THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, December 10, 1995 TAG: 9512100190
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C10 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PAUL WHITE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NEWPORT NEWS LENGTH: Medium: 51 lines
He fumbled the first two times he touched the ball, dropped a sure interception and finished the game with minus-13 yards rushing.
Otherwise, it was just another record-setting, awe-inspiring day in the remarkable career of Hampton quarterback Ronald Curry.
The dazzling sophomore threw for a state-playoff record 274 yards, tossed two touchdown passes and ran for another score as the Crabbers pounded E.C. Glass, 35-7, in the Group AAA, Division 5 championship game Saturday before a standing-room-only crowd at 8,000-seat Todd Stadium.
Curry's fumble on the game's opening play set the Hilltoppers up for a touchdown with the contest only three minutes old. From there, however, the Crabbers scored 35 unanswered points and by the fourth quarter were in such command that coach Mike Smith got the traditional ice-water dousing with more than two minutes remaining, and Curry was signing autographs during the Hilltoppers' futile march toward a final, face-saving score.
At the final gun, the jubilant Crabbers piled atop their sophomore quarterback, a stunt that caused Smith the most anxiety he suffered all day. ``Somebody might get hurt!'' Smith frantically exclaimed while snatching Crabber after Crabber off The Franchise.
The victory gave Hampton (13-1) its first state title of the 1990s, 13th overall. And it came on a day when half the weapons in Curry's formidable arsenal - those centered around to his elusive, game-breaking running skills - were negated by a slick field.
``I had a lot of trouble getting my footing,'' said Curry, who completed 8 of 15 passes. ``So I figured I'd just pass a little more.''
On his first attempt, Curry fired a strike some 40 yards in the air, hitting Ahmad Hawkins in stride for an 86-yard touchdown pass play which tied the game at seven.
Curry also connected with Kenny Crawford on a 25-yard scoring pass, and set up Hampton's fourth touchdown with a 76-yard pass play to tight end Robert Blizzard.
The 274 yards easily eclipsed the old standard, 220 by First Colonial's Denny Hedspeth against West Potomac in 1989.
While Curry flourished, E.C. Glass quarterback Andre Kendrick floundered, as the Crabber defense adroitly exposed the 5-10 senior's weaknesses as a pocket passer - staring down his primary receiver, a slow release and a lack of arm strength. Kendrick completed just 3 of his 17 attempts for 18 yards and three interceptions as the Hilltoppers (11-3) fell in the state playoffs to an Eastern Region opponent for the fifth straight year. by CNB