We’re a little less than a month into the 2016 prep football season and with the latest round of the annual matchup that pits Bridgeport against Robert C. Byrd, I’ve been giving some thought to a few things related to Bridgeport High School’s historically strong program. Most recently, I sat back and tried to figure out what I believe was the single greatest regular season game I’ve watched involving the Indians.

 

I did the same thing here four years ago. I have come to the same conclusion.

 

Now understand the words “regular season” didn’t just show up there by accident. While there have been some postseason classics I’ve watched, it’s really hard to not call the 1988 four overtime win over Winfield in the Class AA state title game in Morgantown the greatest game ever. Sure, some may think that there are others better, but I’d have a hard time not thinking that the consensus is overwhelmingly of the belief that the 29-28 win over Winfield was not only the best game in BHS history, but arguably one of the best ever in state history.

 

The 1979 win in the playoffs against Parkersburg at Hite Field is on a lot of people’s lists I would imagine. And certainly, the 14-13 win against Wayne on a snow-covered Wheeling Island Stadium that ended with a batted pass in the end zone as time expired falls into the conversation – but that’s if I opted to include the postseason. For purposes of this blog, we’re talking regular season only.

 

There is one other pair of words that aren’t coincidental in the opening paragraph, and those two words are “I believe.” What that means is that this is an OPINION. It’s my opinion and, thus, it can’t be wrong. However, what I am hoping for as a result of this blog is for those to chime in with what they believe is the single greatest regular season game they’ve ever witnessed involving Bridgeport’s football team.

 

Although my first Bridgeport game that I took in dates back to 1983, my regular following of the Tribe starts around 1990. Because of that, I’m looking at roughly the last quarter century of football.  And I have made my selection.

 

You have to go back to Oct. 5, 2000. The date may not seem significant, but the year should be recognized as the last time the Indians won a state championship on the football field prior to their recent run of three straight.

 

On that day, the Indians of Coach Bruce Carey traveled to Clarksburg to face off against fellow unbeaten Robert C. Byrd coached by former long-time BHS assistant coach Richard Iaquinta. The Eagles were a top 10 Class AAA squad, while the Indians were among the top teams – unbeaten as well – in Class AA. The game lived up to its hype like no other game I’ve ever witnessed.

 

While the game would prove to be low-scoring, the lack of offense wasn’t what set this game apart in my mind. This was arguably the most physically intense game both ways I’ve ever witnessed. Bridgeport had a nasty group of linebackers led by current coach Josh Nicewarner, Joel Horne and Jeremy Hinzeman. RCB’s linebackers were just as nasty with Mookie Mayer, Joey Gonzalez and Sam D’Annunzio leading the way.

 

The hard-hitting affair saw the teams go into halftime scoreless. That all changed at the start of the second half when Bridgeport’s ground game would get on track for the only time in the contest. In fact, the Tribe got almost half of its rushing yards for the game (just 154 on 44 carries) on a very lengthy ground drive.

 

What made the Indians’ only score of this titanic game even more special is that they not only converted successfully late in the drive on a fourth down conversion, but also converted on a fake punt. The drive, incredibly, covered 20 plays and used up 9 minutes and 17 seconds of game clock. This was in the days of the stick-I, or pre-power pistol or shot gun offensive formation for you youngsters.

 

It ended when quarterback Chris Lindsey scored on a keeper from two yards out. Of course, the lead appeared set to go to 7-0 as Tyler Dodd came on for his usual automatic point-after try. Unfortunately, a personal foul penalty after the touchdown moved the kick from a chip shot to a 35-yard point-after try.

 

Dodd’s kick would be true. And as it turned out thanks to an incredible defensive play later, it would be the game-winning point.

 

With a 7-0 lead and the game in the fourth quarter, a deep Dodd kickoff resulted in the Eagles taking over at their own 20 yard line. Considering the Indians had thwarted RCB throughout, the game was certainly over, right?

 

Wrong.

 

After going three quarters and some change without scoring, Robert C. Byrd needed just four plays to cover 80 yards and score a touchdown that left them a point short of tying the game.

 

On the point-after try, Nicewarner came through the line virtually untouched and blocked the ball away. Again, the game seemed over. And again, RCB would make the Indians uncomfortable late in the game until another all-time BHS great put an end to things.

 

With less than four minutes to play, the Eagles found themselves in Bridgeport territory. With the drive stalling, the Eagles faced a critical fourth down play that resulted in C.R. Rohrbough putting an end to the speculation. Rohrbough managed to intercept an RCB pass and give the ball back to the Tribe, who would run out the clock.

 

As dominant as RCB was on defense holding Bridgeport to just 157 yards (not surprisingly just 3 yards passing), Bridgeport’s defense was even better. The Tribe yielded just 137 yards of offense.

 

What made the game even more impressive is that Bridgeport ended up winning the Class AA state championship that season. The Eagles, although not winning the Class AAA state title, went to Morgantown and had the eventual state champions battling from behind until faltering late.

 

It could be argued that on this particular day, two of the top five teams in the state –in any classification – battled for four quarters of the best defensive football ever. For me, it was the best Bridgeport High School game I’ve ever watched. There have been plenty of other great ones over the years, including some in recent years.

 

However, if you want my all-time favorite, that's it. Feel free to tell myself and everyone else their favorite in the comments section below.

 

The floor is yours.

 

Editor's Note: Top photo shows Josh Nicewarner after the 7-6 win against Robert C. Byrd in 2000. Middle photo is of two of Bridgeport's top linebackers on that squad in pre-game meditation, Nicewarner and Hinzeman. Bottom photo is of C.R. Rohrbough, a junior in 2000 who came up with one of the game's biggest defensive plays. All photos courtesy of Alice Rowe and the Bridgeport High School journalism department.