Tigers 4-0 Season Turnaround a Result of Hard Work and Determination

On Thursday, Sept. 26, at the beginning of practice, White Plains Head Coach Skip Stevens illustrated strategy on the blackboard in the team’s classroom, so his players could visualize possible game situations.

At stake was the Battle of the Undefeated, as White Plains High School was preparing to challenge R.C. Ketchum High School, with both teams 3-0 going into the game, on Saturday, Sept. 28.

Stevens seemed concerned that the Tigers had to travel an hour and 15 minutes to play at R.C. Ketchum in upstate Wappingers Falls. However, the bus departed from White Plains High School, at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday and the Tigers never looked back.

The Tigers had made history the previous week by shocking Mahopac High School, 29-27, and rewriting the White Plains football record books. It was the first time since the inception of organized football at White Plains High School in 1897 that the Tigers came back from a three-touchdown deficit to win a game.

Therefore, the Tigers may have had a long ride to Wappingers Falls to play the Indians but they were also riding high on momentum from their historical win the week prior in Mahopac.

Tigers quarterback Cameron Crabbe outlasted Ketchum quarterback Kevin Duke in a fight to the finish. Crabbe completed 15 of 26 passes for 206 yards and a touchdown, while he rushed for 141 yards on 21 carries and scored two touchdowns.

Duke is one of the premier quarterbacks in Section 1 and he was nearly par with Crabbe statistically in the game. Duke completed 11 of 19 passes for 195 yards and two TDs, while he carried the ball 15 times, gaining132 yards and one touchdown.

Remarkably, on the afternoon, the duel between Crabbe and Duke calculated 674 total yards and six touchdowns for the two quarterbacks, while both teams totaled 798 yards and 10 touchdowns in the game. Therefore, each team totaled 124 yards and four touchdowns combined, compared to the two quarterbacks 674 yards and six TDs in the game.

The difference in the Battle of the Undefeated was that the Tigers staged another historical comeback. This time they were down by 16 points at 10:04 of the third quarter to come back and win.

Crabbe, who spoke to the team at halftime before their miracle second half comeback against Mahopac, orchestrated an 80-yard drive using 14 plays that commenced at 2:20 of the fourth quarter. Crabbe captioned the drive with a three-yard keeper for a touchdown, which made the score, 37-36, in favor of Ketchum with 25 seconds remaining in the game.

“We practiced the two-minute drill enough and when you got a veteran like Cameron and he has Lukas Repetti, Marshon Morris and Matt Berube to throw to; they did a good job,” emotionally stated Stevens.

In the 2011 AA Quarterfinals, White Plains lost to New Rochelle High School, 13-12, after Stevens opted to go for the win by attempting a two point conversion, which the Tigers did not convert.

Nevertheless, Stevens did not hesitate to try the two-point conversion twice against Ketchum and both times they were successful. Furthermore, the Tigers needed every point. After a timeout, with 25 ticks left on the clock, Crabbe hit his tight-end Repetti in the end zone for two points and the Tigers won the battle of the undefeated, 38-37.

“I did not look like a genius a few years ago when going for two points against New Rochelle. But now we have two or three plays each week for two-point conversions and when we can go for the win, we are going for the win,” emphasized Stevens.

Thus, the Tigers made history for the second time in two games and they start the season, 4-0 for the first time since 2010. “These players never quit and they find away to win. They believe in themselves and everything we are doing. They did a great job,” exclaimed the Tigers Head Coach.

After a distressing, 1-7, season last year, the Tigers have run, passed and converted two-point conversions into four straight wins to start the 2013 season. But their turnaround did not come easy; it evolved through hard work and determination. The Tigers were committed since the end of last season not to represent themselves, their school or their community in the losing manner that they did last season.

“The day the season ends, I start working for the next season,” said Stevens. “I was aware that we had many team pieces to fill after last season, especially on the offensive line. Therefore, we (coaches) had offensive linemen meetings, just for the offensive line this summer, on top of weight training and everything else we did,” explained the Tigers Head Coach.

“You sacrifice a lot to be on the football team,” said Repetti, the Tigers senior tight end. “In the summer, we are here for double sessions and the seniors do not get to go on their senior trip. We work nonstop everyday until Thanksgiving,” stressed Repetti.

Nevertheless, the dividends are starting to pay off for the Tigers hard work and dedication. “It feels great. That was a bad feeling last year and it lasted all year. This year things have been clicking and we are finding a way to win and getting that little bit of luck when we need it, which was not there last year,” Repetti added.

With a 4-0 start to the season, the Tigers are receiving praise from their school, community and colleagues alike. “It has been awesome, having administrators, teachers and students coming up to you saying how good a job you are doing,” thrilled Crabbe. “Everyone is excited! When you walk around the city with a White Plains football T-shirt, it is a good thing and everybody wants to be a part of it. It is nice to bring White Plains football back to where it should be and hopefully be for a long time,” declared Crabbe.

On Tuesday, Sept. 24, the New York Jets announced that White Plains High School Head Coach Stevens was awarded the N.Y. Jets High School Coach of the Week Award, for the Tigers historical comeback win against Mahopac. Besides the Jets certificate presented to Stevens, the Tigers Football Program will also receive a $1000 donation due to Stevens’ winning the award.