Astronaut takes victory over rival Titusville in 46th annual meeting

TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Just as they had 31 other times, the Astronaut War Eagles captured the Hudson Trophy on Friday night.

The time for talk is over. The Hudson Trophy on the line. The 46th meeting between @AstronautFB and @bluecrushfb is on deck. pic.twitter.com/BGjsrYhtr3

— Will Turner (@WTurnerTB) November 3, 2017

The annual rivalry game with crosstown opponent Titusville was mostly dominated with good defense and effective rushing by the War Eagles, who relied on several different backs to tire out the Terrier front seven.

Astronaut’s Dominick Robinson was the first one to deliver a blow. He ran in from just two yards away to put the War Eagles up by six after the two-point conversion failed.

From there, the flags started to fly, as Friday’s affair was littered with penalties. The majority of them? Unsportsmanlike conduct and personal foul calls, almost all of them after the play ended. Both sides had to be held back by referees at times as things got chippy.

.@Dnick_Robinson gets @AstronautFB on the board. 6-0 after 2PT fail. Unsportsmanlike conduct after play. @FlaHSFootball pic.twitter.com/evYudGEH3j

— Will Turner (@WTurnerTB) November 3, 2017

Titusville’s first possession stalled, as the Astronaut defense forced a punt. The War Eagles special teams blocked a punt to give them the ball back at the Titusville 40-yard line. They would knock on the door to the end zone again but were unable to convert as the second quarter begun.

Gibran Williams busted a run to the outside and darted down the sideline for a 65-yard touchdown, opening up the War Eagle rushing game.

However, Titusville had an answer. Christopher Squires hit Cory Anderson from six yards out over the middle for the Terrier’s first points on the night, cutting the Astronaut lead to 14-7.

That score didn’t hold long. On the ensuing kickoff, Jaiden Dollard took it 75 yards to push Astronaut’s lead to 15 after another two-point conversion from Williams. Titusville threatened again before halftime, but strong War Eagle defense kept them out of the end zone, and with it, they kept the score at 22-7 at the halftime whistle.

Titusville regained possession to begin the second half but didn’t have it for long. Williams would strike again for Astronaut on the next drive. This time, Williams scampered for a 69-yard score down the left sideline. It seemed as though the War Eagles were going to begin to pull away with a three-touchdown lead.

The Terriers wouldn’t quit in their rivalry game. Squires scrambled around the backfield and then fired into the end zone midway through the third looking for Roc Irlbeck. The ball tipped out of Irlbeck’s hands, but Kearsten Foltyn showed great awareness in grabbing the deflected pass for a Titusville touchdown.

A huge stop from the @AstronautFB defense keeps Titusville out of the end zone. 56 to play in 2Q. @FlaHSFootball pic.twitter.com/XsvldzwsGL

— Will Turner (@WTurnerTB) November 4, 2017

In the final quarter, defense reigned. Williams collected two big sacks in the quarter in addition to his two rushing touchdowns.

“You can’t coach size and you can’t coach speed. He’s a 10.6 100m guy. We’ve had a couple guys get banged up, but we’ve been working him at that outside linebacker spot all year. We figured a little speed on the edge would really help and it worked out for us,” said Astronaut head coach Justin Worden.

Astronaut tried a myriad of running backs and the different looks really helped the War Eagles keep the element of surprise on their opponents. Aberon Torres, only a freshman, wasn’t able to break through the Titusville defense all that much, but there’s a lot of potential for the 5’7”, 161 lbs. back. Louis Arnold and Robinson also got a lot of quality touches.

Even so, it was Williams that made the biggest difference. Playing both sides of the ball, Williams was a major contributor for the War Eagles on Friday night.

“Our offensive line did a great job, I broke for two big ones, and I feel really good about that. It’s was really good to see our turnaround this year,” Williams said.

Friday night marked the first win in the Battle For the Hudson in Worden’s tenure as Astronaut HC. As a player, Worden finished 4-0 against the Terriers in the midst of a 14-year winning streak.

“If you grow up around here, it’s something you have got to experience. Hats off to Coach [Wayne] Lawrence [Titusville HC], he did a good job of getting his guys ready for this week,” Worden said. “This really is our Super Bowl. Tonight was huge for us.”

Titusville’s spread offense had some nice upside to it. Some quick passes in the third quarter turned into larger gains by receivers. Anderson made a few nice catches, including the touchdown. They can really catch teams by surprise with some no-huddle looks.

Cameron Ockerman held Astronaut down on offense and defense, looking like a true captain, even if he is only 5’8”. He’s a sure tackler and rallies his team around him. Arnold went down with an ankle injury in the second half, but as a sophomore, he’s got really good size. When healthy, he is a force. Arnold has a lot of upside for the War Eagles over the next couple of years.

The offensive line unit, led by seniors Joel Denmon and Alec Valet, had a lot to offer. Titusville couldn’t get into the backfield a lot to disrupt the offensive production because of the solid fundamentals from that unit.

With the win, Astronaut now leads the all-time series 32-14 and has won 23 of the last 26 meetings with the Terriers.

FINAL: @AstronautFB 28, @bluecrushfb 14. @FlaHSFootball

The War Eagles take the 46th edition of the #BattleForTheHudson! @FlaHSFootball pic.twitter.com/3HWLcd5e42

— Will Turner (@WTurnerTB) November 4, 2017