The Firebirds, who haven’t beaten Centerville since 1997, led 14-7 with 40 seconds left before half.
“We played hard but we made mistakes and we keep doing that,” Miller said. “At some point you have to fix those.”
Said Centerville coach Rodney Roberts: “They’re going to get it going (at Fairmont). They’re going to get a program going there.”
The sledding at Fairmont (D-I) has covered different slopes than the ride Miller was on at Covington where he had five 10-0 teams and once fostered a 43-game regular season win streak. The Buccs current roster, one Miller helped mold, is ranked No. 1 in the D-VII Associated Press state poll. Covington, for the 12th straight season, will make the playoffs.
Fairmont won’t. And neither will Centerville.
Postseason berths weren’t on the line Friday, but pride was.
Centerville survived. Again.
The Elks continued their mastery of the Firebirds thanks to a 14-point explosion that covered a 60-second span of the second and third quarters.
After Fairmont had taken a 14-7 lead and forced a turnover on downs with 2:06 left before half, the Elks forced their own punt with 1:08 to go. A crucial second-down incompletion on a rare Fairmont pass attempt stopped the clock and gave the Elks life.
It took Centerville 28 seconds to cover 60 yards as a 6-yard touchdown pass from Alec Grandin to Trey King tied it 14-14.
Fairmont fumbled the opening kickoff of the second half and King returned it for a touchdown and 21-14 lead.
“That was big for us,” Roberts said. “That score before the end of the half was huge. And then obviously the special teams play was a big turnaround for us.”
Down 28-21 with 8:48 left, Fairmont got the ball back but fumbles on two of its last three possessions hampered comeback attempts.
Grandin, who started the season as a backup and is one of four quarterbacks to take snaps for Centerville, shined. He completed his first 10 passes and was 16-of-22 for 244 yards and a touchdown. He also ran nine times for 107 yards and a score.
“Alex is a great kid,” Roberts said. “It’s not pretty, but he gets it done. He’s a foxhole guy.”
Fairmont running back David Stamper, who had 160 yards rushing coming in, led Fairmont with 100 yards on nine carries. He did not touch the ball in the second half.
“We fell apart,” Miller said. “We have to play better defense and we can’t make stupid mistakes on offense. It all goes back to us as coaches. We have got to get better.
“The effort is there. We have to build on that.”
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