Click here for a photo gallery from this game.
It’s not a flattering nickname by any means, which is why Willie James seems pleased that he may have finally rid himself of the tag.
“I think I did, sure,” James said.
James, who teammates have referred to as “One Day” Willie James because of his perceived potential but the lack of big plays on his resume, had his day. James, a junior cornerback, jumped a Western Albemarle attempt at a bubble screen and raced 49 yards to paydirt with 2:26 to play, effectively ending Western’s comeback attempt and sealing a 50-36 victory for the Mustangs.
“He came up big at the end,” said Monticello wideout Nathan DiGregorio. “We’ve always known he had potential, but I guess now he really showed it.”
James saved the game, but Monticello’s offense was nearly impossible to stop on the ground with Isaac Robinson putting together another incredible performance with 224 yards and five touchdowns on just 26 carries. His work allowed the Mustangs to build a 28-9 halftime advantage as he notched three of those touchdowns before the break, starting the game with a 45-yard sprint just 20 seconds into the contest.
“I think he’s showing Central Virginia that he’s legit,” said Monticello coach Rodney Redd. “One of my assistants made the comment that he looks like he gets better every week. And he does, and that’s a testament to his talent and his hard work.”
Quarterback Jhalil Mosley only threw 10 times, completing five of those passes for 104 yards, but he ran for 81 yards on 14 carries as well.
Despite that offensive production, Western managed to move into position to pull off a nearly impossible comeback with backup quarterback Devin Long leading the charge. Long threw for five touchdowns and 270 yards, with the final score coming on a one-yard dart to Nic Drapanas with 2:49 to play. The Warriors set up for an onsides kick, and managed after a scrum to recover it, with Austin Ellis exiting the pile with the ball. On first down, the Warriors, who’d been red hot until that point in the second half with Long completing 75 percent of his passes, took to the air again. But James exploded toward the ball as soon as he read the play.
“I heard about it all in practice and I knew it was coming because they were in trips,” James said. “When that second receiver came around for the bubble, I read it, came in and picked it off.”
Long took over at quarterback for the Warriors after Kent Henry went down with a knee injury midway through the second quarter that doesn’t appear to be serious but held him out of the rest of the game. Long found Ellis (eight catches, 127 yards) and Drapanas (nine catches, 56 yards) twice for touchdowns and also got Daniel Kuzjak (six catches, 78 yards) and Isaiah Cowan (seven catches, 74 yards) into the mix regularly.
“We tried to simplify things a little bit and give (Long) some relatively easy throws, but the kid throws the ball really well,” said Western coach Ed Pierce. “And he put it where he needed to in most of those situations.”
Long even averaged 6.5 yards per carry in the ground game.
Dylan Wood picked off Long’s final pass to seal the contest in the last 1:30.
It was the second escape from a shootout for the Mustangs in as many weeks, since Monticello knocked off Louisa 41-37 last Friday. Redd is convinced his young squad can learn from the defensive struggles and penalties (110 yards on 11 infractions) that allowed the Warriors to climb back into things.
“Western did force us to do some things and play some coverages that we hadn’t necessarily repped up a whole lot to this point,” Redd said. “I’m pleased to see some of that stuff in live action and be able to still get out of Crozet with a win.”
And a potentially retired nickname.
