2020 -
GAME 9
SAINT
JAMES 35, Geneva 20 
STJ
0 21
7 7
35
SCORING SUMMARY
STJ (2) 10:40 Craft 18 pass
from
Jackson
(H. Harrison kick) 7
- 0
STJ (2) 4:54 C.
Harrison 3
run
(H. Harrison kick) 14 - 0
STJ (2) 0:45 C.
Harrison 7
run
(H.
Harrison kick) 21 - 0
STJ (3) 11:14 C. Harrison 7
run
(H. Harrison kick) 28 - 0
GEN (3) 4:51 McReynolds 57
punt
return
(kick
failed) 28 - 6
GEN (4) 8:58 Kemmerlin 10
run
(pass failed) 28 - 12
STJ (4) 5:35
Wright 10 pass from
Jackson
(H. Harrison
kick) 35 - 12
GEN (4) 0:46 McReynolds 9 pass
from
Kemmerlin
(pass converted) 35 - 20
October 22, 2020
Carlisle Field 7:00 PM Game
Conditions: Partly - Mostly Cloudy Game
Temperature: 81 Wind: light
E 2 - 5 mph
K.J. Jackson completed passes to seven different receivers and
Cosner Harrison added 3 more touchdown runs as Saint James scored
the first 28 points of the game and overcame a bit of a Geneva
rally to defeat the Panthers for the first time in three attempts,
35 - 20.
After a short Geneva kickoff, a first play pass to Bradley Thomas
ana 19 yard run by Harrison had the Trojans quickly deep into
Panther territory. However, a block in the back penalty on
the next play netted a 15 yard loss, and Saint James could not
recover. However, an excellent punt by Brax Berrey and
coverage pinned the Panthers at their own 1 yard line to start
their initial drive.
Geneva ground the ball out, using half of the first quarter clock
to earn two first downs (their only two of the first half) before
punting back to Saint James. Five consecutive Harrison runs
moved the ball from the Trojan 22 to the Panther 27, and Clayton
Craft added six more yards on the final play of a very quick first
quarter. Craft picked up 10 yards on a Jackson toss on the
first play of the second quarter, and after two more runs by
Harrison gaining a total of 13 yards, Jackson found Craft wide
open down the middle of the field for an 18 yard catch and run
touchdown. Holt Harrison's extra point was good, and finally
the scoreboard was dented as the Trojans took a 7 - 0 lead early
in the second quarter.
The Panthers were forced three and out, but another block in the
back penalty negated most of a nice return by Zac Russell.
Saint James proceeded to drive 61 yards in 7 plays. Harrison
ran five times down to the Geneva 25, and then Jackson lofted a
pretty pass across field to Kevin Taylor whose momentum carried
him out of bounds at the Panther 3. On the next play, Cosner
Harrison bolted in for his first of three touchdowns, and the Holt
Harrison extra point doubled the lead to 14 - 0.
On the ensuing drive, a potential Panther first down was wiped out
by a holding penalty, and Geneva was again forced to punt.
On the second play of the Trojan drive, Jackson broke loose for a
career long 15 yard rush and the yardage was doubled due to a late
personal foul penalty. Harrison turned into a receiver as he
snatched an 18 yard pass from a scrambling Jackson on the next
play, and was rewarded with an untouched 7 yard touchdown run on
the following. Harrison's extra point (thanks for the headsup on
the correction) was successful as well and Saint James appeared to
be going to halftime with a 21 - 0 lead.
They did, but Saint James actually had another chance to score in
the second quarter. A muffed kickoff was only brought back
to the 10 yard line, and on the next play the ball was wrestled
loose from a Geneva running back and fallen upon by Jonathan
Harris at the Panther 21 with still 26 seconds remaining. On
first down, Jackson tossed a completed pass to Thomas in the
endzone, but offensive pass interference was called negating a
possible score. Three consecutive incompletions, a season
rarity by Jackson, did not allow Saint James to pad their lead
before halftime.
It took them less than a minute to do so in the third
quarter. Wachowitz executed a perfect "pooch onside" kick
which was recovered by Sam Materna at the Panther 29.
Harrison then raced 22 yards on first down, and again untouched
for 7 yards on second down to give the Trojans a quick
score. Holt Harrison returned to convert the extra point and
Saint James, after a noticeably slow start, was up 28 - 0.
Apologies to the Geneva readers, but the uniform numbers, yellow
on wide, were quite frankly impossible to read from the press box,
even before darkness fell, so some names may be incorrect in this
recap. (Assistance would be appreciated!) A 61 yard
catch and run advanced the Panthers to by far their deepest
penetration of the game, at the Trojan 3, but a huge loss by the
quarterback on first down was followed by an incomplete pass, a
short pass, and a fourth down incomplete pass which earned Saint
James a turnover on downs at the 12 yard line. The Trojans
opted to punt on fourth and 1 from their own 21, and the ball was
fielded by (we think) Timothy McReynolds at his own 43. He
first attempted to attack the near sidelines, but then reversed
field in an arc all the way across and took off at the midfield
stripe, zooming past both potential tacklers on the sidelines, for
a 57 yard punt return touchdown, the first punt returned for a
touchdown against Saint James since 2016. Granger Hicks
blocked the extra point, but Geneva had erased the goose egg with
an electrifying play at 28 - 6.
Saint James was genuinely lucky to recover an onside kick attempt
which double deflected. The Trojans had driven as far as the
Panther 34 before the ball was wrestled from Harrison and Geneva
recovered the fumble. On the second play of the fourth
quarter, the Panthers converted a key fourth down and 5 with a 15
yard quarterback run to keep the drive alive. The next three
plays were a combination of runs totaling 18 yards and a 17 yard
pass completion to set up Geneva with first and goal at the Trojan
10. On the first play, (we believe) Trevon Kennemen swept
right for a 10 yard touchdown run. A two point pass was
completed, but the receiver was dropped at the five yard line
denying the two point conversion. However, the Panthers
suddenly had a sniff of momentum as a 28 point lead had been cut
to a potentially two score advantage with still nearly 9 minutes
remaining.
Zac Russell managed to return a muffed kickoff out to his own 27,
and the Trojans responded with a 6 play 73 yard drive. A 5
yard run by Harrison, a 19 yard catch by Jeffrey Ford on the far
sideline, and another toss and run to a wide open Craft down the
middle of the field for 43 yards quickly had Saint James
threatening again at the Geneva 7 yard line. A holding
penalty on the next play negated a potential Will Wales touchdown,
but two plays later Jackson, who was well protected as a passer
throughout the evening, tossed a perfect strike to a not-so-open
Cooper Wright in the endzone for a 10 yard touchdown. The
extra point gave the Trojans some breathing room at 35 - 12 with
still nearly half of the final quarter to play.
The Panthers would earn a touchdown against primarily the second
string defense in the last minute of the game as part of a 10 play
72 yard drive. The players involved in the final play of the
drive, a 9 yard touchdown pass, were undetermined, as were the
recipients on a two point pass conversion which followed and
provided the final score of the game, 35 - 20, as the Trojans
recovered a last-minute desperation onside kick to seal the
victory.
It would be likely be determined later that night who the Trojans
would host in the first round of the 4A State Playoffs two weeks
later, but before that a rescheduled matchup inside the bypass
against Trinity loomed a week away as Saint James would try, for
the first time in series history, to take its fifth consecuitve
victory from the improved Wildcats at Ragsdale-Boykin Field.
SIDELINE
STATISTICS - GAME NINE
SAINT
JAMES RUSHING 32 attempts
187 yards 3 TDs
(5.84 yards per carry)
5
Harrison
25 / 157 (3 TDs) 1
Jackson
2 / 13 7
Houser
2 / 10
23
Craft
1 /
6
11
Wales
1 / 5 44
Wingard 1
/ - 4
PASSING
10 completions 16 attempts 0 INTs 169
yards 2 TDs
1
Jackson
10 - 16 - 0 169 yards 2 TDs
RECEIVING
23
Craft
3 / 71 (1 TD) 16
Ford
2 / 28 4 Taylor
1 / 22
5
Harrison
1 /
18
21
Thomas
1 / 11 12
Wright
1 / 10 (TD)
6
Eley
1 / 9
TOTAL
YARDS: 356
KICKS: XP 5 / 5
FG 0 / 0
2
POINT CONVERSIONS: 0 / 0
KICKOFFS: 6
(41,42,58,31,27,32)
PUNTS: 2 (34,36)
KO RETURNS: 4 (5,0,22,0)
PUNT RETURNS: 1 (5)
FIRST
DOWNS: 18 (9 rushing, 9 passing)
THIRD DOWN CONVERSIONS: 2 / 5
FOURTH DOWN CONVERSIONS: 0 / 0
FUMBLES: 2, lost 1
FUMBLE RETURNS: 1
(0)
TURNOVER
MARGIN: 0
POINTS OFF TURNOVERS: 0
ACCEPTED PENALTIES: 6 / 65 yards
TIME
OF POSSESSION: 23:41
GENEVA
RUSHING 21 attempts 76 yards 1
TD (3.62 yards per carry)
PASSING
15 completions 20 attempts 0 INTs 195 yards
TOTAL
YARDS: 271
KICKS: XP 0 / 1
FG 0 / 0
2 POINT
CONVERSIONS: 1 / 2
KICKOFFS:
4 (22,12,55,13)
PUNTS: 3 (33,31,30)
KO
RETURNS: 5 (1,16,6,0,0)
PUNT
RETURNS: 1 (57TD)
FIRST
DOWNS: 9 (3 rushing, 6 passing)
THIRD DOWN CONVERSIONS: 4 / 10
FOURTH DOWN CONVERSIONS: 2 / 4
POINTS OFF TURNOVERS: 6
FUMBLES:
3, lost 1
FUMBLE RETURNS: 1 (0)
ACCEPTED
PENALTIES: 3 / 39 yards
TIME OF
POSSESSION: 24:19
RETURN TO THE SAINT JAMES 2020 FOOTBALL HOMEPAGE