Middle Creek football completes undefeated season, beats Apex
Following Friday’s 41-9 victory over visiting Apex, the Middle Creek coaches told their team not to read the newspaper in the upcoming week.
But it’s hard for anyone to ignore just how good these Mustangs are.
Middle Creek’s win put the finishing touches on a perfect 11-0 (7-0 Southwest Wake 4A) record, the first undefeated regular season in school history.
“We don’t want them to know how good they think they are or how good everyone else thinks they are,” first-year Mustangs coach Randy Ragland said. “We try to keep them away from all that.”
Six different Mustangs found the end zone during the regular season finale for both teams as the Cougars (4-6, 3-4) watched their campaign end. Middle Creek, champions of the SWAC, will host a playoff game next Friday against a yet-to-be-determined opponent.
Dominique Shoffner threw for 264 yards with three total touchdowns in a little more than two quarters of action as Middle Creek scored 34 unanswered points following an early 9-7 deficit.
“They’re top-heavy with seniors and they have a lot of athletes and trying to stop all of them is hard,” Apex coach Robert Graham said of the Mustangs. “They’re a seasoned team and they deserve to be unbeaten.”
Turning point
With under four minutes to play in the first half and Middle Creek clinging to a 14-9 lead, Shoffner hit Tavian McQueen for a 66-yard pass completion up the right sideline that took the Mustangs to the four yard-line. The pair hooked up again on the very next play to create a 20-9 separation.
They said it
“When I got the job here at Middle Creek, a lot of people told me that this is not the year; next year is going to be the year that we’re going to be really good.” – Mustangs coach Randy Ragland following an 11-0 season in his first year at the helm.
Three who mattered
Dominique Shoffner, Middle Creek: The quarterback completed 16 of his 22 throws for two touchdowns and also rushed for a score.
Ian Boyd, Apex: The senior caught two passes, completed three and rushed 16 times for 78 yards.
Isaiah Herring, Middle Creek: The safety had an interception and returned a fumble 22 yards for a touchdown.
By the numbers
14: Consecutive home games won by the Mustangs.
7: Consecutive years Middle Creek has defeated Apex.
206: Yards passing by Shoffner in the first half.
11: Different Mustangs to catch a pass.
This story was originally published November 6, 2015 at 10:19 PM with the headline "Middle Creek football completes undefeated season, beats Apex."