| The 1994
Championship Season Presented by Dick Morris The Football Chronicles |
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New Added Feature Except for the players themselves, no one dared to imagine that 1994 was about to become the greatest ever season in Mustang football history. As late as two-a-day practices in early August even Coach Mac questioned who would step forward as the leaders of this team. It was a fun-loving bunch of guys, many of whom Coach Pugh, as Principal, knew only too well from non-athletic related adventures. The words teamwork, togetherness, and aggressive are probably the most descriptive of this group. There was no single “go to” guy in the clutch situations which made defending the Mustangs a real problem for the opposing defenses. Talented Junior and Sophomore classes provided excellent depth at most every position and pushed the starters to get better every week.
The senior class had extraordinary size for a 2A team – even Miles Wallis and Ben King, the senior managers, were as big as the opposing teams’ linemen. The interior offensive line (four Seniors and one Sophomore) averaged about 255 pounds per man. Running behind them in a devastating Wishbone attack were a 190 pound quarterback, a 200 pound fullback, and halfbacks weighing 195 and 175, all with plenty of speed. On the defensive side, the four down lineman (all Seniors) averaged right at 250 pounds per man, and the three linebackers averaged about 190 pounds per man. The cornerbacks could shut down the sweeps and the safeties had good speed and were sure tacklers. Trying to stop the Mustang Offense or penetrate the Mustang Defense was a formidable task for all opponents as evidenced by the following stats for the 15 game season:
Times trailing at halftime 0 Games lost 0 Average halftime score DLHS – 21 Opponent – 2 Average final score DLHS – 32 Opponent – 5 Average yards per rush 6.7 Average yards per completed pass 14.2
It was 1994 when the kickoff team became known as the Stampede. There was great pride in all of the special teams, but the Stampede created extra excitement for both players and fans. The “kamikaze” attitude of the Stampede was a beautiful thing to behold. Most of the Stampede members didn’t see a lot of playing time otherwise, so it was their time to make a contribution to the team effort. The exuberant, hard-hitting Stampede often set the tone for the entire game.
WEEK 1 SPRING HILL AT LIPSCOMB RESULTS DLHS WINS 35-7 Fans got their first real taste of the powerful offense and suffocating defense of the ’94 Mustangs. Linebackers Rob Copeland, Melvin Evans, and Andy Irons combined for 22 tackles. Spring Hill scored late in the 4th quarter, long after the starters had gone to the bench. The offense gained 391 yards with TD’s scored by Copeland, Evans, Doug McDuffee (2), and Will Staggs. Shane Pharr converted all five PAT’s. WEEK 2 LIPSCOMB AT HARPETH RESULTS DLHS WINS 34-2 The outcome of the first Region game of the year was never in doubt. After the defense stuffed Harpeth’s opening drive, Andrew Stewart (now known as “Coach”) returned the punt 82 yards for a touchdown. Shane Pharr recorded the first “de-cleater” block of the year on the sideline to take care of the last Indian with a chance to stop Andrew. Doug McDuffee, Will Staggs (2), and Melvin Evans added offensive TD’s to clinch the victory. Harpeth’s only score came late in the 4th quarter on a safety surrendered by the third team offense.
WEEK 3 COFFEE COUNTY AT LIPSCOMB RESULTS DLHS WINS 24-14 The first test of the season came from 4A Coffee County. Early in the first quarter CC returned a fumble 41 yards for a touchdown. On the ensuing Mustang drive Sophomore fullback Andy Irons went 80 yards to tie the game. Following the Mustang kickoff which resulted in a touchback, CC’s Thomas White took the ball 80 yards in the other direction to put CC back on top at 14-7. With a 44 yard TD run in the second quarter, Sloan Burton tied the game at 14-14 at halftime. Shane Pharr added a field goal in the 3rd quarter, and Melvin Evans ran for a 34 yard TD in the 4th quarter to complete the scoring. WEEK 4 LIPSCOMB AT STEWART COUNTY RESULTS DLHS WINS 37-0 Against a decidedly weaker team Coach Mac decided to work on the passing game. Sloan Burton threw three TD passes, two to Andrew Stewart and one to Brian Gentry. Andrew had a total of nine catches for 90 yards. Sloan and Rob Copeland added rushing touchdowns. The second and third teams got lots of playing time in this one-sided affair.
WEEK 5 LIPSCOMB AT SMITH COUNTY RESULTS DLHS WINS 35-0 On a perfect night for football, the Mustangs played a nearly perfect game. Melvin Evans scored from 51 yards out on the first offensive play of the game. Sloan Burton (2) and Shane Pharr added rushing TD’s, and Philip Lawson had a 6 yard TD reception to put Lipscomb up 35-0 at halftime. John Helton led the defense with 6 tackles and a QB sack. Smith County managed only 90 yards total offense even though the second and third team defenses played most of the second half.
WEEK 6 DAVIDSON ACAD. AT LIPSCOMB RESULTS DLHS WINS 24-0 In another outstanding performance, the Mustang defense posted its third consecutive shutout. Melvin Evans and Doug McDuffee (2) scored rushing touchdowns and had 90+ yards each. Shane Pharr converted all three PAT’s and added a 20 yard field goal to complete the scoring. WEEK 7 LIPSCOMB AT WHITE HOUSE RESULTS DLHS WINS 34-7 The Mustangs traveled north to White House and played another excellent game against the Class 3A hosts. Sloan Burton’s 46 yard touchdown near the end of the first half put the Mustangs up 21-7 and ended a surge by the Blue Devils. Shane Pharr put Lipscomb on the scoreboard first with a 4 yard TD reception from Sloan. Melvin Evans (2) and Drew Morris added rushing TD’s and Philip Lawson caught a Burton pass for a two point conversion. WEEK 8 LIPSCOMB AT HOUSTON COUNTY RESULTS DLHS WINS 42-7 Lipscomb posted 28 first quarter points and never looked back. Sloan Burton threw TD passes to Philip Lawson and Brian Gentry. Sloan, Rob Copeland (2), and Doug McDuffee added rushing touchdowns. Justin Ezell ran for a two point conversion. The Irish scored a late touchdown on a 27 yard pass long after the outcome had been determined. WEEK 9 WAVERLY AT LIPSCOMB RESULTS DLHS WINS 42-21 This game was billed as the battle of the unbeatens. Waverly was 8-0 and ranked 4th in the AP Class 3A polls. Twice they had posted over 50 points in their unbeaten streak. Lipscomb was 8-0 and ranked 3rd in the AP Class 2A polls. The game was never close. Lipscomb led 35-0 at the half on 4 rushing touchdowns, 3 by Melvin Evans and 1 by Doug McDuffee, and a 37 yard touchdown pass from Sloan Burton to Brian Gentry. In the third quarter David Karkau added a 25 yard “circus catch” touchdown pass to put the Mustangs up 42-0. Waverly scored three late TD’s on the Lipscomb subs long after the issue had been settled. Following this impressive win the Mustangs moved up to 2nd in the AP Class 2A poll behind Meigs County, also 9-0 on the season. WEEK 10 GOODPASTURE AT LIPSCOMB RESULTS DLHS WINS 28-0 In what is always the biggest game of the year for these two schools, Lipscomb dominated from the outset. Sloan Burton ran a bootleg for 79 yards and a touchdown on the second play of the game. Rob Copeland, Melvin Evans, and Doug McDuffee added rushing touchdowns to finish out the scoring. Shane Pharr was successful on all four PAT’s. Sophomore linebacker Andy Irons dispatched the Goodpasture quarterback to the sidelines for the rest of the game with a crushing tackle in the second quarter. Near the end of the game Chase McDonald ran for 65 yards on a fake punt (still remembered and despised by Goodpasture fans). It was Chase’s only rushing attempt in his Varsity career. The Mustang defense posted its fourth shutout of the season, and Coach Mac completed his first undefeated regular season as a Head Coach. One of the team members recalls that on Thursday before this game Coach Mac had seen enough of the egos and half-spirited effort in practice. He called the team together and announced that the rest of the day would be spent running through an entire “boot camp” in order to re-focus on the task at hand. This player feels like that decision by Coach Mac may have been the defining point of the season. From that point on nothing less than full speed was tolerated in practice or a game, regardless of the score. This renewed toughness served the Mustangs well in the close playoff games to come in weeks 12 and 14. WEEK 11 SPRING HILL AT LIPSCOMB RESULTS DLHS WINS 44-6 Scoring started early as Drew Morris returned a punt blocked by Luke Queen for a 34 yard touchdown in the first quarter. Doug McDuffee, Rob Copeland, and Joe Sanford added rushing touchdowns. David Karkau and Philip Lawson had touchdown receptions of 45 and 20 yards from Sloan Burton. Spring Hill scored late in the fourth quarter to prevent yet another shutout for the Mustang defense. WEEK 12 HUNTINGDON AT LIPSCOMB RESULTS DLHS WINS 7-0 This was one of the great games in Lipscomb football history. Huntingdon, Coach Mac’s high school alma mater, brought an excellent 10-1 team to play the undefeated Mustangs. Both defenses were superior. The powerful Lipscomb offense was held to 21 yards in the first half by an incredibly quick Huntingdon defense. In the second half Lipscomb’s size began to make its presence known. After not crossing midfield in the first half, Lipscomb opened the second half with a 63 yard scoring drive highlighted by runs of 30 and 17 yards by Sloan Burton and Doug McDuffee. Melvin Evans scored the only TD of the night from two yards out, and Shane Pharr added the PAT. Shane’s interception with 2 minutes left in the game sealed the victory and the fifth shutout for Lipscomb’s defense. WEEK 13 LIPSCOMB AT LEWIS COUNTY RESULTS DLHS WINS 34-9 The tone of the game was set on the first play from scrimmage. Sloan Burton ran for 51 yards on a “busted” play, aided by the bone-crushing block of the year by Melvin Evans. Moments later, Melvin scored from one yard out, the first of his three first quarter touchdowns. The Mustangs led 21-3 at the half after a 31 yard Lewis County field goal. Rob Copeland and Andy Irons added second half rushing TD’s. Lewis County added a late fourth touchdown to round out the scoring. Lipscomb’s defense recorded five QB sacks and Steve Parks had his first interception of the year. WEEK 14 LIPSCOMB AT MILAN RESULTS DLHS WINS 14-6 It was an incredible atmosphere in Milan where Coach Mac began his coaching career in 1969. The competition was fierce between the Bulldogs and the visiting Mustangs. Milan, known primarily for its punishing ground game, threw a 67 yard TD pass on the first play from scrimmage but failed to convert the PAT. Down 6-0 early, the Mustangs stuck to their game plan and put together a 12 play, 76 yard scoring drive of their own. Melvin Evans scored from the 1 yard line and Shane Pharr added the PAT for a 7-6 lead. Neither team scored in the second or third quarter. Late in the fourth quarter Lipscomb put together another long scoring drive highlighted by a 43 yard burst by Rob Copeland to the Milan 5 yard line. Two plays later Rob scored from three yards out and Shane again added the PAT for a 14-6 lead with about three minutes left in the game. Milan mounted a furious rally and took the ball to the Mustang 11 yard line with about 30 seconds left in the game and two downs remaining in their possession. Shane Pharr made a brilliant pass deflection on third down, and Milan’s halfback pass on fourth down fell incomplete in the end zone. The Mustangs took over and ran out the clock, preserving the victory and propelling them to a Clinic Bowl showdown with Harriman. The Mustangs held Mr. Football Finalist Andre Stewart to 79 yards rushing on the night. Lipscomb rolled up 307 yards rushing with Copeland having 135 yards on 16 carries and Evans adding 80 yards on 15 carries.
WEEK 15 THE CLINIC BOWL HARRIMAN VS. LIPSCOMB Friday night, December 9, 1994 marked the first ever appearance of the Mustang football team in the State Championship game. The opponent was Harriman High School, winner of the east bracket, having defeated Cosby, Meigs County, Sweetwater, and Oneida to get to the finals. Harriman was a very athletic team which was led by quarterback Jermaine Copeland, an early signer with the University of Tennessee. He went on to a very successful career with UT as a wide receiver and later played in NFL Europe and for a while with the Dallas Cowboys. Running back Mark Boyd was small but amazingly fast. It was also the first Clinic Bowl appearance for Harriman’s Blue Devils. Tensions were high and nerves were shot for the fans as well as the teams as they prepared for the opening kickoff. The Mustangs showed their nervousness early by having a short field goal blocked and later fumbling away the ball in the “red zone.” The first quarter ended 0-0. In the second quarter the Mustangs began to play to their ability and put 21 unanswered points on the Home Team side of the Vandy scoreboard. Also in the second quarter, Jermaine Copeland hyper-extended his knee while being sacked for a loss by Rob Copeland. With him out for the rest of the game, Harriman had little chance to come back. The Mustangs put up 21 more unanswered points in the third quarter and turned the game over to the second and third teams. The fourth quarter was scoreless for both teams even though Lipscomb emptied the bench so that virtually everyone got to take the field in the State Championship game. The extent of the Mustangs’ dominance in this 42-0 victory is most clearly seen in the game stats below: Total Offense – Lipscomb 364 yards (all rushing) Total Offense – Harriman 90 yards (102 rushing, -12 passing) First Downs – Lipscomb 19 First Downs – Harriman 5 Time of Possession – Lipscomb 27:26 Time of Possession – Harriman 20:34 Mustang Individual Stats of note: Rob Copeland 21 carries for 152 yards and two TD’s Doug McDuffee 7 carries for 79 yards and 1 TD Sloan Burton 10 carries for 61 yards Melvin Evans 11 carries for 48 yards and 2 TD’s; 7 tackles Shane Pharr 1 carry for 1 yard and 1 TD; 6 of 6 on PAT’s; 1 interception
Rob Copeland was named the Offensive Most Valuable Player of the game. Melvin Evans was named the Defensive Most Valuable Player of the game.
SENIOR MEMORIES
John Helton/Chris Farley – “. . . in a trailer down by the river.” Luke Queen – the slappy-pappy routine Brandon Glass – anything Pearl Jam Drew Morris – “You remember the time . . .?” and Maurice Haynes imitation in practice The Stampede – “Hey boys, you wanna play a little football?” “The hay is in the barn” – reportedly incorporated into Matthew McInteer’s wedding vows Coach Mac - “900 million Chinese couldn’t care less” Coach Mac - “That’s like a bass calling a catfish a fish” Chuck Ross – “John Helton, John Helton report to the office for your spanking.” David Boyd volunteering to take Jill McCadams to Junior/Senior banquet.
POST SEASON HONORS
As you would expect after such an incredible season, there were many post season honors directed to the Mustangs. The following is an attempt to relate those honors.
Associated Press Class 2A All-State Team
Offense Sloan Burton QB John Helton OL Shane Pharr PK Defense Brandon Glass OL Rob Copeland LB Melvin Evans LB Jimmy Hall P Honorable Mention Doug McDuffee RB Luke Queen OL Andrew Stewart WR
Nashville Banner All-Metro Team (all Metro teams in all classifications)
1st Team Offense John Helton OL Shane Pharr PK 1st Team Defense Brandon Glass DL Rob Copeland LB Jimmy Hall P 2nd Team Offense Sloan Burton QB Andrew Stewart WR 2nd Team Defense Melvin Evans LB
Nashville Banner Class 2A All Mid-State Team
Offense Sloan Burton QB John Helton OL Luke Queen OL Defense Brandon Glass DL Rob Copeland LB Melvin Evans LB
Offensive Player of the Year Sloan Burton Defensive Player of the Year Rob Copeland Coach of the Year Glenn McCadams
Nashville Civitan Club Sportsmanship Award Luke Queen
Final season statistics of interest
1st 2nd 3rd 4th Total Scoring by quarter DLHS 173 142 101 60 476 Opponent 20 10 6 43 79
Total yards rushing 3,989 Total yards passing 804 Total Offense 4,793
Defense gave up no points in 6 (40%) of the 15 games. Defense gave up no points in the first half in 11 (73.3%) of the 15 games. 1994 STATE CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM ROSTER
SENIORS JUNIORS
#17 Jim Armstrong #10 Will Staggs #23 Chase McDonald #11 Sloan Burton #24 Shane Pharr #18 Scott Rhodes #31 Melvin Evans #28 Jason Staggs #35 Drew Morris #32 Justin Luffman #36 Steve Parks #34 Justin Ezell #42 Rob Copeland #44 Doug McDuffee #43 Jon Carman #50 Robbie Thompson #45 Daniel Burton #52 Keith Cooper #56 Lance Gifford #54 Jesse Ragan #57 Luke Queen #58 Jamie Bell #59 Wes Whaley #63 Matt Stephens #64 Matthew McInteer #68 Michael Whitley #65 Tony Drinkwine #78 Jake Shoun #69 Brandon Glass #79 Neal McDonald #71 Chip Hayes #80 Philip Lawson #72 John Helton #82 Rex Bowman #75 Steve Hale #84 Mickey Mangrum #87 Christian Baker #88 Andrew Stewart #89 Jimmy Hall
SOPHOMORES COACHES
#12 Casey Heinrich Glenn McCadams #19 Adam Davidson Mark Pugh #20 David Karkau Tim Taylor #25 Robert Brownlee David Morris #27 Nathan Hood Jay Gore #30 Joe Sanford Scott Tillman #40 Andy Irons John Hudy #41 Stewart Curcio Gary Semanchik #51 Brent Morris #53 Scott Smith #60 Jacob Winkler #61 Jay Tucker #62 Barclay Fisher #70 Marshall Switzer #73 Paul Edwards #83 Brian Gentry #85 Matt Smith #86 Jeremy Holt
TRAINERS MANAGERS
Brent Oliver Ben King Mark Williams Miles Wallis Brad Fitch
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