Mason, Neal run past Millbrook to push Colonels into playoffs

WINCHESTER — For just the second time in 10 years, the James Wood High School football team is headed to the playoffs.

In need of one final victory to push themselves into the postseason, the Colonels defeated Millbrook 43-27 at Kelican Stadium on Friday night to finish the regular season 7-3 (2-2 Class 4 Northwestern District).

With the win and losses from E.C. Glass and Mecklenburg — which were both ranked ahead of No. 9 James Wood at No. 7 and No. 8, respectively, in Region 4D — the Colonels qualified for the postseason for the first time since 2021. They will be the No. 6 or No. 7 seed in the playoffs.

James Wood’s postseason berth was spurred by quarterback Owen Neal and running back Kobe Mason, who were involved in 380 of 381 total yards by the Colonels in the win over the Pioneers (3-7, 1-3). Mason finished with a game-high 152 rushing yards and two TDs on 17 carries and had 31 receiving yards. Neal had 116 rushing yards and three TDs — all of which came in the third quarter — on 23 carries. He was also 7-for-13 passing for 112 yards and one TD. Dominik Ramirez was the only Colonel besides Neal or Mason to attempt a run.

Neal, who will play his first-ever high school playoff game next week, couldn’t have been happier to be a part of the elated postgame huddle that had the Colonels chanting, “We ready, we ready! Come get this, come get this!”

“It’s hard to describe,” Neal said. “We just knew we battled for each other and that it meant a lot for the seniors. We’re just glad we could get the win for the seniors and not [have it be] the last game and just extend the season.”

That postgame celebration came after a back-and-forth first half before the Colonels eventually put the game away late.

After fumbling on a kickoff return and giving up two field goals to Millbrook, Wood ran just five plays on offense in the first quarter as the Colonels fell down 6-0 early. They then proceeded to score 21 points in the second quarter in a back-and-forth 12 minutes of action.

Neal kicked off the scoring for Wood on a 12-yard keeper to the right to give the Colonels a 7-6 lead with 11 minutes left in the second quarter. Fourteen seconds later, Millbrook was back in the end zone on a 90-yard kickoff return by Rylee Baker.

The Colonels’ offense responded with a 52-yard drive capped off by a 1-yard keeper by Neal five minutes later to make it 14-13. Neal had his longest completion of the night on that drive — a 33-yard strike to wide receiver Kaden McCullough over the middle.

Millbrook answered the bell on its next drive, going 53 yards before Baker reached the end zone again on a 12-yard pitch to the left to give the Pioneers a 20-14 lead.

Looking to take back the lead, Mason ran for 37 yards on the ensuing drive to help set up Neal’s third rushing TD of the second quarter on an 8-yard keeper with 35 seconds left before halftime. The Colonels entered the locker room up 21-20 after that score.

Looking to capture more momentum after the break, the Colonels proceeded to go on a 15-play, 80-yard drive.

With the ball on the Pioneers’ 35-yard line on fourth-and-6, Neal launched a pass to wide receiver Xander Manzo, who dragged his feet near the left sidelines for a 26-yard gain and a first down.

Four plays later, offensive coordinator Joey Yurish dialed up a play that ended up giving the Colonels a 28-20 lead with 6:47 left in the third quarter.

On fourth-and-goal from the Pioneers’ 4-yard line, Neal took the snap and shuffled forward a couple of feet before leaping and flicking the ball to Vincent Salvati for a jump-pass TD.

“I knew Coach Yurish was gonna call red four, and I just knew I just needed to get there, pop it over," Neal said. "I was just hoping I wasn't gonna mess it up. Just get it to Vinny and let him do the rest.”

James Wood coach Todd Wilson said the play was named after the jump pass that Florida quarterback Tim Tebow ran against LSU in 2006.

“We just call it Tebow,” Wilson said. “We put that in several weeks ago, and we really hadn't had an opportunity to run it. It's a great opportunity there to put a ball out there for him to catch, and Vinny made the catch.”

Salvati said he was surprised when he heard the coaches call the play.

“When they called it, I was licking my chops,” Salvati said.

Sixty-nine of Mason’s 152 yards on the ground came on the Colonels’ final two drives of the game, as the senior tailback helped ice the game with a 3-yard TD at the end of the third quarter to make it 35-20 and a 22-yard TD with 1:58 left in the fourth quarter.

With the Colonels up 35-27 with three minutes to go in the final quarter, they recovered Millbrook’s onside kick attempt to take possession near midfield. Four plays later, Mason followed a pancake block by offensive lineman Kquinse Robinson and spun off a defender for the 22-yard score, putting the stamp on the victory.

“He pancaked him,” Mason said of the late TD. “I saw green grass, and I was just ready to go, and then I broke that tackle, and I was just going into the touchdown.”

Wilson, who is in Year 2 at the helm of the Colonels’ program, thinks making the playoffs is a step in the right direction after last year’s 4-6 finish.

“We feel that we have just as good athletes as anybody else around the county,” Wilson said. “We know that the teams are really good. We know year in, year out, that Sherando, Handley and Millbrook — I know Millbrook had a down year. They battled injuries, but you saw how well they played tonight with us. They're a good program — I just want us in that conversation.”

Defensively, the Colonels allowed Millbrook to gain 238 yards (all rushing). Salvati, a linebacker, played a major part in that effort. He was ecstatic to lead the Colonels to their first playoff berth in three years.

“It’s been part of my life basically for the last four years,” Salvati said. “When it hit zero on the clock, that's when I really lost it. Everybody came over. I just felt loved by the community and my teammates and the coaches.”

The Pioneers’ season ended with a depleted roster. They were once again without multiple starters on Friday, including running back and defensive back Kyler Jackson, running back and defensive back Julius Brown, running back and defensive back Rome Johnson and offensive and defensive lineman Ezra Doyle-Naegeli.

Millbrook coach Josh Haymore said he’s never had a season with this many significant injuries to key players.

“I'm proud of how hard all of the guys play,” Haymore said. “We literally scraped the depth chart. The bottoms of the depth chart, the top of the depth chart, every part of the depth chart this entire year. We got a lot of experience with a lot of kids. But every time, it amazes me that these kids don't quit; they don't stop.”

Baker led Millbrook with 80 rushing yards and one TD on 12 carries. Chase Jones was right behind Baker with 79 yards and one score on 18 attempts.

This fall was the worst season Millbrook has had since 2021, when the Pioneers finished 1-9.

Haymore is hoping the amount of experience that the younger players received this season will bode well for next year.

“The things that we've had happen to us during the year, whether it was injuries or other things, these kids have learned adversity, and they've learned resilience,” Haymore said. “They've learned dedication and commitment to their teammates and their friends and their coaches and their schools.”

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