Alpharetta's first playoff appearance in the school's brief seven-year history ended abruptly Friday night as the Raiders took it on the chin, losing 44-13 to a very talented Brookwood Broncos team on the road.

The loss ended the Raiders' Cinderella run at an improbable state championship.

The game was much more competitive than the final score indicated. Alpharetta stayed right with Brookwood through nearly three quarters.

But fatigue, frustration, miscues and some home cooking by the zebras finally did them in.

Prior to the game, Alpharetta defensive coordinator Jeff Carlberg, who has seen his small but quick defensive unit step up of late, said the challenge of stopping Brookwood's potent offense -- led by senior quarterback Ben McLane and junior running back Nick Tompkins -- would be daunting. "There's a reason they're 9-1," Carlberg said. "We didn't come here to howl at the moon. We came to win a playoff game. But we need them to have an off night."

They didn't. Tompkins ran for 182 yards and three touchdowns, while McLane threw for 166 yards and a touchdown in the Bronco win. 

The Raiders took the opening kickoff and promptly moved into scoring position to the Brookwood 35 -- from their own 20 yard line -- on the strength of three consecutive first downs and the pinpoint passing of senior quarterback Mikail Abdul-Saboor, who completed passes of 12 and 10-yards to sophomores Carlos Burse and Mike Randle for key third down conversions on the drive.

But then the first of all four wheels came off the Raiders offense, courtesy of a series of big hits by the Broncos secondary. Abdul-Saboor hit Burse over the middle for what could have been a 15-yard gain, setting the Raiders up in the red-zone, but a huge hit by Broncos' DB Ed Collins jarred the ball loose from Burse, popping it in the air and allowing senior safety Zeke Brown to make the interception for the Broncos.

Brookwood wasted no time in scoring, as Tompkins took it in from seven yards out for a 7-0 lead on an eight-play drive.

After a Raiders three-and-out, Brookwood got the ball back and moved to the Alpharetta 31, where senior Bronco kicker Eric Yang nailed a 48-yard field goal, with plenty of air to spare. It was Yang's first of three field goals on the night, and it staked Brookwood to a 10-0 lead at the 11:36 mark of the second quarter.

This time the Raiders answered the bell. After a nice return by Randle was nullified by a holding penalty, Alpharetta set up shop on their 25 yard-line, and converted on a key third-and-11 with a 52-yard gain by Randle off a screen pass from Abdul-Saboor. On the next play, Abdul-Saboor hit Randle in stride with an 18-yard touchdown laser in the right corner of the end zone putting the Raiders on the board.

But then some home cooking started to come to a boil. A successful PAT by Raiders kicker Lehman Howington was taken off the board when a side judge called a block in the back from 30 yards away. Howington's next attempt was wide right and the Raiders trailed 10-6.

Tompkins quickly doused the Raiders hopes, scoring from 43 yards out on a running play over left tackle for a 17-6 Brookwood lead.

After going three and out for second time, the Raiders defense finally held when senior linebacker Ken Reynolds sacked McLane on a blitz on a third and ten.

The Raiders got the ball back but stalled at midfield, and Alpharetta Head Coach Jason Dukes decided to punt on a fourth-and-4 rather than go for it, with under two minutes remaining in the half.

The Broncos got the ball on their own 13 and McLane promptly completed a 50 yard bomb to Brandon Sammon, giving Brookwood a first and ten at the Raiders 25. But an incomplete pass and a motion penalty pushed the Broncos back to the 30. With 15 seconds and no time outs left, McLane was chased out of the pocket, and after scrambling to avoid another sack, was forced to throw the ball away. The clock had appeared to run out on the field scoreboard, and the replay showed the ball had not left McLane's hand when time ran out. The officials, however, saw it differently, and they put :01 back on the clock. This allowed Yang to nail a 42-yard field goal, extending Brookwood's lead to 20-6 at halftime.

Dukes and his coaching staff went ballistic on the sideline, pleading their case to the referees that time had expired and the half was over prior to the kick. But it was all to no avail.

Alpharetta's last gasp came early in the third quarter when Abdul-Saboor again hit Burse down the sideline, this time with a 72-yard touchdown pass, cutting the Brookwood lead to 23-13, and making it a two-score game with 8:36 to play in the third quarter. But Brookwood put the game away with three unanswered touchdowns in the next 12:00.

Dukes gave an emotional speech to his players after the game. "I love each and every one of you," Dukes said. "You have done everything we have asked of you tonight and all season long. When you walk out of this stadium tonight, I want you to be proud and to hold your heads high."

Dukes says he's looking forward to next season and he promised to keep his coaching staff intact. "I've got a great staff," the veteran coach said.

Dukes summed up the future this way. "Making the playoffs is now an annual expectation for Alpharetta football, not an event," Dukes said. "This year we knocked on the door. Next year we'll kick it in." 

Photo by Toby Roybal/Raidersphotos.com