2022 - GAME 14

  SAINT JAMES 35, @ Mobile Christian 7 
 
STJ        14        7        0      14            35

M C         0        7        0        0              7


November 25, 2022   Harrison Field, Mobile


For the first time in school history, Saint James played its fourteenth game in a football season.  And what a game!   The running prowess of Cosner Harrison was aided by just enough passing by K.J. Jackson to score five touchdowns over a team which had not allowed two touchdowns in any of its five previous games, and the Trojans advanced, again for the first time ever, to the Super 7 - the 3A State Championship Game, by traveling to Mobile and shutting down the Mobile Christian Leopards 35 - 7.



SCORING SUMMARY   (scoring times not yet available)

 STJ   (1)   -----   Harrison 5 run                                       (Huff kick)      7 - 0
 STJ   (1)   -----   Jackson 4 run                                         (Huff kick)    14 - 0
 M C  (2)   -----   Camboia 2 run                                      (Lewis kick)   14 - 7
 STJ   (2)   -----   Harrison 6 run                                       (Huff kick)    21 - 7
 STJ   (4)   -----   Wright 11 pass from Jackson               (Huff kick)    28 - 7
 STJ   (4)   -----   Harrison 19 run                                     (Huff kick)    35 - 7



Saint James earned the first possession after some confusion following the coin toss of which way the teams would face the opening quarter, and they drove down the field with a methodical 9 play 68 yard drive after Clint Houser returned the kickoff 28 yards.  As was the case most of the night, it was the bruising rushing of Cosner Harrison which racked up the most yardage.  He would carry for 42 yards on the opening drive, while K.J. Jackson completed both of his first drive passes, a 14 yarder to Houser and a 12 yarder to Wright.  But it was Harrison whose last five yards provided the first score of the game.  Jake Huff's extra point, the first of five consecutive, gave Saint James a 7 - 0 lead midway through the first quarter.

Mobile Christian interchanged three quarterbacks during the game - Landen Snow, a passing specialist, Patrick Sullivan who seemed to thrive most in a "wildcat" situation, and Miguel Camboia who directed the primary running offense.  Camboia started the first offensive series for the Leopards, and picked up one first down on a 7 yard carry, but the Trojan defense which shone all night forced a punt which was horribly shanked and netted a 1 yard gain giving Saint James first down at the Leopard 42.  It took 10 plays to traverse the 42 yards, a nice mix of short passing and running by Harrison and Jackson.  Jackson called his own number from the 4 yard line for a second touchdown and, perhaps shockingly, the Leopard defense had few answers for the Trojan offense as the lead ballooned to 14 - 0 late in the first quarter.

However, Mobile Christian was the beneficiary of excellent field position as Kolin Wilson returned the ensuing kickoff 55 yards to the Trojan 31.  It took 8 plays, but Camboia led the Leopards to the endzone with the benefit of several defensive penalties, and a 2 yard quarterback keeper finally gave the Leopard sideline something to cheer about.  Carter Lewis' extra point cut the lead in half to 14 - 7 early in the second quarter.  It would be the only serious scoring threat for Mobile Christian all evening.

Wils Johnson ran the pooch kickoff back to the Trojan 41, and they embarked on their third straight touchdown drive.  Jackson completed a 17 yard pass to Ethan Beard to start the drive, and two plays later he was sacked but a Leopard took him down by grabbing the face mask, resulting in a 15 yard penalty and a first down at the Leopards 31.  A defensive holding penalty on the next play, preventing a likely touchdown catch and run, advanced the ball to the 21.  Two Jackson keepers earned 7 yards, and then Harrison rushed for the final three plays of the drive - a 6 yard carry up the middle earned his second touchdown.  Huff's extra point boosted the lead back to 14, at 21 - 7, midway through the second quarter as the Mobile Christian defense labored to find a way to stop the marauding Trojan offense.

By now the field was getting damper and damper as rain from the previous week and intermittent mist and drizzle were worsening the playing field.  The teams interchanged punts for the remainder of the half with no real headway, and Saint James proudly carried a 21 - 7 lead to halftime.

The Leopards only earned one first down on their opening second half drive, and Beard returned a punt to midfield to give Saint James good field position once more.  Jackson was again the recipient of a defensive penalty as a sack was in progress, his helmet was ripped off by a Leopard, and even though he had broken away and had room to run, the play was stopped because of a helmet-less ball carrier.  The resulting penalty eventually led to a first down, but the Trojans were forced to punt.  However, the plodding offense was chewing up valuable clock time all the way.  Sullivan tried to run the Leopards back into the game with moderate success, and Camboia came in and completed a 20 yard pass to Jamison Roberts, listed as yet another quarterback on their roster - one of the few long passes Mobile Christian would muster.  However, Saint James forced a fourth down incompletion at the Trojan 35 and took over on downs as the third quarter neared completion.

65 yards and 11 plays later, it appeared the Trojans sealed their victory with another touchdown drive.  Beard caught a 12 yard pass for a first down, but it was a constant dose of Harrison, Harrison, Harrison for the most part.  After convincing the Leopard defense he would be getting every handoff in remaining game time, Jackson faked a handoff and found his tight end Cooper Wright wide open in the endzone for an 11 yard touchdown pass.  Huff's extra point gave Saint James a comfortable 21 point lead with approximately 8 minutes remaining.

After an endzone kick, Mobile Christian was running out of time.  On fourth and 1 from their own 29, with no choice but to go for a first, four different Trojans gang tackled Sullivan and, once again, took over on downs.  Once again, Harrison, Harrison, Harrison - this time for 8 yards, 2 yards, and a 19 yarder against a defense which simply had no answers - and Saint James was up 35 - 7 in a result which may have shocked some.  The Leopards were fortunate not to turn the ball over on their final drive after a botched snap resulted in a 10 yard loss, an 8 yard sack, and a 13 yard pass completion where offensive holding was actually declined.  On fourth down from the 29 (once more), an incomplete pass turned the ball over again, and the Trojan substitutes led by backup quarterback Chase Perry only needed to run three plays to seal the semifinal victory, ensure a raucous bus ride home to Montgomery, and begin preparations for a first ever Super 7 visit - the 3A State Championship game against three time defending champion Piedmont the following Thursday.



SIDELINE STATISTICS - GAME FOURTEEN

SAINT JAMES   RUSHING   40 attempts  199 yards   4 TDs   (4.98 yards per carry)

                                5   Harrison           29 / 162  (3 TDs)      1   Jackson       7 / 29  (1 TD)
                              15   Perry                  3 /     6                     7   Houser        1 /   2 

                              PASSING    7 completions  10 attempts  0 INTs  78 yards  1 TD

                                1   Jackson              7 - 10 - 0   78 yards   1 TD

                              RECEIVING

                                2   Beard                  2 / 24                     12   Wright         2 / 23  (1 TD)
                                6   Holloway            2 / 17                       7   Houser         1 / 14

                              TOTAL YARDS:   277

                              KICKS:      XP  5 / 5      FG   0 / 0
                              2 POINT CONVERSIONS:  0 / 0
                              KICKOFFS:  6  (29,46,36,49,EZ,OB)              PUNTS:  2  (34,18)
                              KO RETURNS:  2  (28,15)                              PUNT RETURNS:   1  (21)
                              FIRST DOWNS:   22 (13 rushing, 7 passing, 2 penalty)
                              THIRD DOWN CONVERSIONS:  4 / 7
                              FOURTH DOWN CONVERSIONS:  0 / 0
                              FUMBLES:  0
                              TURNOVER MARGIN:  0
                              POINTS OFF TURNOVERS:   0
                              ACCEPTED PENALTIES:   6 / 34 yards

                              TIME OF POSSESSION:  unavailable

MOBILE CHR     RUSHING    30 attempts  72 yards  1 TD  (2.40 yards per carry)
                              PASSING       5 completions  12 attempts  0 INTs  0 TDs   73 yards
                              TOTAL YARDS:  145

                              KICKS:      XP  1 / 1      FG   0 / 0
                              2 POINT CONVERSIONS:  0 / 0
                              KICKOFFS:  2  (56,34)                                   PUNTS:  4  (1,20,31,34)
                              KO RETURNS:  5  (0fc,53,4,0,14)                 PUNT RETURNS:  1  (14)
                              FIRST DOWNS:  8  (6 rushing, 2 passing)
                              THIRD DOWN CONVERSIONS:  2 / 9
                              FOURTH DOWN CONVERSIONS:  0 / 3
                              FUMBLES:  2, lost 0
                              POINTS OFF TURNOVERS:  0
                              ACCEPTED PENALTIES:  6/ 74 yards
                              TIME OF POSSESSION:  unavailable


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