It’s a not-so-happy return for Bulldogs in season-ending loss

By Jason Guarente — MikeDragoSports.com senior correspondent

HARRISBURG – With less than a minute left in its unexpected playoff run, Wilson needed a miracle. That’s when the ball floated into the hands of a player who could provide one.

Cameron Jones can score from anywhere. Even from inside his own 10 on a punt return. Half of the miracle was Harrisburg giving him the chance instead of kicking it out of bounds. The other half was what Jones was about to do next.

“I probably could have cribbed it,” he said. “I already beat their corner guy. He was their safety. After him it was a race down the sideline, which I think I could have won.”

We’ll never know how that play unfolds without the flagrant, intentional facemask that sent Jones spinning dangerously to the turf. We can only guess.

Instead of a miracle, Wilson was left with a hypothetical. Instead of a trophy and a chance to play one more game at Gurski Stadium, the Bulldogs were out of time.

No. 2 Harrisburg outlasted fifth-seeded Wilson 14-10 in the District 3 Class 6A football final at Severance Field Saturday. The Cougars are the champs for the first time since 2018.

Wilson coach Doug Dahms thought Jones had a shot to break it for a TD.

“Would have been close,” Dahms said. “We had people set up and everything. But it didn’t happen.”

It wasn’t just about that one return, of course. It was about the 100-plus plays that preceded it and followed it. Those added up to a story Wilson hasn’t lived in months.

The Bulldogs couldn’t overpower Harrisburg like they had other talented opponents. They couldn’t enforce their will with their front five and two-pronged running attack. That was really the difference.

“They beat us in the trenches in the second half,” Dahms said. “Give them credit. They were a very physical football team with a lot of skilled athletes. Two good teams battled it out and somebody’s got to lose. Unfortunately, it was us.”

Wilson’s defense played valiantly. It held Harrisburg scoreless through the first half and limited the Cougars’ big plays throughout. Linebackers Landon Farrell and Gavin Lenart combined for 13 solo tackles and assisted on nine more.

When the players put up four fingers to signify the final 12 minutes, Wilson held a 10-7 lead and was on the cusp of completing its mission.

Harrisburg (12-1) found just enough offense to prevail. The Cougars opened the second half with an 11-play drive that was capped by freshman quarterback Shawn Lee’s sneak. The winning touchdown came on Lee’s 7-yard keeper with 9:24 left in the fourth quarter.

Mahkai Hopkins rushed 25 times for 130 yards for Harrisburg. He carried the ball on 14 of the Cougars’ final 16 plays.

Wilson’s only touchdown came on Jadyn Jones’ 16-yard run in the third quarter. It was the last of nine consecutive running plays. That was the one time Wilson (9-4) looked like the dominant force that dismissed top-seeded Central York and No. 4 York High in the earlier rounds.

Harrisburg held Wilson without a first down on its next two possessions. The Cougars stopped the Bulldogs on fourth-and-2 at their own 43 with 1:37 left.

Jadyn Jones rushed for 100 yards. Quarterback Brad Hoffman finished with 42. Both of them reached at least 130 yards in each of the previous five games. Harrisburg didn’t let it happen again.

“They’ve got such skill and such speed it’s really hard,” Dahms said. “There were times we got blocks and they came off them and made the play. We gave it a good shot.” 

The drive that will haunt Wilson was quietly tucked into the end of the third quarter. It was easy to overlook in hindsight. It only lasted four plays and traveled 1 yard.

After Dominic Memmo recovered a fumble on Harrisburg’s 30, Wilson had a three-point lead and the ball. This was the Bulldogs’ chance to gain separation. They didn’t.

“That really hurt momentum,” Dahms said. “We got that turnover. We had it deep in their territory. We had an opportunity to go up two scores. We did nothing with it.”

Cameron Jones was illegally thrown to the ground at the 10 with 29 seconds left. If a play can be both dirty and smart, that was the case here. Wilson took the 15 yards but didn’t have enough time to put together a drive.

Wilson’s players knelt on the turf and coped with the disappointment afterward. They fought back tears. That included defensive end Nick Weitzel, who had his right arm in a sling.

The Bulldogs’ seven-game winning streak didn’t make it to eight. Sometimes there isn’t a storybook ending, no matter how hard you try.

“We’ve been underdogs or road warriors,” Cameron Jones said. “We fought. No one thought we’d even be here. I’m trying not to cry. To end the way we did was a helluva season. I felt we put our all into it.”

Going from 2-3 to the district final in Class 6A is quite a journey. That will be the enduring memory from these past few months.

Not the losses. The way the Bulldogs responded to them.

“You’ve got to be proud of them,” Dahms said. “They could have easily rolled over and died. They fought back. They played really tough. They beat a lot of really good teams. They had this team on the ropes. We couldn’t quite finish it.”

	1	2	3	4	Final
Wilson	3	0	7	0	10
Harrisburg	0	0	7	7	14

Scoring summary

1	Wilson	Rada, 24 FG	1:17
3	Harrisburg	Lee, 1 run (Hopkins kick)	6:26
3	Wilson	J. Jones, 16 run (Rada kick)	2:19
4	Harrisburg	Lee, 7 run (Hopkins kick)	9:24

Team statistics

	Wilson	Harrisburg
First downs	14	13
Rushes-yards	41-144	38-163
Passing yards	70	55
Total yards	214	218
Passes	8-14-0	6-12-1
Fumbles-lost	0-0	1-1
Punts-average	3-23.7	5-30.4
Penalties-yards	5-37	10-65

Individual statistics

RUSHING

Wilson: J. Jones 21-100, Hoffman 19-42, Flite 1-2.

Harrisburg: Hopkins 25-130, Williams 5-31, Lee 6-6, Cook 2-(-4).

PASSING

Wilson: Hoffman 8-13-0–70; Team 0-1-0–0. 

Harrisburg: Lee 6-12-1–55.

RECEIVING

Wilson: Flite 3-43, J. Jones 2-11, Williams 1-10, Lenart 1-6, Dendall 1-0.

Harrisburg: Williams 4-27, Grandberry 1-18, Waters 1-10.

INTERCEPTIONS

Wilson: McMillan.