Sylvan Hills inches by Jonesboro late
Jonesboro threw well, but Sylvan Hills ran slightly better.
Junior Levi Persson kicked a 19-yard field goal with 24 seconds remaining to give Sylvan Hills a 17-16 victory over Jonesboro in an important 6A-East matchup Friday night at Bill Blackwood Field in Sherwood.
Sylvan Hills, which led 14-13 at halftime, amassed 365 total yards, including 353 rushing on 62 attempts, from its ground-heavy Double-Slot scheme patterned after NCAA Division II power Harding University.
Sylvan Hills (6-3, 5-1) trailed 16-14 after junior Tenison Roscoe’s 42-yard field goal crawled over the crossbar with 4:30 remaining in the game. It was Jonesboro’s only lead.
The Bears then used 10 consecutive running plays to move 61 yards for their winning points, a drive that included a fourth-and-3 conversion (13 yards) to the Hurricane 32 by junior slotback Xavier Okafor.
Senior slotback Taevion Cunningham ran 28 yards on the following play, setting the stage for Persson, who lined his fourth-down kick from the left hash mark just over the crossbar.
“It was a total team effort,” said first-year Sylvan Hills Coach Chris Hill, previously Harding’s offensive coordinator. “Our defense played well. Offense got a little rhythm that first drive and went down and scored twice. Then, we just laid an egg the rest of the night. That was frustrating.
“But when it came time for us to put a drive together, we were able to do that and get down in field-goal range. Just lucky to get a win against a really, really good football team.”
Cunningham ran 15 times for 144 yards, the bulk coming when in motion on rocket sweeps, a staple of Harding’s offense. Senior fullback DeAngelo Smith ran 20 times for 78 yards and a first-quarter touchdown (2 yards). Junior quarterback Corey Washington ran 19 times for 61 yards, including a 1-yard touchdown to snap a 7-7 tie with 11:39 remaining in the first half.
Jonesboro junior quarterback Rykar Acebo completed 19 of 35 passes for 313 yards and 1 touchdown. Senior tight end Connor Clark had 8 receptions for 166 yards and a 25-yard touchdown that pulled the Hurricane within 14-13 with 2:29 remaining in the first half. The extra-point attempt was blocked. Sophomore tailback Brock McCoy scored Jonesboro’s first touchdown on a 4-yard run with 1:22 remaining in the first quarter.
The Hurricane (5-3, 4-1) managed only 9 rushing yards and missed scoring opportunities after having first and goal at the 1 early in the second quarter, and first down at the Sylvan Hills 14 late in the third quarter. The first possession ended with a missed 36-yard field-goal attempt, the second with an interception in the end zone by senior safety Amarion Watson.
“Those two possessions are what lost the game for us,” Jonesboro Coach Randy Coleman said. “You can’t get in the red zone and not score against a good football team. And that’s what we did.”