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The date was Sept. 18, 1998. The scene was George H. Keen Memorial Stadium in Georgetown. The event was the 1998 high school football season opener between Indian River and Sussex Central.
Indian River's opening drive is wiped out by a clipping penalty and Central needs just six plays to move 76 yards for a touchdown. A 44-yard scoring run by George Davis gives the Golden Knights a 7-0 lead just seven minutes into the contest.
In past years, such adversity early in a game would have been the death knell for the Indians. And when IR's next two possessions end in a punt and a fumble, it appears nothing has changed.
But then something strange happened on the way to what most in attendance believed would be another 30-0 blowout loss. The Indians sprung to life.
After blocking a field goal attempt by Central's Adam Zee, IR scored on its next three possessions and held Central to just three first downs in the second half en route to a stunning 20-7 upset victory.
IR carried that momentum into the next week, routing Sussex Tech 21-0. With a forfeit victory over Washington last week, the Indians stand at 3-0 for the first time since 1992.
The IR team that has gone just 21-39 over the past six seasons has done a complete physical and emotional turnaround and may be in position to contend for its first Henlopen South title in 10 years.
"We have senior leadership on our team," said interim head coach Pat Kelly. "They want to win now. They got a taste of winning and they want to win more."
IR's success can be attributed to an offensive line that has been nothing short of dominant, a defense that has surrendered just seven points in two games, a quarterback that is having the best season of his career and a four-running-back rotation that has found all the holes.
"Basically, it's a lot of heart. The team has a lot of heart," said senior Billy Reese, an offensive and defensive tackle. "We're not going to give up at all. We've got the attitude that we're refusing to lose."
That attitude has stemmed mostly from the plight of head coach George Bethard.
The week before the opener against Sussex Central, Bethard suffered complications from surgery last spring to remove a cancerous brain tumor. He decided to take a 90-day leave of absence and hand control of the team over to Kelly.
Players have dedicated their season to him.
"He's the emotional catalyst for the team," Kelly said. "He's who they're playing for."
Added Reese: "We play that up every week. We dedicated the season to him already."
On the field, the Indians have gotten outstanding production from quarterback Shawn Watkins, who has completed 9 of 17 passes for 172 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. He has been helped by the running back rotation of Antoine Stratton, Ryan Shelton, Paul Parsons and Ivory Richardson, who have all ripped off long runs this season.
Stratton has scored four touchdowns in the early going, two rushing and two receiving.
"We only have seven or eight games left in our high school careers," Watkins said of his fellow seniors. "We don't want to go out as losers."
Most impressive, however, has been the transformation on the defensive side of the ball. Coach Jim Leyh's unit has allowed just one touchdown in eight quarters and none in the last seven. The Sussex Tech game was IR's first shutout since 1996.
IR has also forced seven turnovers in the first two games and shown the ability to rise to the occasion when backed against its own goal line.
"Coach (Leyh) is really making some good defensive calls," Reese said. "He's prepared us really well."
Watkins, who also plays defensive back, believes there's another reason for the turnaround on defense.
"We are definitely a better tackling team this year," he said. "I think we're finally believing in our coaches this year."
But the most noticeable change in the team is its attitude. When faced with adversity, the Indians have risen to the occasion instead of becoming demoralized.
"We've been telling them they're going to face adversity in a game," Kelly said. "We had a couple of fumbles in each game but the defense responded."
IR has turned the ball over five times in two games but none were converted into points by the opposition. "Nobody's gotten down on each other," Watkins said. "Everybody's very positive. People are loving to play football."
The attitude adjustment is partly the product of the team's desire to right the ship after six straight non-winning seasons.
"We came in with the attitude that this is the year we're changing it," said Reese, who noted a large group of players engaged in a weight-lifting regimen during the off-season. "It's been a lot of fun. It's a real big change."
But the road ahead will be difficult. After this week's homecoming game against Woodbridge (see schedule), the Indians travel to Laurel Oct. 16. Laurel has won the last nine meetings between the teams.
IR also faces a tough road test Oct. 30 at Delmar, the three-time defending South champion.
"We can't rest on our accomplishments," Watkins said.
Ironically, the forfeit victory over Washington could serve as a detriment, breaking the team's momentum.
"I don't know what it is," Kelly said of the forfeit. "It's one of those things you can't control so you don't worry about it."
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