Turner's grand finale

He sat on the shoulders of his son with the scoreboard reading 12-7 in favor of the Huskies.

Drenched from a Gatorade bath and staring out at a packed home crowd cheering wildly at Wayne Gadberry Field, Scott Turner smiled from ear to ear.

He will retire as a champion.

For the fifth time in his illustrious 22-year career, Turner has lead the Sutter High football team to the Northern Section Division II crown.

Behind a stingy defense and the big play abilities of his son Dane Turner, the Huskies defeated rival West Valley for the second consecutive year to clinch back-to-back titles.

"Those seniors gave it all they had," said Scott Turner, sticking to particulars while being bombarded by the gracious Sutter faithful who have supported him throughout his highly-successful tenure.

One senior who certainly stood out was Dane Turner.

Down by a touchdown in the third quarter, with the offense sputtering at the hands of a solid West Valley defense, Dane Turner turned a routine 5-yard gain into a 50-yard touchdown.

He broke a multitude of tackles at the 45-yard line and broke free down the left sideline and streaked past the Eagles secondary with 2:16 to play in the quarter.

"I just kept my feet pumping," Dane Turner said, keeping in theme with his father in the modesty department.

Just as the Sutter sidelines woke up for the first time all game, they were immediately hushed when West Valley blocked the extra point, leaving the Huskies down 7-6.

But the Huskies would not be denied. Not in their house.

After inheriting the ball on their own 31 with just seconds left in the third quarter, the Huskies engineered a 69-yard touchdown drive to guarantee a Sutter victory. It culminated with an 18-yard touchdown reception by Dane Turner on 4th-and-13 that will forever be remembered by the mohawk sporting Huskies.

After a failed two-point conversion with 6:50 to play, the Huskies defense continued to shut down the Eagles offense, which finished with just 114 yards from scrimmage.

The night was hardly the usual for the score-happy Huskies, but it was enough. Quarterback Jon Garcia rebounded from an abysmal first half to finish with 115 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Dane Turner led the Huskies with rushing due to his 50-yard TD run. He finished with 73 yards and Rowdy Robinson had 33 yards.

But on Wednesday, the only number that mattered was one. The number that Scott Turner and these seniors will be departing as.

"This is the greatest feeling ever," Dane Turner said.