CAT 2 0 7 0 9
Lucas Harris was a one man
wrecking crew for the Trojans this night as he handled the
place kicking duties, rushed for nearly 40 yards and a
touchdown, and assisted on defense as the Trojans overcame a
nine point second half deficit in a rainy mess to upset the
Catholic Knights on their home field, 13 - 9.
The game started with wind
and the threat of rain any minute, so an early score seemed
important. However, neither team could get much going
offensively in the first half. Catholic punted on their
first possession, and although Saint James picked up several
passing first downs on their initial drive, an incompletion on
fourth down at the Knights 26 halted their march.
Catholic followed with their best drive of the first
half. Three sizable first down runs moved the ball to
the Trojan 33. However, two plays later, Jason Edwards
intercepted a pass at the Trojan 8 yard line and returned it
to the 30 just as the rain began to fall.
A 26 yard pass from Alan
Olsen to Richard Meadows quickly had the Trojans in Knight
territory, but a fumbled away snap on third down turned the
ball back over. Catholic promptly picked up two first
downs, and appeared to have a third on a fake punt, but a
penalty negated the fine run, and the ensuing punt sailed out
of bounds at the Trojan 6. On the next play, the ball
was fumbled again into the endzone, and Jason Smith pounced on
the ball just in front of Catholic defenders. However,
the Knights earned two points for the safety, the first score
of the ballgame. Fortunately, with some time remaining
in the first quarter, the Saint James free kick was still
wind-aided, and it was boomed inside the 30 yard line.
The second quarter was very
uneventful, except for the punters. Catholic failed to
convert any first downs, and Saint James managed only two deep
in their own territory. However, Catholic's punts were
now wind-aided and they kept improving their field position
little by little. Saint James' final punt of the half
was literally blown out of bounds at the Trojan 35 with 20
seconds remaining, giving Catholic one last scoring
opportunity. However, a penalty and an in-bounds pass
completion ran out the clock before Catholic could attempt a
late field goal.
The rain and wind lessened
somewhat during the second half, but the Catholic defense did
not on the first drive. After a 3 and out and a punt by
Saint James, the Knights took over on their own 48. Six
plays later, they scored on a well-timed and well-executed 20
yard touchdown halfback pass from Davy Tyner to John
Odom. The extra point was good, and Catholic had a 9 - 0
lead five minutes into quarter three.
Finally, the Trojans picked
up some offensive momentum. Jason Smith ran the kickoff
back 41 yards to midfield. A 9 yard pass from Olsen to
Harris and a 33 yard pass from Olsen to Meadows quickly moved
the ball inside the Knights 10. Unfortunately, an
interception on the next play stifled that drive.
However, a dead ball unsportsmanlike penalty for taunting
after the end of the return may have been the key play of the
game. The half the distance penalty pinned Catholic
inside their own 5 yard line, and four plays later the punt
into the wind was short and returned by Smith to the Knights
34. This time the Trojans would not be denied.
Smith carried for 16, 4, and minus 2 yards, setting up third
down and 8 at the Knights 16. Smith caught a screen pass
and beautifully wove down to the 2 yard line for a first down,
and Harris scored the first touchdown of his career on the
next play on a handoff up the middle. He added his own
extra point for good measure, in place of the injured regular
kicker Keith Horn on a night where all kicks were adventurous,
and the Trojans were within two with 14 minutes remaining in
the game.
The Trojan fans, which more
than doubled the Knights fan base even at their home stadium
despite the rain, got louder and louder. On the second
play of the fourth quarter, Catholic tried a trick play on
fourth down and 6 from their own 45, but it backfired as the
quarterback was sacked for a 17 yard loss and the frustration
of failure led to another unsportsmanlike conduct penalty,
which was tacked on afterwards, giving Saint James first down
at the Catholic 14. Three plays netted only four yards,
and Matt Grooms from the junior varsity team was called in to
attempt a field goal, which was deflected sideways.
Saint James picked up the ball which had not yet crossed the
line of scrimmage meaning it could have been advanced, but the
runner was unable to pick up enough yardage for the first
down.
Catholic's ensuing drive
was aided by a face mask penalty, enabling them to move to
midfield. A fantastic punt into the wind traveled 41
yards to the Trojan 8, leaving Saint James just over 6 minutes
to travel 92 yards. Switching to two minute mode, it
took only six plays to reach the endzone. Smith ran for
2, 41, and 9 yards. McMillan ran for 3 yards for a first
down. Olsen completed a pass to Jay Robertson for 9
yards to the 28, and then completed a screen pass and run to
Richard Meadows for the final 28 and a go ahead
touchdown. Up by four in the final quarter, the Trojans
opted for a two point conversion, but the pass attempt was
incomplete. However, the Trojans now led for the first
time with still nearly four minutes remaining.
The Knights completed their
first two passes on their next drive, which would become their
final possession. A six yard sack on first down pushed
the ball back to the Knight 45, and on second down a wayward
pass was intercepted by Jay Robertson. His return to the
Knight 32 was negated by a clipping penalty, but the Trojans
still had possession. Harris ran for 23 yards on the
first play, and Olsen kept for 13 on the next play as the
Knights seemed suddenly resigned to a surprising defeat.
The next three plays were followed by Catholic calling
timeouts, but the Trojans were only about 4 inches short of a
game-clinching first down at the Knight 20. An illegal
procedure penalty on Saint James, trying to force Catholic to
jump offside, moved the ball back to the 25. However,
Olsen kept for a tough six yards on fourth and five to wrap up
the game and a somewhat improbable win by the suddenly
resurgent Trojans, who were now only one win away from a
fourth consecutive state playoff berth despite starting the
season with a 1 - 7 record.
SIDELINE STATISTICS - GAME NINE
SAINT JAMES RUSHING 39 carries 135 yards 1 TD (3.46 yards per carry)
7 Smith
18 / 93
21 Harris 8 /
39 (1 TD)
19 McMillan
3 / 8
32
Meadows 1
/
7
17
Olsen 9 / - 12
PASSING 11 completions 15 attempts 1 INT 172 yards 1 TD (3 sacks of, 29 yards)
17 Olsen 11 - 15 - 1 172 yards 1 TD
RECEIVING
32
Meadows 4 / 114
(1 TD) 21 Harris
2 /
21
44
Robertson 2 / 19
12
Cole
1
/
12
7
Smith 2
/ 6
TOTAL YARDS: 308
KICKS:
XP 1 / 1 FG 0 / 1 (21 Grooms)
2 POINT
CONVERSIONS: 0 / 1
KICKOFFS: 4 (53,51,42,51)
PUNTS: 4 (26,23,24,29)
KO RETURNS: 2
(20,41)
PUNT
RETURNS: 5 (0,12,9,0,8)
FIRST DOWNS:
13 (6 rushing, 7 passing)
INTERCEPTION RETURNS: 2 (22,17)
FUMBLES: 2,
lost 1
TURNOVER MARGIN: 0
PENALTIES: 4 / 40
TIME
OF POSSESSION: 22:21
CATHOLIC
RUSHING 41 attempts 123 yards 0
TDs (3.00 yards per carry)
PASSING 4 completions 13
attempts 2 INTs 57 yards 1 TD (2 sacks
of, 23 yards)
TOTAL YARDS: 180
KICKS: XP 1 /
1 FG 0 / 0
2 POINT CONVERSIONS: 0 / 0
KICKOFFS: 2 (51,51)
PUNTS: 7 (28,35,39,36,39,41,41)
KO
RETURNS: 4 (23,14,13,19)
PUNT RETURNS: 2 (0,9)
FIRST
DOWNS: 10 (8 rushing, 1 passing, 1 penalty)
FUMBLES:
0
PENALTIES:
5 / 34 yards
TIME OF POSSESSION: 25:39