How Derby’s blocking led to Notre Dame football recruit Dylan Edwards’ game-winning TD
The ball was going to Dylan Edwards, no doubt about it.
Even with 85 yards separating Derby from the end zone and less than one minute remaining in a tied game with Bishop Carroll, the 11 defenders, both sidelines and the thousands in attendance last Friday knew No. 2 in white was the player to stop.
That’s what made what happened next all the more spectacular: Edwards took a handoff up the middle and showcased his track star speed by sprinting 85 yards untouched for a dramatic, game-winning touchdown in Derby’s 45-38 win over Carroll in a clash between two of the top teams in the state.
It didn’t take long for the video to go viral among a Notre Dame fan base already salivating over what the top-rated running back in Kansas high school football could do for the Fighting Irish in 2023.
Derby doesn’t score the touchdown without Edwards’ blazing speed, but that’s not the part of the play everyone on the Panthers was raving about after the game. Edwards was the first to deflect credit.
“The hole was open. That was all the front line,” said Edwards, who finished with 184 rushing yards and five total touchdowns. “If you see that play, I went untouched. I’m just happy the front guys did their job because that’s why I scored.”
‘You have to put some traffic in his road’
No coach ever expects to shut Edwards down entering a game week against Derby, rather they hope to contain him.
For the first 47 minutes of last Friday’s game, Carroll coach Dusty Trail was pleased with how his defense had done just that with Edwards. Yes, the star tailback had scored three rushing touchdowns, but Edwards had also been stopped for three yards or less on 12 of his 18 carries and not cracked 100 rushing yards.
The front seven defenders for the Golden Eagles had accomplished their goal of limiting Edwards’ chances on the perimeter, funneling him in between the hashes and swarming to the middle of the field as best they could.
“What you have to put some traffic in his road as fast as possible and make him go a different direction than downhill because that’s when (Edwards) does his damage,” Trail said. “He makes these unbelievable cuts where he changes direction but he’s still moving forward very, very fast. That’s what makes him special, but if you can get him going lateral a little bit, then that gives your defense a chance to get more guys around him.”
How Derby called its game-winning run play
Overtime seemed inevitable, maybe even fitting for the game after Carroll rallied for its second game-tying touchdown of the fourth quarter when quarterback Jackson King (177 passing yards, 169 rushing yards, four touchdowns) scampered in to level the score at 38 with 54 seconds left.
What is lost in the buzz of Edwards’ game-winning score is that Derby attempted to run a play before that one — an option to the left designed to give Edwards the ball in space on the perimeter — but the play was whistled dead for a false start when Edwards moved before the snap.
The sequence is notable because Derby offensive line coach Chris Pinaire noticed how wide Carroll’s defensive ends and linebackers were playing on the pre-snap read and immediately suggested a counter to head coach Brandon Clark: an inside zone run.
“We knew they wanted to try to take away the option and the pass, so if you’re going to do that then you’re going to open up the middle,” Clark said. “They were in a prevent, bend-but-don’t-break defense, but when you’ve got (Edwards) back there with his legs, that’s pretty tough to do when he gets in the open field. It was a great call by coach Pinaire.”
‘When it all comes together like that, it’s beautiful’
Clark trusted the intuition of his offensive line coach and made a key substitution for the game-winning play, inserting sophomore tight end Da’saahn Brame (6-foot-6, 225 pounds) to block on the side the run was designed for.
Sure enough, Carroll lined up with just three down linemen and the rest of its defense spread wide across the field. When the ball is snapped, senior right tackle Mitchell Johnson and Brame, lined up just right of the offensive line, easily seal their blocking responsibilities because Carroll’s defenders take such a wide angle in pursuit.
With the right side completely sealed, an enormous running lane is created for Edwards by center Kenai Indalecio, a 5-foot-8, 215-pound senior who wins his blocking assignment and pancakes Carroll’s defensive tackle as Edwards darts by.
“I just drove and with my leverage against him, I just pancaked him,” Indalecio said. “As soon as I looked up and saw Dylan taking off, it was like, ‘Oh my gosh.’ It was the greatest feeling ever.”
In the play’s zone blocking scheme, right guard Tyler Stroup is looking for the outside linebacker to block if things go according to plan.
This time, however, Derby caught Carroll by surprise so much that Stroup was able to run six yards downfield before blocking a safety. That’s when the senior knew something big was about to happen.
“When it all comes together like that, it’s beautiful,” Stroup said. “When we get (Edwards) blocked like that, it’s wraps.”
The blocking by Derby was so superb that Edwards was given more than 10 yards of runway to accelerate. By the time he reached the second level of Carroll’s defense, Stroup and senior receiver Travon Rose were providing key blocks and Edwards had already hit full speed.
And when Edwards hits full speed, that’s when he devastates defenses.
“It’s truly an honor to be able to block for someone as talented as Dylan,” Indalecio said. “It’s something where we all kind of know we have to step up as blockers.”
After Edwards was considered the hero of Derby’s second win of the season, the star himself was more than happy to share the spotlight with an offensive line featuring Wyatt Jackson, Indalecio, Stroup, Johnson and Maxwell Robinson.
“They were blocking their butts off,” Edwards said. “They work so hard at practice. We kill ourselves every day at practice. We go fast tempo every day. It feels good coming out here with that conditioning and taking the win.”
This story was originally published September 19, 2022 at 7:00 AM.
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