Don't be late for tonight's 4A state football championship in Annapolis as No. 2 North County takes on Largo of Prince George's County at 7:30.
Topper Ellis ran back the opening kickoff for 93 yards and a touchdown for North County in a 39-15 quarterfinal win over No. 5 Arundel, and he darted 90 yards with 2:15 left to enable the Knights to upset then-No. 1 Patterson, 18-15, in the semifinals.
Largo's Jason Shupe stunned No. 6 Severna Park in the quarterfinals by returning the opening kick 86 yards for a touchdown on the way to a 32-14 romp, and Shupe averaged 63 yards on three punt returns in a 21-13 triumph over Springbrook in their semifinal.
North County and Largo have taken similar paths to center stage at Al Laramore Field, and on paper look as close as any two teams could for the state championship game.
"We match up real well in speed and size," said North County coach Chuck Markiewicz, whose analysis is supported by the numbers. Each team is 10-2, a region winner (North County in the East and Largo in the South) and a county champion, Largo in Prince George's (8-0) and North County in Anne Arundel (tri-champion with Arundel and Severna Park at 6-1).
It's the fourth playoff appearance for both teams under the same coach, although Largo won a state Class A title (now 3A) in 1976 and did not make it again until 1991 under Rocco Romeo (157-94 in 24 years at Largo, 217-104 overall). The Lions returned in 1992 and just missed in 1993.
Friendly in 1983 is the last Prince George's team to win a 4A title.
Chuck Markiewicz (45-11 at North County, 62-24 overall) has coached the Knights (3-3 in playoffs) to four straight postseason berths, and his '94 edition is the first Anne Arundel team to make it to the 4A final since Annapolis lost to Randallstown, 14-6, in 1984.
Statistically, North County and Largo are strikingly close. Largo gave up only an average of 9.3 points while scoring 18.3 in the regular season, compared to North County's 12.3 and 23.9. Both had three shutouts.
Through 12 games, Largo has averaged 19.6 points (236) and given up 13.5 with North County at 24.6 and 12.7, respectively.
As for common opponents, North County was 3-0 against Eleanor Roosevelt (28-18), Severna Park (46-26) and Annapolis (7-0), while Largo lost to Annapolis (20-13) in the season opener but defeated Roosevelt (8-0) and Severna Park (32-14).
The similarities continue with the main offensive weapons. Ellis leads all ball carriers with 1,504 yards on 184 attempts (8.1 average) and has 20 touchdowns.
Shupe (213 carries for 1,389 yards, 6.5 per) and Vince Peden (100 for 1,095) have combined for 2,484 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns each.
Quarterback Earl Sewell (147-for-278, 18 touchdowns) directs the Knights' run-and-shoot, an offense the aggressive Lions have not played against.
Sophomore quarterback Kurt Faison (42-for-87, 802, eight) guides Largo's pro-I play-action offense.
Defensively, Largo boasts outstanding punishing linebackers in Peden and Tai Alli and two superb down linemen in John Wagstaff and Mike Heatley.
Markiewicz expects the Lions' "46" defense to go after Sewell by shooting the gaps in the middle, a tactic that past playoff teams have used against the Knights with great success.
Such strategy will test the Knights' offensive line, not to mention Sewell's release and ability to read the defense. Wagstaff and Alli each have 12 sacks and could present a problem for the Knights.
On the other side of the ball, the Knights are also strong at linebacker with Steve Tomshack and Cesar Romero, and parallel the Lions on the line with Mike Smith and John Williams. All four have more than 100 tackles and hope to keep Largo from controlling the ball and the clock.
If defensive coordinator Brad Wilson can devise a scheme to limit rushing gains by the Lions and can force them to pass, the Knights could take control.
Faison's passing accuracy is only 48 percent and the Largo passing game is simple in that most of the passes go to wide receiver Chris Rogers (15 for 333) or over the middle to tight end Antonio Harris (11 for 208).
"We're strong in the middle," said Markiewicz, referring to Tomshack and Romero and quick-reacting defensive backs Reno Owens (five interceptions) and Maurice Bowie (four interceptions).