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Dunbar’s offense languished for three quarters Friday night before finally breaking through in the fourth, coming back on the road from a 7-0 deficit to defeat the Coolidge Colts 14-7. The win was Dunbar’s ninth in a row after an opening day loss to Friendship Collegiate and places them firmly in the driver’s seat heading into the DCIAA playoffs.

“[After the first loss], a lot of people were doubting us,” said sophomore running back Olu Izegwire. “But we always considered ourselves first [in the league].” And with the league run that they have been on for the past four weeks, going 4-0, only Ballou – also 4-0- could challenge that assertion.

For the first three quarters of the game, the Crimson Tide seemed to doubt themselves thanks in large part to a stifling Colts defense. Their longest drive of the first half was their opening drive in which they successfully faked a punt on two separate fourth downs. Dunbar’s offense did not look sharp at all as the Colts’ defense was dominant.

Meanwhile, Coolidge took an early 7-0 lead after starting their drive with good field position on the 50-yard line. The drive was highlighted by a 21-yard reception by Martize Barr and was capped off on a 1-yard run from Michael Oliver.

The Crimson Tide offense seemed to finally get in gear on their ensuing drive after junior running back Vernard Roberts went on a 32-yard scamper up the right side of the field. However, the Colts’ defense found themselves in Dunbar’s backfield on the next two plays and after a delay of game penalty, Dunbar faced a third and impossible situation on a drive that started off brilliantly. The Colts took that 7-0 lead into the half.

The tide can turn quickly in a football game, however, and up 7-0 with 10 minutes left in a game that held their postseason fate in the balance, the Coolidge Colts felt first-hand how quickly that change could come.

Izegwire and quarterback Lamel Mathews hooked up on a crossing pattern that turned into a 40-yard touchdown, tying the score at 7-7 with 8:18 left in the game. On the very next possession, a fumbled snap on their side of the field cost Coolidge possession and precious field position. A couple of plays later, Izegwire was back in the endzone with a 17-yard touchdown run that proved to be the deciding factor in the game.

After the game some Colts players were visibly upset after losing such an important game that they seemed to have dominated defensively until the final quarter. With one game left in the regular season and one game out of the playoffs in the standings, the Colts need to not only beat Cardozo next week, but also hope Wilson loses to Roosevelt if they hope to make it to postseason play.

Game Stats

Rushing Leaders
Dunbar: Roberts 16-128, Izegwire 9-46
Coolidge: Ford 1-18, Williams 15-11, Jones 2-7, Barr 1-6, Oliver 2-3

Passing Leaders
Dunbar: Mathews 3-10-46, Flores 1-1-6
Coolidge: Bowser 4-21-45

Receiving Leaders
Dunbar: Izegwire 2-37, Ver. Roberts 1-9, Van. Robers 1-6
Coolidge: Barr 2-30, Ford 2-15

Scoring Summary 

Second Quarter: Coolidge Touchdown, 7-0

1-yard run by Oliver (Mbah kick) 

Fourth Quarter: Dunbar Touchdown, 7-7

40-yard pass from Mathews to Izegwire (Flores kick) 

Fourth Quarter: Dunbar Touchdown, 14-7

17-yard run by Izegwire (Flores kick)