THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, December 2, 1994 TAG: 9412020721
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C8 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PAUL WHITE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: Medium: 82 lines
It took nearly a full season for Deodus Harrell to become Deep Creek's Little Big Man. If he were a little bit bigger, he probably would have been the big man a whole lot sooner.
Harrell, all 5-foot-9 and 165 pounds of him, has been a quality cornerback all season. But it took an injury to Cedrec Williams in the ninth game of the regular season before Deep Creek coach Jerry Carter turned the senior loose on offense.
``I stereotyped him because of his size,'' Carter said. ``He'd make big plays. Heck, he made big plays last year. But I always looked at him and figured he was too small to be really good.''
Carter figured wrong. As it turns out, Harrell, filling the shoes of the 6-1, 215-pound Williams, has been a big-play machine ever since.
So when E.C. Glass lines up against Deep Creek in the Division 5 state semifinal at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at City Stadium in Lynchburg, the Hornet who might concern the Hilltoppers most is a man who carried the ball only 27 times through the first nine games of the season.
``Dee's certainly exceeded expectations,'' Carter said.
The biggest of Harrell's big plays, of course, was his diving 23-yard touchdown reception from Arnie Powell in the final seconds to pull out the Hornets' pulsating 48-42 victory over Hampton last week in the Eastern Region Division 5 final.
``I felt pretty calm in the huddle,'' Harrell said. ``I was confident Arnie would get me the ball, and all I had to do was catch it.''
But that wasn't the only time Hampton got burned by Harrell. Earlier in the game, he zipped around right end and sprinted 50 yards for another score.
On the previous play, Harrell and Torrey Wilson had combined to produce the only memorable defensive play of the night. The two defensive backs stripped Hampton's Noell Rainey of the ball after a Hampton completion to produce the lone turnover of the game.
The region final was only Harrell's third game as an offensive starter. By then, however, the Hornets had become accustomed to his ability to turn a game around.
In his first game starting in place of Williams, Harrell scored from 33 yards out in the first quarter and added a game-winning 38-yard scoring run late in the fourth in the Hornets' 28-21 victory over Western Branch. He finished the night with 130 yards, 30 more than he'd gained in the previous nine games.
``So much of it is a credit to the offensive line,'' Harrell said. ``I just find the hole and go.''
The following week, he gained 80 yards on 10 carries and caught a 9-yard touchdown pass in Deep Creek's 30-19 region semifinal victory over Phoebus.
It's all made Carter look a bit slow in giving Harrell the ball. But there was nothing wrong with Williams, a combination of power and speed who complemented the power running of fullback Deon Dyer with nearly 500 yards before he went down.
Nor was it a case of the coach not knowing what he had in Harrell. A member of the Hornets' state championship 800-meter indoor relay team - along with fellow running back Lawrence Claiborne - Harrell is one of the fastest players in the area.
His great leaping ability allows him to cover taller receivers. And his football instincts are evidenced by the fact that he's made nearly seven tackles a game, high for a cornerback.
``There aren't too many people who can evaluate what he sees better than Dee,'' Carter said. ``He just understands the game.''
But because all this talent was in such a small package, Carter was reluctant to explore it on offense until he had nowhere else to turn.
Even then, Carter felt the need to fire up Harrell before giving him the ball.
``I sort of challenged him to step up,'' Carter said. ``I said, `Look, guy. No. 21 (Williams) ain't here no more. Let's see what you got.' ''
According to Harrell, the words weren't necessary.
``I wasn't going to let my teammates down,'' he said. ``I'm just doing what I have to do.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
LAWRENCE JACKSON/Staff
Deodus Harrell's diving catch lifted Deep Creek over Hampton last
week. ``I'm just doing what I have to do,'' he says.
by CNB