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Matt McCord puts the heat on the quarterback in the North-South All-Star game.
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June 11, 2004 – DAYTON
It seems like every year small school football and big school football take to the same field for the annual North-South All-Star Game the small school players more than prove they belong.
The 2004 game at Dayton's Welcome Stadium was no different as four Cross County Conference players made an impression and had their hands in on a 19-3 North victory of the South team.
Covington's Matt McCord, Tri-County North's Eric Wright, Bradford's Jeff Barbee and Arcanum's Doug Allen all performed at a high level and made plays which helped their team win.
Beginning with McCord, he recorded a quarterback sack, a fumble recovery, numerous tackles and a blocked punt which resulted in a safety. The Covington grad wreaked havoc from his defensive end position, forcing the South quarterbacks to move outside the pocket on numerous occasions.
The blocked punt, which he predicted before the play began, was the result of consistent pressure throughout the game. On three previous occasions, McCod narrowly missed the blocks and on his fourth try he made his prediction come true.
"Before the play I told Doug (Allen) that I was going to block it and he was suppose to get the ball and score," laughed Matt. "I blocked it and Doug had a shot at it (recovering the ball)."
Doug Allen's feeling on the play was one of disappointment as he felt one had gotten away from him.
"He (McCord) said he would block it and when the ball was rolling around on the ground in the endzone I went after it," said the Arcanum grad. "As I had it in my hands somebody on the other team kicked it out of bounds. Man, I had a touchdown."
Allen would get another crack at a touchdown later in the game, but again his excitement got the best of him.
South fumbled in their own backfield and Allen was in position to scoop up the ball for a potential touchdown. The pigskin bounced out of his hands and right into Matt McCord's hands, who recovered the ball to give North the possession to close out the game.
Bradford's Jeff Barbee joined McCord and Allen on the defensive side of the ball and made some plays of his own. The Railroader linebacker made two significant tackles on broken plays after the South quarterback was flushed from the pocket. On another occasion, Barbee assisted on a tackle which resulted in a change of possession early in the fourth period.
The lone CCC player to see playing time on the offensive side of the ball was Tri-County North's 2000-yard rusher Eric Wright. The future Indianapolis player shared the running load with four other backs, but when his number was called he didn't disappoint. His most impressive run was actually a loss of yards. A bad pitch by the quarterback could have resulted in a huge loss in North's own territory, but Wright made four people miss before being gang tackled for only a four-yard loss.
The four players were not the only ones representing the Cross County Conference in the all-star game. The North team was coached by Arcanum's Jason Shondelmeyer. The Trojan braintrust opened up the playbook with a balanced offensive attack which resulted in 19 points and a breathtaking touchdown pass on the opening drive.
Shondelmeyer, along with his assistant coaches, also put on a defensive display. Reminiscent of his own Arcanum Trojans, the North defensive unit was as stingy as ever. They only allowed 3 points on a field goal late in the third period. Rarely did the South team cross midfield and when they did, Shondelmeyer's crew stepped up and shut their opponent down.
The most impressive defensive series of the game happened late in the game. The South squad had driven to inside the North 20-yard line and appeared destine to score. After two straight plays for a loss, the North squad, thanks to Allen and McCord, shut the door on South with a fumble recovery.
The performances of these CCC coaches and players gives all of the critics of the conference something to think about. Too often the conference is criticized, but one look at this all-star game, along with the past few, shows the CCC produces some pretty good players and coaches.
