Here's how Shelby football stunned rival Burns to claim league title

LAWNDALE — Mike Wilbanks is notorious for telling Shelby football players “a game is a marathon, not a sprint.”

If the Golden Lions’ head man ever wondered whether he’d planted the seed in good soil, Wilbanks received his answer Friday, Oct. 30 in Lawndale.

Down 21-0 after three quarters, Shelby clawed its way back to knock off rival Burns 36-35 in double overtime to claim the Southern Piedmont 2A/3A/4A title.

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“You know, being down 21-0 we needed something good to happen for us,” Wilbanks said. “Nothing went good for us in the first half, or for the better part of three quarters. But we just kept fighting and found our way back into it.”

Burns held a 7-0 lead at halftime on the strength of a Jorrian Ussery 34-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter. Max Davis didn’t take long to extend the Bulldogs’ lead after the break, breaking a tackle and then outrunning Shelby defenders for a 65-yard TD run and a 14-0 lead.

Burns ended the third quarter with a flourish, Christian Dawkins’ pass to Romelo Wells going 77 yards for a Bulldog TD and a 21-0 advantage.

The Burns defense also impressed through three quarters, keeping a vaunted Shelby offense scoreless. However, once the Golden Lions found an open door, they went ahead and kicked it in.

The rally started with a Jonas Woods 1-yard TD run with less than nine minutes remaining. After forcing a Burns punt, quarterback Cruz Scott engineered a drive punctuated by an acrobatic TD catch by senior wideout Tyler Morgan. 

Things went from bad to worse on Burns’ ensuing drive, fumbling the ball over to Shelby at its own 20. A few plays later, Scott again hit Morgan for a TD, this one evening the game at 21-all.

After Charlie Ratchford’s interception gave Shelby possession with just over 90 seconds remaining, the Golden Lions’ attempt at a game-winning field goal was blocked as time expired. Seemingly destined for the end zone and a game-winner for Burns, Zavion Stroud was tackled from behind by Shelby’s Killeus Hunt to send the game into overtime.

Following the game, Wilbanks said Hunt truly saved the game.

“What else can you say about (Hunt)?,” Wilbanks said. “For (Scott) to slow him down, and then (Hunt) to chase him down, that was the ball game right there. That was the difference.”

Jonas Woods gave Shelby its first lead of the night on the first play of overtime, his 10-yard TD run giving the Golden Lions a 28-21 lead. Burns answered on its possession, Dawkins running it in for a 2-yard TD to even the game at 28 apiece.

Burns reclaimed its lead in the second overtime, Dawkins hitting Ussery for a 9-yard TD. Woods and Shelby responded with a TD on its possession, Woods finding room on the right side of the Golden Lions’ offensive formation for a 10-yard TD.

After Woods’ TD run, Wilbanks said there was no debate about what Shelby would do next. 

“I knew the second we scored that we were going for two; we were going for the win,” he said. “There was no way I was going to keep going back-and-forth (with Burns) knowing how good they are, especially from the 10-yard line on in.”

Wilbanks’ decision paid off, Woods taking the direct snap around left end and across the goal line for the game-winning score.

“These guys just never said die, they never quit,” Wilbanks said. 

Shelby finishes the regular season with a 9-1 record, which likely earns it a top-2 seed in the upcoming NCHSAA 3A West playoffs. 

Burns’ regular season ends with a 7-3 mark, its only losses to Cleveland County opponents. The Bulldogs are also likely to receive a top-5 seed in the NCHSAA 4A West playoffs.

This article originally appeared on The Shelby Star: Here’s how Shelby football stunned rival Burns to claim league title