Richards’ more than Marcus Smith makes up for miscue

Updated: October 29, 2011 7:52PM

Richards senior Marcus Smith was beginning to feel the pressure of playoff football when he fumbled the ball late in the third quarter to open the door for Hyde Park.

But the 6-foot, 215-pound running back’s 15-yard touchdown with 4:07 remaining proved to be the game-winner, lifting the Bulldogs to a 28-14 victory over No. 2-seeded Hyde Park in Class 6A first-round action Saturday at Eckersall Stadium in Chicago.

With Richards leading 14-6 in the closing minute of the third period, Smith broke loose on a 20-yard run across midfield but was stripped of the ball as he was tackled. Hyde Park (7-3) recovered and marched 47 yards, scoring on Antione Cobb’s 1-yard quarterback sneak after benefitting from a roughing-the-passer call against Richards on a fourth-down play that kept the drive alive. Cobb’s two-point conversion run knotted the score at the 8:27 mark.

Richards responded with a heavy dose of Smith on its next possession. The Bulldogs embarked on an 11-play, 76-yard drive that ate more than four minutes off the clock. Smith showed mental toughness, accounting for 64 yards and punctuating the drive with a 15-yard romp to the end zone.

“It was pressure at first, but you’ve got to get through that stuff,” Smith said. “I just figured step it up more.”

Richards cornerback Donte Johnson put any notions of a Hyde Park comeback to rest, picking off quarterback Marquist Evans’ pass on the first play on the Thunderbirds’ next possession.

Tommy Mister’s 1-yard touchdown sealed the win for the Bulldogs (6-4), who face either Bremen or Hubbard in Round 2.

Hyde Park scored first when Armani Winston scooped up a Richards fumble and dashed 61 yards.

Mister threw a 42-yard touchdown pass to R.J. Balsan and a 13-yard TD to Brian Hettiger to give Richards the lead at halftime.

Smith (29 rushes, 202 yards) did most of his damage in the second half, tallying 142 yards after the midway point.

Saturday’s win marked the second consecutive year the Bulldogs ousted Hyde Park from the playoffs. Richards blasted the Thunderbirds 53-24 in the first round last season.

Now the Bulldogs, who have been bounced from the playoffs in the second round the last two seasons, will try to get over the hump.

“We can’t turn the ball over like that and win,” Richard coach Tony Sheehan said. “We got lucky today. The defense really bailed us out. If we’re going to advance, we just can’t turn the ball over.”

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