Herbert Hoover comes back to beat Frankfort, 17-10, in state semis

Nov. 27—SHORT GAP, W.Va. — In an instant classic with a spot in the Class AA title game on the line, Frankfort had no answer for Dane Hatfield.

The sophomore sensation put Herbert Hoover on his back, rushing for 177 yards and two key second-half touchdowns on 37 carries.

Frankfort drove down to the Huskies' 22-yard line with two minutes remaining, but Andrew Rollyson intercepted a pass in the end zone to seal Herbert Hoover's 17-10 triumph at Frankfort Stadium on Saturday night.

"I'm just proud of the season we had," Frankfort head coach Kevin Whiteman said. "The kids battled the whole year, and this one's a tough one to swallow to be that close to going, to be that close to the state championship and let it slip away. It's tough.

"But I can't say enough about these kids, how hard they've worked and their attitudes, their work ethic. It's a season to remember. It's a season to be proud of."

Ninth-seeded Hoover (10-2), trailing fifth-seeded Frankfort (11-2), 10-3 at halftime, scored a touchdown each in the third and fourth quarters to take the lead.

Herbert Hoover benefitted from a short Frankfort punt to start its opening drive of the fourth quarter at the Falcons' 38-yard line. Ten plays later, Hatfield snuck over the goal line for a 17-10 lead with 5:53 left.

"We knew we had four downs to run it," Hoover head coach Joey Fields said of the go-ahead score. "We were gonna keep running it. We gotta get better at that play, but I'm proud of our guys."

The teams traded three-and-outs to set up one final Frankfort series, which advanced to the Hoover 22-yard line after a 25-yard connection from Luke Robinette to John Anderson III, but Rollyson stopped the rally with a key pick in the end zone.

"We just thought we could connect on it, and the kid made a good play on it," Whiteman said.

Rollyson also recovered a Frankfort fumble on the Falcons' first drive of the second half.

"That's poetic," Fields said of Rollyson's interception. "The stuff that kid went through and what Hoover means to him and his family is poetic."

Randy Hughart had an impressive game on the ground in his own right, providing the Huskies with 110 yards on 14 carries.

Frankfort was led offensively by Robinette, who rushed for 50 yards on nine carries and completed 5 of 11 passes for 68 yards and an interception. Anderson caught four passes for 65 yards.

Tyrique Powell had eight rushes for 63 yards, including a three-yard touchdown run for the Falcons' lone TD with 4:56 left in the opening quarter.

Both teams made first-half field goals. Frankfort's Rhett Sensabaugh drilled a 28-yarder as time expired in the first half. Herbert Hoover's Levi Paxton made a 19-yard kick.

Herbert Hoover out-gained Frankfort, 282-251, and had an 18-14 advantage in first downs. The Huskies carried the ball 49 times for 287 yards compared to 36 totes for 175 yards by the Falcons.

Frankfort had just eight carries for 23 yards during the second half, during which time Hoover had 32 carries for 144 yards.

Hatfield was a warrior over the final 24 minutes, running the ball 26 times for 85 yards during the second half alone.

"He continued to show toughness week in and week out," Fields said of Hatfield. "We didn't throw the ball a lot because of the looks they were giving us and the protection issues we were having. They continued to show toughness running inside those tackles. Unbelievable player, unbelievable kid."

"He's a really good football player," Whiteman said of Hatfield. "He's a very determined runner. I just thought they ran really hard when they ran and they were hard to tackle."

Brayden Jones appeared to tie the game out of halftime with a 77-yard return for a score on the opening kickoff of the period, but Herbert Hoover was called for a holding penalty.

It ended up not being a factor, as the Huskies ate up 68 yards on 12 plays on a drive that spanned 6:27, capped by a one-yard Hatfield TD run on 4th-and-goal from the one.

Hatfield rushed for 51 yards on the series — none bigger than a 16-yard scramble on 3rd-and-15 midway through the drive.

Frankfort took advantage of a pair of Herbert Hoover turnovers to lead 10-3 at intermission.

Herbert Hoover looked destined to strike first after runs of 16 and 19 by Hatfield on its opening drive, but a fumble, recovered by Frankfort's Logan Athey, stymied the series.

Starting on their own 29, the Falcons marched 71 yards on six plays on the ensuing series, capped by a three-yard TD run by Powell. The junior tailback set up the score with a 38-yard rush earlier in the drive.

The score gave Frankfort a 7-0 edge with 4:56 left in the first quarter after Sensabaugh's extra point.

The Huskies responded with a long drive of their own. Herbert Hoover marched down to the Frankfort two-yard line with a nine-play, 76-yard drive, but elected to kick a field goal when stopped after three downs.

Paxton's 19-yard field goal cut Frankfort's lead to 7-3 with 11:56 left in the opening half.

Frankfort nearly made Herbert Hoover pay for settling for a field goal with a 15-yard rushing touchdown by Parker VanMeter, who rushed for 39 yards on 3 plays, but it was brought back by a holding penalty.

Penalties were an issue for Frankfort, as the Falcons were flagged nine times for 57 yards, including seven for 42 yards during the second half.

For an offense used to dominating time of possession by staying ahead of the sticks, those procedure penalties proved costly.

"We had way too many penalties," Whiteman said. "I think the biggest turning point for us in the game was when we scored down there, and it got called back. I think that would've put us up two touchdowns, and I think it would've given us more momentum."

After VanMeter's TD was wiped out, Hoover returned the favor with a costly hold of its own, which forced the Huskies into a 3rd-and-17 situation after a sack by Cam Layton.

Hatfield put his arm on display with a tight spiral on a heave down the middle of the field; however, Robinette ranged over from his free safety position for the interception.

The 17-yard interception return gave Frankfort the ball on the Huskies' 37 with 4:04 left in the half.

Frankfort moved down into the red zone, but Isaiah Chapman wrapped up Robinette for a tackle for loss, forcing the Frankfort QB to spike the ball with three seconds left.

Sensabaugh drilled a 28-yard field goal as time expired to give the Falcons a 10-3 lead heading into the locker room.

Frankfort was the only team to punt during the opening half, when Huskies defensive lineman Caden Dotson had a tackle for loss on the Falcons' opening possession.

The Huskies dominated the second half in yardage, 137-80, and in first downs, 10-5, and that translated to a two-touchdown edge on the scoreboard to allow Hoover to take the lead and end Frankfort's impressive season.

Herbert Hoover will take on No. 2 Independence in the state championship game on Friday.

Frankfort's season comes up just short of its second state title game appearance in school history and first since 2014.

"Can't say enough about how proud I am of this team, and of this season," Whiteman said. "There is nothing that these kids should hang their heads about in that locker room right now."

Alex Rychwalski is a sports reporter at the Cumberland Times-News. Follow him on Twitter @arychwal.