"Lunch" Served: Two fourth-quarter TDs by Lutcher QB lift Bulldogs to Division II non-select title

By Buck Ringgold 

Lutcher photo by Beau Brune 

NEW ORLEANS - He was given the nickname “Lunch” because he once ate his grandfather’s lunch as a youngster, which stuck.

Appropriately enough, during lunch time on Saturday, Lutcher senior quarterback D’Wanye’ “Lunch” Winfield fed his appetite when the Bulldogs really needed him to do so.

Winfield helped Lutcher rally from a 19-7 third-quarter deficit in the Division II non-select state championship game by rushing for a touchdown and adding two fourth-quarter TDs as the Bulldogs claimed their ninth title in program history with a 28-25 win against North DeSoto at the Caesars Superdome.

It took a while for Winfield to get going. Lutcher had two red zone opportunities in the first half, but was held on downs both times and trailed, 13-7, at halftime.

“I felt like it was me; I felt like I wasn’t going to my full potential," Winfield said. "I was like, halfing it and halfing it, tiptoeing. Then (Lutcher coach Dwain Jenkins) got on me at halftime, like, ‘You’ve got to run full speed. C’mon 'Lunch,' you’ve got to come on,’ and I did, it boosted me a little.”

The biggest moment for “Lunch” was on the opening play of the fourth quarter, with Lutcher (14-1) trailing 19-14 and facing a fourth-and-4 at midfield. Instead of perhaps trying to utilize Winfield’s legs on a keeper, Lutcher coach Dwain Jenkins called for a curveball.

It ended up being a home run.

Winfield launched a deep pass down the left side, and it landed in the hands of his receiver, Tylin Johnson, inside the North DeSoto 10. Johnson caught the pass on the run and glided into the end zone for the Bulldogs’ go-ahead TD.

“We knew we had to get the first down, and it took whatever we needed,” Winfield said. “I saw Tylin Johnson; the trust and chemistry is there, and I was like, ‘I know he’s going to get this,’ so I threw it to him.”

Johnson was also ready for Winfield’s curve ball. Or change-up, if you will.

“I knew that was fourth down, and we had been running the ball a lot and it wasn’t really working,” Johnson said. “So we had to change it up and throw the ball. … I had a feeling it was going to come to me because we had been practicing this the whole week, so I just executed, did my job.

“‘Lunch,’ he put it on the money for me, and I went up and got it.”

Winfield and Johnson connected again after Lutcher’s defense forced a three-and-out on the next series. The Bulldogs finished off a 10-play 87-yard drive, with Winfield finding Johnson on a middle slant from 25 yards out with 7:48 remaining.

Trayce Millet added the all-important PAT to make it a two-score lead, 28-19.

“That actually wasn’t the play,” Johnson said. “He had seen it, he looked on the field, he gave me a post route, but he changed it. I ran it, listened to him, trusted him and he threw it to me - on the money again - for another touchdown.”

Winfield finished the game accounting for 429 of the Bulldogs’ 443 yards of total offense as he was named the team’s Most Outstanding Player afterward.

He completed 20-of-32 passes for 299 yards and three TDs, and also carried the ball 43 times for 130 yards and a TD, a 4-yard keeper with more than five minutes left in the third that cut the Griffins’ lead to five, 19-14.

Winfield’s first TD pass went to receiver Dameium Marcell, a 25-yard strike which tied the score at 7-all late in the opening quarter.

“I think in a lot of ways, it was kind of throughout the playoffs, people took ‘Lunch’ not having to throw the ball as him not being able to throw the ball, which is two different things,” Jenkins said. “When we started the playoffs, he had like 1,700 yards passing; he had thrown 20-something touchdowns and he’s only thrown four interceptions.

“And he’s a 63, 64 percent completion guy, so it’s not like he can’t throw, it’s just when you’re in the playoffs, it’s a one-game season, so you do whatever you take to win that one game.”

The Bulldogs also got it done on defense, forcing five turnovers. Three of those were interceptions from senior cornerback Craydon Long. Junior linebacker Kai Brown also picked off a pass with 2:08 remaining, with Lutcher still up by nine.

But perhaps the biggest turnover the Bulldogs forced came late in the third quarter, after they cut North DeSoto’s lead to 19-14.

The Griffins marched down the field, and tailback Johnathan Lewis broke off a long run as he went inside the Lutcher 10. But Lutcher junior safety Brock Louque jarred the ball loose, and his teammate, linebacker Tariot Snowden, made the recovery at his own 6.

That led to a nine-play 94-yard drive, ending with Winfield’s first TD throw to Johnson.

“I think Brock’s been our best defensive player all year long; he has something that you really can’t coach,” Jenkins said. “He’s got a championship pedigree; he’s got a knack for making big plays in big moments.

“He had five RBIs in the state championship baseball game last year and was the MVP of that game, so when you’ve got a guy like that who’s got a knack for making plays, you’ve got to believe that sooner or later, he’s going to make his presence felt and he will make that play.”

North DeSoto finished with 429 yards of total offense. Freshman quarterback Luke Delafield completed 23-of-39 passes for 320 yards and two TDs - a 78-yard strike to Chris Falls on the Griffins’ second offensive play from scrimmage as well as a 5-yard toss to Falls on the game’s final play.

Receiver Chris Cory caught 12 passes for 124 yards, while fellow receiver Sam Odom had seven catches for 86 yards. Odom also threw a 22-yard TD pass on a trick play to Brian Banks, giving the Griffins a 13-7 lead early in the second quarter.

North DeSoto (12-2), which was making its first-ever championship game appearance, extended its lead to 19-7 on a 1-yard TD run on fourth-and-goal by Marques Hampton with 8:22 left in the third.

But from then on, it was practically “Lunch” time for Lutcher. Especially right before the fourth quarter commenced.

“I really didn’t tell (Winfield) much about (the game-turning TD) because what I’ve found in coaching quarterbacks over the years, if you try to get too specific and you try to give him too much instructions, you’ll flood them and they’ll make a big mistake,” Jenkins said.

“You’ve just got to trust that you’ve worked with them enough throughout the year that they can read it out and they’ll make the right decision and it’s easy to trust 'Lunch.'”

The Griffins’ Most Outstanding Player went to senior safety Hunter Addison, who had a game-high 16 tackles, 13 of those solo stops. He also had a sack, a tackle for loss and a forced fumble.