The Kings Comets, Inc.: 2009 MCFL Championship Game
| 2009 MCFL Championship Game | Back to Schedules |
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| Teams: | Score: | ||||
| Kings Comets vs | 16 | ||||
| Columbus Fire | 14 |
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Game Played 10/17/2009 7:25PM |
Travis Johnson made a 48-yard field goal with 2:33 remaining and James Spikes blocked a 31-yard field goal attempt with 17 seconds remaining to give the Kings Comets (11-1) their first ever Mid-Continental Football League championship with a 16-14 win against the Columbus Fire (10-1) Saturday at Grove City Christian School in Columbus, Ohio.
The championship is the first for a Cincinnati-area semi-pro football team since the Cincinnati Heat won the 2000 Ohio Valley Football League title.
Johnson, the games Most Valuable Player, also made field goals from 22 and 32 yards out in the first half and dropped two of his four punts inside the 20-yard line.
Linebacker Larry Byndon was named the games Defensive MVP, intercepting a pass on the first drive of the game and returning it 62 yards for a touchdown to put the Comets up 7-0, after 2:46 seconds. Byndon also led all players with 13 tackles.
Tiron Jones intercepted a pair of passes for Kings, Terrill Byrd and James Battle recorded eight tackles each, and Byrd and Spikes each had 1.5 sacks.
Kings took advantage of a muffed punt to lead 10-0 after Johnsons 22-yard field goal, and his 32-yarder extended the lead to 13-0 in the second quarter.
Offensive MVP Antwaun Gibbs led the Fire back to take a 14-13 lead. Gibbs led a 65-yard drive in the final 1:38 of the first half, completing a 19-yard touchdown pass to Maurice Douse on a fourth-and-goal play 18 seconds before halftime.
A 17-yard pass to Lance Wilson and an 18-yard run by Gibbs helped set up a 10-yard touchdown pass from Gibbs to Mark Ratliff that put the Fire ahead by a point with 3:47 remaining in the third quarter.
Gibbs completed 8-of-22 passes for 99 yards and two touchdowns and ran 14 times for 118 yards.
James Frazier, who entered the game at quarterback in place of injured starter Dominick Goodman in the third quarter, led the game-winning 41-yard drive in the fourth quarter. A 22-yard pass interference penalty on the first play of the drive moved the Comets to the 50-yard line, and Frazier followed with runs of 9, 4, and 4 yards as Kings advanced to the Columbus 31 to set up Johnsons game-winning kick.
Frazier completed two-of-five passes for 21 yards and ran five times for 26 yards in the game. Goodman was 4-of-17 passing for 66 yards and ran 11 times for 69 yards.
Columbus used a 45-yard kick return by Mike Tatum to start its final drive at Kings 45-yard line. Maurice Douse broke a 28-yard run two plays later to advance the Fire to the 15, but Douse was stopped for a loss on the next two plays and a 5-yard run by Gibbs brought up a fourth-and-nine from the 14, setting up Eric Schnatzs 31-yard field goal attempt that Spikes blocked.
As champions of the MCFL, the Comets could receive an invitation to a national championship game that will most likely be played in Florida in January.
BOX SCORE
| KINGS | 10 | 3 | 0 | 3 | -- 16 |
| COLUMBUS | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | -- 14 |
FIRST QUARTER
K- Byndon 62 yard interception return (T. Johnson kick), 12:14.
K- T. Johnson 22 yard field goal, 6:19.
SECOND QUARTER
K- T. Johnson 32 yard field goal, 13:29.
C- Douse 19 yard pass from Gibbs (Schnatz kick), 0:18.
THIRD QUARTER
C- Ratliff 10 yard pass from Gibbs (Schnatz kick), 3:47.
FOURTH QUARTER
K- T. Johnson 48 yard field goal, 2:33.
| KINGS | COLUMBUS | |
|---|---|---|
| First Downs | 14 | 17 |
| (Run-Pass-Penalty) | (5-4-5) | (9-5-3) |
| Third Down Conversions | 1-12 | 3-12 |
| Fourth Down Conversions | 2-3 | 1-2 |
| Rushing | 32-131 | 33-178 |
| Passing | 6-22-1 | 7-21-3 |
| Gross Pass Yards | 87 | 99 |
| Sacked-Yards Lost | 1-9 | 4-22 |
| Fumbles-Lost | 1-1 | 2-2 |
| Penalties-Yards | 10-99 | 10-116 |
| Time of Possession | 30:34 | 29:26 |
INDIVIDUAL STATS
RUSHING: Kings-- Goodman 11-69; Frazier 5-26; Brooks 5-23; Westbrook 11-13. Columbus-- Gibbs 14-118; Douse 18-58; Devonshire 1-2.
PASSING: Kings-- Goodman 4-17-1 66; Frazier 2-5-0 21. Columbus-- Gibbs 8-22-3 99, 2 TDs.
RECEIVING: Kings-- Barnett 3-59; Frazier 2-24; Westbrook 1-4. Columbus-- Maxwell 2-39; Tatum 2-17; Douse 2-16, TD; Wilson 1-17; Ratliff 1-10, TD.
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