GAME 2:  ST. JAMES 45, @ Bullock County 12

 STJ           21     17       7       0             45

B C              6       0       0       6             12

SCORING SUMMARY:

STJ    (1)  11:28   Alter 66 pass from Martin                               (Sutter kick)      7 -  0
STJ    (1)    4:25   Newton 14 pass from Martin                           (Sutter kick)    14 -  0
STJ    (1)    0:58   Thompson 12 pass from Martin                      (Sutter kick)    21 -  0
B C    (1)    0:00   Q. Walker 70 run                                         (kick blocked)    21 -  6
STJ    (2)    9:55   Martin 1 run                                                   (Sutter kick)    28 -  6
STJ    (2)    6:16   Cowden 8 pass from Martin                            (Sutter kick)    35 -  6
STJ    (2)    0:18   Sutter 25 FG                                                                           38 -  6
STJ    (3)    6:23   Stabler 8 run                                                   (Sutter kick)    45 -  6
B C    (4)    6:29   Q. Walker 31 run                                             (kick failed)    45 - 12

September 2, 2005.  7:00 PM  Thorton-Foster Stadium Field, Union Springs  Game Conditions:  Clear, hot, dry.  Game Temperature:  85

Will Martin threw touchdown passes to four different receivers, and scored one on a quarterback sneak as well in less than two quarters of play, as the St. James Trojans began 4A Region 2 competition with a 45-12 victory over the homestanding Bullock County Hornets.

In the 2004 matchup, St. James returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown.  In this game, it took the Trojans about 20 seconds longer to score.  A first down holding penalty pushed St. James back to the their own 34.  From there, Will Martin tossed a wide out pass to Bruce Alter, who benefited from two great blocks enabling him to get around the corner and outrun chasers down the sidelines to the endzone for the score.  Graham Sutter kicked the first of six consecutive extra points for an early 7-0 lead.

Bullock County was three and out, and despite a defensive offside penalty, St. James was stopped for the only time in the first half on their next drive.  The Hornets punted again after three plays, and St. James started another drive sluggishly.  However, on third down, Jeremy Crider rushed for a first down.  Alter caught a short pass, and then Crider broke loose on a run to the Hornet 28, and 14 yards were added on an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.  The recipient of the conduct, Nathan Newton, responded on the next play by catching a middle screen and battling through potential tacklers for a 14 yard touchdown pass and a 14-0 lead after the Sutter extra point.

St. James drove 67 yards in 4 plays on their next drive.  After an incomplete pass and a 4 yard loss, Martin connected again with Newton who was wide open down the middle of the field for a 59 yard gain.  On the next play, Martin found Taylor Thompson in the back corner of the endzone, and he outjumped his defender for a third game touchdown reception.  The extra point gave St. James a 21 point lead in the last minute of the first quarter.

Bullock County responded, as Quintavius Walker broke loose up the middle on a straight handoff and outraced the Trojan secondary 70 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the first quarter.  The Trojans smothered the extra point attempt, and the score remained 21-6 St. James after a quarter of play.

The Trojans responded on their second consecutive 67 yard touchdown drive, officially.  After a 10 yard block in the back penalty on first down, St. James moved 77 yards in the next 5 plays.  Jeff Cowden picked up 26 on a nice catch and run.  Crider ran for 2 and Alter for 16 on his only carry of the evening.  From the Hornet 33, Martin connected to Alter on a wide out on the near sidelines, and he was knocked out of bounds just 4 feet short of the endzone.  Martin called his own number on first down for a sneak touchdown.  The extra point gave the Trojans a 22 point lead early in the second quarter.

The Hornets gave St. James a very short field on the next drive, as a punt snap went over the head of the punter.  He tried to recover the ball, but Brandon King fell on the fumble at the 9 yard line.  Jeff Cowden caught a pass for a short gain, and then Martin found Cowden wide open at the back of the endzone for an 8 yard touchdown pass, Martin's fourth of the game.  The extra point gave St. James a 35-6 lead, and the first string offense a free pass to the bench for the remainder of the game.

Special teams played a role in the final Trojan score of the first half.  The all out punt block was called on, and several Trojans including Hanley Funderburk and Zach Sealy stuffed the punt sideways.  Tyler Dubois, a timely substitute on punt defense as Taylor Thompson was taken out to warm up for second string quarterback duty, picked up the loose ball and returned it 17 yards to the Hornet 8.  The offense failed to gain any yardage, so Sutter was called on to attempt a 25 yard field goal, which he converted, and St. James took a 38-6 lead into the west end of Thorton-Foster Stadium.

The second string offense did drive for a touchdown on their only second half possession.  Starting from the Hornet 43 after a short punt, Michael Stabler, St. James' leading rusher for the game, picked up 20 yards on third down and 2.  After an incomplete pass, Stabler carried for 7 and 8 yards for a touchdown.  Sutter's extra point was the final tally for St. James, the 45th Trojan point of the game.

The third string offense drove to the Hornet 15, but turned over the ball on downs early in the fourth quarter as the majority of the second half was played on rolling clock.  Quintavius Walker broke loose twice on the ensuing Hornet drive, for 32 yards on a play where he may have scored an 83 yard touchdown had he chosen to stay on the sideline.  However, four plays later, he scored from 31 yards out on a similar play to his previous touchdown.  The extra point attempt was wide left, and the score was 45-12 midway through the fourth quarter.

St. James' third string quarterback Matt Dean, also the second string punter, backed the Hornets up deep in their own territory at the 7 yard line in the last two minutes of the game.  On first down, several Trojans rushed through the line to drop the runner apparently in the endzone for a safety, but a face mask penalty erased the negative yardage of the tackle, and Bullock County simply chose to run out the clock as St. James won its first of four regular season road games and readied to prepare for the first ever Carlisle Field visit by the Ashford Yellow Jackets.

SIDELINE STATISTICS:  GAME TWO

ST. JAMES      RUSHING   25 attempts  113 yards  2 TDs  (4.52 yards per carry)

                         20   Stabler         4 / 38  (1 TD)  10   Crider      5 / 29               22   Alter               1 / 16
                        30   Freeman      6 / 15               14   Dean       3 /  6                 2   Thompson       1 /   5
                        19   Newton        1 /  3                 3   Martin     1 /  2  (1 TD)   66   King                1 / - 1

                        PASSING   12 completions  18 attempts  0 INTs  257 yards  4 TDs  (1 sack of, - 10 yards)

                          3   Martin          9 - 12 - 0   221 yards  4 TDs
                        14   Dean             3 -  3 - 0     36 yards               (1 sack, - 10 yards)
                          2   Thompson     0 -  3 - 0

                        RECEIVING

                        22   Alter            3 / 101  (1 TD)   19   Newton    2 / 73  (1 TD)   5   Cowden       3 / 35  (1 TD)
                        30   Freeman       1 /  19               32   Christian   2 / 17               2   Thompson   1 / 12  (1 TD)

                        TOTAL YARDS:   370

                        KICKS:  XP  6 / 6                FG  1 / 1    (25 made)
                        2 POINT CONVERSIONS:  0 / 0
                        KICKOFFS:  8  (42,52,29,54,44,58,43,46)   PUNTS:  2  (27,37)
                        KO RETURNS:  3  (18,21,10)                     PUNT RETURNS:   1  (17bk)
                        FIRST DOWNS:   16    (8 rushing, 8 passing)
                        FUMBLES:  1, lost 0

                        TURNOVER MARGIN:   + 1
                        PENALTIES:  4 / 40 yards
                        TIME OF POSSESSION:  20:35

BULLOCK CO RUSHING   32 attempts  156 yards   2 TDs  (4.88 yards per carry)
                        PASSING      0 completions  5 attempts  0 INTs  0 yards  0 TDs  (3 sacks of, - 13 yards)
                        TOTAL YARDS:  156

                        KICKS:  XP  0 / 2                FG  0 / 0
                        2 POINT CONVERSIONS:  0 / 0
                        KICKOFFS:  3 (36,49,39)                           PUNTS:  6  (39,22,35,-8bk,23,39)
                        KO RETURNS:  8  (10,26,10,22,9,12,5,12) PUNT RETURNS:  1  (0)
                        FIRST DOWNS:   7   (6 rushing, 1 penalty)
                        FUMBLES:  5, lost 1
                        PENALTIES:  6 / 46 yards
                        TIME OF POSSESSION:  26:25



RETURN TO THE STJ 2005 FOOTBALL PAGE