High school football player ends game with noble gesture

An all-star high school football player from Cave City, Arkansas decided to take a knee at the opposing team's 5-yard line, right before scoring a touchdown.

Thamail Morgan, a 6'1" 195lb. linebacker, purposely halted at the 2-yard line, inches before scoring what would have been an additional touchdown against their opponent, Yellville-Summit High School. Along with having enough time to hesitate at the 2-yard line, he stepped backwards, kneeing at the 5-yard line, leaving the score at 34-16. This would normally have been seen as football taboo, but in essence, the gesture has been stated as showing Morgan's class and level of maturity. He did it in remembrance of a fallen fellow varsity football player.

Yellville-Summit is a small high school, the product of two even smaller schools in northern Arkansas, that combined and allowed the high school to create a football team for the first time. On Sept. 11, 2009, they were hosting a pep rally for their earlier game in the season against Salem High School from Salem, Arkansas. Reportedly, later on that same day, four of the football players from Yellville piled into the truck bed of 16 year old teammate Kymball Duffy's truck to head to his house for a pre-game meal.

Reportedly, later that day, Duffy's parents received a phone call informing them of a severe accident involving their two sons, and 3 other teammates. The rest of the Yellville team was waiting for Duffy and the people who rode with him to arrive at the Duffy's home, as this was tradition for the team to eat together at a specific location before a home game. All of the other passengers involved in the accident were injured but are alive; Duffy was killed at the scene.

"Before every home game, the football team eats at somebody's house and then we all go to the field house, so the whole team was at the Duffy's waiting for Kymball and the others," stated Ben Kerwood, a 16 year old student at Yellville-Summit.

The game with Salem High School was reportedly cancelled in lieu of the tragedy.

Yellville-Summit decided that they would continue the season using it as a healing process for the team and the school.

"The town held memorial services for Duffy, then decided they needed to continue the season as part of the healing process," stated the Arkansas Varsity Rivals website and associated press.

Yellville decided that it would continue its game against Cave City. Before taking on Cave City, one of the four players who rode on the back of the truck that night spoke to the rest of the Yellville-Summit football team from his hospital bed.

Before the game against Cave City, players from Yellville-Summit and Cave City met at the 50 yard line before the game for a moment of remembrance. Players on both teams wore a No. 72 decal-Kymball Duffy's number, on their helmet.

Although the Yellville-Summit community felt motivated to come and recapture the glory of their lost teammate, Cave City proved to be too much of a match for the Yellville-Summit players and quickly began to score.

"The game began and Cave City quickly scored. Minutes later, it scored again. And again. All hope for a storybook ending appeared lost."

Thamail Morgan is the type of athlete who can dominate a high school game and football team on each play.

"Last year, playing for Newport in a state playoff game against Heber Springs, he had 15 tackles, a sack and two forced fumbles on defense. He had 145 yards receiving and two touchdowns on offense," stated the Arkansas Varsity Rivals website.

Morgan stated that Yellville-Summit came out proud and prideful, telling Cave City not to show pity or feel sorry for them and to play them as normal.

"…We met before the game, and they told us that they did not want us to feel sorry for them, and they did not want us to back off just because of what happened. They wanted us to play them like we would have if Duffy has still been there with them, so we did," said a Cave City player.

Cave City head coach Jon Bradley stated that he didn't know what would happen that night.

"I did not know what to expect due to the tragedy,'' Bradley stated. "You go into the game wanting to win, but then, you feel bad doing it. When we went up 21-0 in the first quarter, I just can't explain how I felt. The atmosphere was so weird. I just can't explain it."

By halftime the score was 28-8. By the end of the third quarter the score was 34-8. With Coach Bradley subbing his players in the favor of Yellville, the score came to 34-16 with little time left on the clock.

Yellville-Summit had to kick off, and many expected them to do an onside kick to try and retrieve the ball back. Instead, Yellville kicked a long drive straight to Morgan in the backfield.

"We didn't even think they would kick off," Bradley said. "And we had him (Morgan) all the way back. It was our top return team, but we only have one return team."

Head coach Bradley stated that what Morgan did next surprised even him.

"I did not tell him to kneel down, he did it on his own," Bradley said. "I did not expect them to kick it to him. I figured they would kick away, because he has the ability to break away. I did not know that he was going to do what he did. He broke tackles, ran sideline to sideline, and got to the 2, and just stopped. That is when he backed up and took a knee on the 5-yard line."

Reportedly not only did Morgan initiate the action from his kindness, but also the Cave City sideline was yelling for him not to score.

"We were on the sidelines yelling for him not to score," Bradley said. "Some of the players on the field were saying it, too. But I'm not sure how much he could have heard all of it."

Morgan reportedly stated that he did indeed hear the calls from his sideline, but also had initiated in himself that he would respect the tragedy and his opposing team. "Before the game, we as a team talked about being classy,'' he said. "We did not want to come out in a game like this and not show any class.

"After the game, they complimented us, and even thanked us for the way that we played them. They are some really cool cats, and I wish them the best of luck with their healing process and the rest of their season," he said. "I hope they make the playoffs."