the Knights to enjoy all the comforts of home until the state finals.
Up next on the docket is the North Rowan Cavaliers (No. 4, 11-2), who prevailed in a 48-39 shootout against Mountain Heritage (No. 5, 10-3).
The game is tentatively scheduled to kick off under the Big Oaks at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 24.
The Black Knights traveled to Burnsville on Sept. 1 and defeated the Cougars, 28-17. Robbinsville has not played North Rowan since edging the Cavaliers in the third round at home 50-47 on Nov. 19, 2021.
Mount Airy (No. 2, 13-0) trampled Murphy (No. 10, 9-4) in a 64-26 route Friday; the Granite Bears host Eastern Randolph (No. 3, 12-1) in the other 1A West Elite 8 showdown next Friday.