State Semifinal Preview: Catonsville Aiming to Slow Down Old Mill's Chesson

Over the last two weeks, and for pretty much the entire season, Catonsville’s fans have proven to be an indispensable asset as a 12^th man. They’ve pumped up their team at home and provided relentless support on the road.

The same will be true when the community ventures south for Catonsville’s state-semifinal matchup against Old Mill (12-0) Friday at 7 p.m.

However, for all the fan base has done to assist its Comets, there’s one thing the fans—not even the Comet Crazies—will be able to do. And, that’s help Catonsville’s defense tackle Patriots standout running back Robert Chesson.  

Chesson is to Old Mill what DeAndre’ Lane is to the Comets and as astronomical as Lane’s numbers are this season (1,666 yards rushing, 20 touchdowns), Chesson’s are even better.

The senior has rushed for over 2200 yards and a produced a whopping 41 total touchdowns for a Patriots squad averaging just over 41 points per game.

“He’s clearly the guy that you have to focus on and stop,” Catonsville head coach Rich Hambor said. “There really isn’t a lot of deception. They pretty much let you know they’re going to come at you with him, and you need to be able to stop him.”

Despite the stats and the reputation, Catonsville’s defense isn’t about to be intimidated. They’ve seen the game tape and they know the star running back is going to get his share of yards, but they’re determined to prevent Chesson from breaking out for the big play.

And how do you do that? Well, the coaches teach it during the first week of practice and it’s something that eluded the Comets at times last week against Poly.

“When we have to tackle him, you have to wrap up,” defensive end Julian Jones said. “There’s none of the big hits this week. You can’t just go for the hit trying to make a big play. You have to wrap him up because if you don’t wrap him up he’s so fast he can make you miss. It’s all about form tackling this week.”   

While the Comets certainly don’t want to give up any scores, they know that if they are going to allow some points, they would rather make Old Mill earn their way down the field.

In addition to the power run game, the Patriots like giving Chesson the ball on screen passes and draws, both plays that act as delayed handoffs and create space down the field.

For every carry Chesson receives, Jones is banking on a Comets player to be there on the other end to lay the wood and accumulate blows on the running back.

“He’s going to make big plays—he’s a very big player. We just got to keep hitting him,” Jones said. “Once we keep hitting and hitting him, he might not want run to run the ball anymore—or not as hard. Big plays are going to happen on the other side of the ball, but we can’t give up. We just got to keep fighting.”

Just as Old Mill is looking to do, Catonsville will endeavor to unleash its ground game and control time of possession. While Lane’s been racking up the yards (as he’s done all year), fullback Julian Singletary is quietly becoming dangerous in his own right.

In addition to leading the way when he’s not handed the ball, Singletary has rushed for 185 yards on just 16 carries in the Comets two postseason wins.  With defender’s eyeballs locked on Lane in the backfield, Singletary’s quick hitting runs have been incredibly effective as of late, seemingly breaking into the second level before opposing defenses realize what’s hit them.  

While Catonsville hasn’t really needed the passing game during the playoffs—quarterback Aaron Jones has only completed three throws in the postseason—that doesn’t mean the threat through the air isn’t still there.

Julian Jones said the Comets continue to hone their passing game in practice and are ready to use it in the event the rushing game stalls. With the Patriots scheming to stop the run, look for Jones or wide receiver Deniko Carter to leak out for a game changing play if Catonsville elects to pass.

And, yes, it’s true the Comets fans won’t be able to take the field with their beloved team. But they’ll be as close to doing that as one can get. Both the players and the coaches know it and are feeding off of it.

“It feels good to know that everyone has your back,” Jones said. “It doesn’t matter how far you’re traveling or where you’re going, you know that they are always going to be behind you.”

Hambor mentioned that he expects an even bigger turnout on Friday than the Catonsville following produced last week at Poly.

As for his players, well, it sounds like they’d choose to skip Thanksgiving if that meant the game, and another chance for a momentous first in Catonsville lore, came even sooner.  

“The kids are really ready to go out there and play right now and we have two more days of practice,” Hambor said Wednesday afternoon. “They are aware of the history. They know that we have a legitimate chance to keep it going.”