53 Football Frenzy
The Calhoun Yellow Jackets (3-0, 1-0 region) started region play off on the right foot with a 17-7 road victory over the Sonoraville Phoenix (1-2, 0-1 region). It is also Yellow Jacket head coach Clay Stephenson’s first region and rivalry-game win in his career.
“I don’t care what the scoreboard was, you come into the game to win, and when the opposing team shuts the scoreboard down right when the game is over, you probably won,” Stephenson said. “I’m so proud of my guys and the coaching staff did an awesome job of adjusting and we told them to celebrate. We’ll get ready for North Murray later on, but right now, we’ll celebrate a rivalry victory. This team is full of heart and they showed that tonight.”
Friday marked Calhoun’s 12th consecutive victory over Sonoraville since the two began meeting in 2006 (teams played in different regions in 2012 and 2013). The contest also featured the lowest margin of victory for the Yellow Jackets over the Phoenix.
“Much better effort than in the past,” Phoenix head coach Denver Pate said. “Our defense did a good job of keeping us in the game. We were able to start sustaining some things offensively in the third, (but) we’ve just got to execute better.”
After a slow start to the game, the Yellow Jackets held a small 3-0 edge. With time winding down in the second quarter, Calhoun senior quarterback Jake Morrow located fellow senior Ethan Crump on the right side for a 13-yard touchdown pass with 3:22 left before halftime.
Turning point
With time winding down in the first half, Sonoraville’s offense finally got rolling, as senior running back Colton Richards broke loose for a 65-yard gain to the Calhoun 15.
One play later, Sonoraville was on the Yellow Jacket 2-yard line with a first and goal. However, Lackey could not corral the bad snap and Calhoun recovered, grounding Sonoraville’s promising drive.
“That really stunk,” Pate said. “We had the momentum going right before halftime and just a bad snap. It was tough because we could’ve gone in 10-7 going into halftime, but you know that’s life.”
Calhoun’s ground game showed up in the form of junior running back Jerrian Hames, proving hard to wrap up. Hames capped off a Yellow Jacket drive with a 3-yard touchdown run, pushing the advantage to 17-0 with 5:47 remaining in the third quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Sonoraville’s offense found life in the fourth quarter. Sonoraville’s defense made a huge stand in the red zone, stopping the Jacket offense on fourth-and-goal. The Phoenix then marched 96 yards down the field, topped off by a Lackey strike to freshman Brant Bryant on the right side with 5:31 left in the fourth quarter.
Defense steps up
Both defenses played with poise and fought hard, but Calhoun’s defense came up with a huge stop inside the red zone with less than four minutes to go in the game.
“I do remember they had two big stands down there that (Sonoraville) could’ve scored touchdowns,” Stephenson said. “Defense is going to keep us in a lot of games and they did that tonight and being able to get turnovers and stops down there really helped out.”
Pate said he thought his defense did their job during the battle, holding Calhoun to its lowest point total thus far in the series.
“I thought they did a really good job,” Pate said. “At times, it felt like we couldn’t get off the field on third down, but … we were able to keep them off the scoreboard. They sustained some long drives, but at the end, we were able to hold them out kind of like they were with us in the second half. I’m proud of their effort.”
Sonoraville had first-andgoal on the Calhoun 7-yard line, but failed to break through. The Phoenix’s field goal attempt, which if successful would have made the game a one-score possession, was no good.
“That’s a good football team over there, we’ve just got to execute better,” Pate said. “We’re a good team. We could be a really good team, we’ve got to be able to finish.”
Crowd support
Both Phoenix and Jacket Nations showed up en masse, with both sideline stands filled any many watching from the fence just beyond the track surrounding Sonoraville’s football field.
“We knew it was going to be a great atmosphere,” Stephenson said. “Anytime we come out here and have an inter-county game, it’s going to be a good game and it was special tonight.”
“Phoenix Nation’s always behind us,” Pate said. “They do a great job. I wish we were able to finish this thing for these guys. Makes you a proud football coach and very humbling to see this place packed out. That’s where we want to be.”
Offensive stats
Calhoun
Jake Morrow: 18-25 for 174 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Jerrian Hames: 21 carries for 142 yards, 1 TD
Sonoraville
Brady Lackey: 15-26 for 196 yards, 1 TD
Colton Richards: six carries for 67 yards
Up Next
The Calhoun Yellow Jackets return home to face the North Murray Mountaineers at Hal Lamb Field at Phil Reeve Stadium on Friday, Sept. 20. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
“I’m excited to get to Monday practice,” Stephenson said. “I wish we could go right back to tomorrow and start with them because they’re a special group and I’m ready to get back to them.”
The Sonoraville Phoenix enter their second bye week of the season. They will host Murray County on Friday, Sept. 27. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
“We want to make sure we get some bumps and bruises healed up, but at the same time, we make sure we have all 11 guys on the same page and we’re executing all 11,” Pate said.