Newton Storm Back to Beat High Point

Newton football coach Matt Parzero’s halftime speech was full of vim, vigor, confidence, optimism and hope Friday night.

His Braves trailed but would take the second half kickoff, drive downfield and score, and come back and beat High Point.

At least, that is what he wanted.

One out of three ain’t good.

But in Parzero’s case, it sure was enough.

High Point squibbed the second-half kickoff, recovered, and scored.

But Parzero was right about one thing: Newton would indeed win.

In an epic comeback, the Braves scored 28 unanswered points and went on to score a wild 41-27 victory in a titanic battle of two undefeated teams.

Newton trailed early in the third quarter, 27-13, before pouring it on.

The 6-0 Braves were down, but not out.

And now they have a chance to regain the American Blue championship.

The program’s streak of eight straight divisional titles ended last year – thanks to a loss to High Point.

But this year’s team is made of tough stuff.

“The fumble, at first, was tragic, but I knew we’d keep it together,” lineman Joey Melillo said. “We have been playing together since we were 5 years old. We have been in these moments a lot. Two years ago, we were down two touchdowns against High Point and we stayed together and won. I knew we’d be OK.”

“We played with more fire,” RB Evan Cotter explained. “When the second half came around, we were all talking to each other and felt like we needed to win for each other. Everyone picked up their game at that point.”

Newton took it up a notch and played at an exceptionally high level in the second half, especially when you consider High Point (5-1) came in undefeated and was rolling.

“I loved the effort in the second half,” Melillo said. “Everyone, not just the offense or defense, but kickoff and punt and the return teams showed great effort. We finally got more physical. In the first half, we missed some tackles and were not as physical. We played like a family.”

Added Parzero, “Our kids showed grit down 14 on the road to start the half.”

Newton’s Wing-T won the night, thanks to the work of Cotter (31 for 212, 6 TDs … you read that correctly, 6 TDs). Cotter operated behind an efficient O-Line (center Jamason Trout, guards Melillo and Damian Thorsen, tackles Tim McNamara and Ethan Cooke, tight end Ethan Collier) that paved open some nice holes.

“It was exciting,” Cotter said. “The line did it all, it wasn’t just me. I couldn’t have done it without Reid Corino and Braxton Guerra and my tight end (Ethan Collier). It is the whole team.”

“It all comes down to the linemen,” Parzero added.

The line loves what lines up behind them.

“I feel so comfortable with Evan behind our line,” Melillo said. “I know the line will do the job and he’ll find a way. His acceleration is so good. He’s so quick. No one catches him. And Reid Carino (8 for 62) and Braxton Guerra (4 for 24) are so athletic. I trust those guys with my life.”

Cotter continued what is amounting to an All-State caliber season. He is 98 for 1,181 rushing and has scored 22 touchdowns. His improvement is stunning: Last year, he was 84 for 616 and only four TDs – a nice season, to be sure, but is in another stratosphere these days.

Cotter is now being mentioned in the same breath as some of the Newton running greats of season’s past, guys like Chase Cramer (school-record 4,400 yards in three years), Brayden Nolan (2,286) and Thaylor Sibblies (2,266). Cotter (2,367) is unofficially third all-time on the school’s rushing yardage list.

“He definitely is in the conversation as those guys,” Parzero said. “I’ll answer that in the last game of the season. He is definitely up there. 

“He is a better kid than a player,” Parzero raved. “He is team first. He gets more excited when his teammates make a play, even though he makes a lot of plays. He has no ego. He has fun out there. When you get to know him, he is a special kid. He is in the National Honor Society. He is smart and the total package. 

“We told him before the year, we wanted to move him around. He is our fullback, but in shotgun, he is a tailback. He is a fullback type of kid, 5-8, 170, so he is good-sized. He’s well-proportioned. He has fullback physicality, tailback vision, sees the second level, cuts back and anticipates. The more carries he gets, the better he runs, he doesn’t get tired.”

Run-heavy Newton needed a lift to counter High Point in the second half and went to the pass, of all things. QB Cole Young faked a handoff to Cotter and connected with Corino, which seemed to set things in motion for the comeback.

“We needed a burst play and we got it,” Parzero said. “They were keying on Cotter and we hit it. 

A short time later, Newton cut it to 27-20 when Cotter went in from the 13. Later in the quarter, he scored a 3-yard touchdown and the game was tied.

Cotter added runs of 4 and 11 yards in the fourth quarter.

The Newton defense, which couldn’t contain High Point in the first half, got more physical in the second half when Parzero inserted the physical duo of Melillo and McNamara up front. 

“We were trying to prevent the big play and they weren’t making a mistake and they made plays,” Parzero said. “We had to play more aggressively. We didn’t have much of a cushion. We didn’t switch our scheme. We got a big boost from Melillo and McNamara. They played more than normal on defense. We needed some tough guys in there and they came through.”

“Last year, we lost this game,” Cotter said. “For the first time in eight years, we lost the division and we had to prove something. We wanted to win the  division and next go to the states and make a difference.”

They sure made a difference in the second half against High Point. North Group I, be warned.