HAGERSTOWN -- The smack talking began before top-ranked Dunbar's players even got to their locker room.
"We were just coming in and Fort Hill people were saying, 'Y'all city boys can't play football -- not with us,'" said Dunbar linebacker Terrence Hinton.
But Hinton and the Poets (12-0) had the last word, winning Friday night's 2A state title game, 30-15, over Fort Hill (12-1) to become Baltimore City's first state champ. A year ago, Poly lost its 3A state title bid, 15-12, to Seneca Valley during the city public schools' first venture into state association football.
Against a Fort Hill team known for high scoring (37 points a game) and flawless play, Dunbar's defense showed why it has allowed just 3.25 points a game. It forced eight turnovers, led by Hinton, who recorded his 14th sack, and Carl Carter, who had his 17th sack. And, Lance Askins got his team-leading 10th interception.
In the first half, All-Metro Defensive Player of the Year Tommy Polley (6-foot-5, 195 pounds) stripped the ball from Sparky Sharpless and Donte Jones recovered at Fort Hill's 22. And in the second period, Antar Simsel recovered a ball stripped by Gary Smith from Fort Hill's Buddy House (11 carries, 39 yards).
Shamai Butler's recovery set up a 78-yard pass from Anthony Wiggins (2-for-9, 90 yards) to Polley for a 22-15 lead with 4:14 left in the third period. Ben Patterson's recovery, with Fort Hill driving from its 14, set up Smith's 21-yard run on a reverse, which came two plays and one penalty later. Polley's conversion catch from Wiggins made it 30-15 with 4:14 left in the game.
Dunbar brought more than 300 supporters, including principal Charlotte Brown, the school band and drill team, and cheerleaders.
After Wiggins' touchdown pass to Polley and Wiggins' conversion run, Dunbar's faithful were louder than Fort Hill's horde of 10,000. Wiggins ends the year with 1,562 passing yards for 10 touchdowns.
"We'd been running sweep right, sweep right, and that put them to sleep," said Polley, who has 43 receptions for 745 yards and six touchdowns.
"I had to out-jump their guy [Eddy Blizzard] to get it, but I knew I could, being a basketball player. It's the same way on conversion passes."
Fort Hill amassed 367 yards of offense behind quarterback Matt Calhoun (8-for-15, 167 yards) and running back Shannan Trimble, who rushed nine times for 59 yards and caught four passes for 149.
Trimble, a highly recruited Division I prospect, gained only two rushing yards in the second half but caught three passes for 127 yards, including a 70-yarder for a 15-8 lead to open the second half.
But two minutes later, sophomore Ali Culpepper made up for a second-period fumble by returning a punt 60 yards for a touchdown that cut the deficit to 15-14.
Culpepper began his fourth scoring return of the year in unflattering fashion, dropping a routine catch, then booting it a few yards before collecting it, bulling past a defender's solid hit, and racing 34 yards before eluding Trimble, the last defender before the end zone.
The effort by Culpepper, who had 974 rushing yards for six touchdowns, was key since primary running back Reggie Boyce, who gained 127 of his 171 yards in the first half, reinjured his shoulder and was slowed in the second half.
Boyce leads the area with 1,887 yards.
"They stopped me a little bit in the second half, but they didn't stop Tommy Polley, Gary Smith, Culpepper or Wiggins," said Boyce, who averaged 13.5 yards a carry and 157.25 yards and two touchdowns a game. "You can focus on one of our people and someone else will get you."