Coming out of the locker room in non-traditional red pants, the established Mustangs showed their true strength and finale-style intensity from the opening minutes of the game as they scored on their first drive with a nine-yard pass from senior quarterback Eric Blush to running back John Schwengel. Running misdirection and play-action passes against the aggressive style of the Rams’ linebackers created many opportunities for the Mustangs to score, which they did various times in the first half. Senior running back Travis Greene opened the scoring in the second quarter with a 55- yard run, and Blush followed with a five-yard touchdown run of his own on the next offensive drive. After the Mustang defense consistently held the Rams’ offense from moving the chains, the Mustang offense ran away with the game as they went to the air with Greene and Schwengel both catching touchdown passes before the end of the half.

Assisted by senior Gregg Curtin, right, and junior Ben Zorn, left, junior running-back Eddie Huber utilizes one of his 10 carries to find a hole in the Strasburg Rams’ defense. Huber had 91 yards total as the Mustangs beat the Rams 55-22. (Photo by Bob Morrison, Bonnie Briar Productions)

After some halftime adjustments were made by Strasburg, some intensity was added to the game as both teams drove against each other to score on ensuing touchdowns. The Mustangs constantly held their lead, and were able to circulate their crew of running backs with seven out of eight running for 10 total yards or more. 

Junior running back Eddie Huber played one of his best games, with pounding runs and broken tackles which shadowed the abilities of a former Mason fullback (Class of ’05 Steve Williams). Huber finished the night with 10 carries for 91 yards, and had a season total of 82 rushes for 450 yards with six touchdowns. The senior class was able to contribute as always, but especially on senior night as seniors Travis Greene, Sean McCrary, Eric Blush, John Schwengel and Gregg Curtin all had touchdowns for the night – McCrary and Curtin had their first and only touchdowns for the season last Friday night. The Mustangs moved the ball for a total of 481 yards, and held Strasburg to 217 yards total. The victory brought the Mustangs final record to 7-3, with a 4-1 district record. Their one district loss was perhaps the most painful of the last few seasons, which was to the Manassas Park Cougars two weeks ago on Friday. Going into the game as underdogs, the Mustangs dominated off the ball offensively and were one of the “hardest hitting teams that [quarterback Jay Terrell] had ever played against.”

Senior quarterback Eric Blush reads the defense as the Mustangs’ offensive unit prepares for another dominant play. The offense produced a total of 481 yards against the Rams and had eight touchdowns for the last game of their season. Players from left to right: Eddie Huber, Gregg Curtin, Austin Lucas, Eric Blush, Ryan Larcamp, Travis Greene, Matt Langford, Ben Zorn. (Photo By Joel Yatsko)

The Mustangs battled it out until the fourth quarter when the Cougars took the lead from a 14-14 tie and scored with a 97- yard drive with less than three minutes left in the game. The Mustang offense could not convert on fourth down in Cougar territory and were forced to give the ball and the win to the Cougars. 

The Mustangs were able to put pressure on the Cougars both offensively and defensively throughout the game; however, forcing three defensive turnovers and producing 247 yards of offensive; only 10 yards less than the Cougars total offensive yards for the night. The Mustangs also held the lead at one point in the second quarter, when senior running back Travis Green blasted through the Cougars’ defense and raced for a 61-yard touchdown. Junior Ben Zorn converted the extra point to make the score 7-6. Terrell and the Cougars responded with a drive of their own, capping the first half scoring with a three-yard touchdown and two-point conversion.

Down by one touchdown, a playoff spot on the line, and one more half to play, the Mustangs could not think of a better opportunity to step up and show that they deserved to be the team that ended the Cougars’ 35-regular-season-game winning streak. The third quarter seemed to be in their favor, as the Mustangs took the kickoff and turned their possession into a pounding drive that ended with a touchdown. The fourth quarter was not so fortunate, however, as the Mustangs could not convert on offense, lost a fumble, and gave up one long pass that gave the Cougars the field position to take the lead.

Since only four teams from the Division II Region B can go to the playoffs, it is normally the district champion teams that become berth holders for their specific division. In the Bull-Run district case, Manassas Park’s undefeated record took the berth spot. George Mason’s competitive schedule and tough district opponents can surely be admired, and a 4-1 district record is the one of the best turnouts from the last three seasons for the Mustangs.

The senior class has nine graduating players, including all-star running back Travis Greene who finished the season with 149 rushing attempts for 1,431 yards and 23 touchdowns. When pass receptions and kick returns are contributed to the figure, Green well surpassed his season goal of 1,500 yards total or more – somewhere closer to 2,000. Senior running back John Schwengel and junior running back Eddie Huber provided the supplementing runs, with 82 attempts for 636 and 450 yards respectively.

When the Mustangs did pass, Eric Blush provided the arm with 17 completions out of 38 attempts, 341 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions. His targets included Schwengel with 160 total reception yards and four touchdowns, Gregg Curtin with 69 total yards, Travis Green with 33 total yards and a touchdown, and Scott Lemen with 23 total yards and a touchdown.

Possibly the most important part of the Mustangs’ football program is its defense, as Ryan Larcamp stormed up the stats with 81 tackles, 16 tackle assists and 8 tackles for loss. Eddie Huber, Travis Greene, Ben Zorn, Scott Lemen, Gregg Curtin, Cody Reynolds and Eric Blush all had more than 20 solo tackles for the season and the majority had a comparable number of tackle assists for the season. Many players from the junior class were starters on both sides of the ball, including co-captain Ryan Larcamp who will be a major contributor to the program again next year.

Assistant Coaches R. Clark and J. Wright started as coaches the same year many senior class players started playing in eighth grade, so some connections have been established to many of the senior players. Although some of the players and coaching staff are sad to see the senior class leave, they look into next year’s players with optimism and a parallel drive that will hopefully follow the senior’s footsteps.