"It's a special game," Sammons said, his voice trailing off and his eyes beginning to swell. "I just did it for my grandma. I just wish she was here."
On a 100-yard turf field, the 5-foot-9, 190-pound Sammons did just about all he could. He carried the ball 27 times to earn those 218 yards. He scored three touchdowns, including a 22-yarder in the fourth quarter.
He accounted for 67 percent of the Wildcats' offensive output, the team garnering 325 total yards. By the end of the first quarter, he had run for 109; by half, 150. He carried the ball just seven times in the final two quarters, but still managed an average of 9.7 yards a carry after intermission.
"His grandmother is very special to him," Bok coach Frank Natale said. "Every year in October, he wants to do something special and wear the pink and honor her. And I love that. I think that's a great tribute."
With the win, Bok (6-0 overall, 5-0 league) reinforced its dominance in the Pub's AA division, a city crown it seeks to win for the fourth consecutive year.
Communications Tech running back Ronaldo Ransom tried to keep pace with Sammons, collecting 149 yards on 35 carries, with a fumble. The Phoenix scored their lone touchdown on an Adbur Saaba 1-yard plunge in the second quarter.
The TD was the first scored on Bok in 10 quarters. The Wildcats defense has allowed just 27 points all season.
Sammons punched in 1-yard scores in the first and second quarters. Bok quarterback Marquise Brown ran for another TD in the first, finishing the game with 44 yards rushing and 2-for-3 passing for 39 yards and an interception. Omar Bashir rushed for a 14-yard TD in fourth to cap Bok's day.
Communications Tech (4-2, 2-2), which entered having won three straight and averaged 42 points in the span, successfully moved the chains behind Ransom most of the afternoon, but failed to finish drives and convert third downs. Junior QB Zaki Jamison was 3 for 12 for 32 yards and a pick.
Sammons final touch came with more than seven minutes remaining in the fourth. After the game, he shed his pads. A brief smile crossed his face.
"I went hard today," he said.
It was enough to make any grandmother proud.
Communications Tech 0 6 0 0 – 6
Bok 13 8 0 13 – 34
B: Sammons 1 run (Pelzer kick)
B: Brown 3 run (kick failed)
CT: Saaba 1 run (pass failed)
B: Sammons 1 run (Ward pass from Brown)
B: Sammons 22 run (Pelzer kick)
B: Bashir 14 run (run failed)
Contact Evan Burgos at rallysports@phillynews.com.
