Republic rolled up more than 400 rushing yards, including touchdown runs of 94, 47, and 39 yards, on the way to a 22-7 win over Sedalia Smith-Cotton to start the season.
Tailback Jerney Jones led the way with 163 rushing yards. Quarterback Jake Smith had 138 yards on the ground, including a 94-yard touchdown run just before halftime that helped Republic seize the momentum from Smith-Cotton going into the locker room.
The Tigers had struck early on a 39-yard touchdown run by Jones to take a 6-0 lead. A short time later, Republic marched 60 yards on six plays to stretch the lead to 13-0. That drive ended with a 39-yard touchdown run by Jace DuVall.
Sedalia struck back early in the 2nd quarter on an eight-yard pass from Caleb Reed to Marquez Raye, cutting the lead to 12-7. After a couple of defensive stops, Smith-Cotton grabbed the momentum and looked like it may take a halftime lead. That’s when Smith came up big.
First, the senior went high in the air to pick off a pass near the end zone on 4th down. Then, three plays later on offense, with the Tigers trapped deep in their own territory, Smith faked a handoff to Jerney Jones, split the middle of the defense, and broke free for a 94-yard touchdown. The play gave Republic a 19-7 lead, and Smith-Cotton never got any closer the rest of the way.
“Our game plan was really to get our speed out on the edge. I think we did a pretty good job of that early,” says Smith. “As the game progressed, we tried to start slashing them with more power plays like quarterback counters. On that one that I ran, there was so much flow that bit on that outside sweep that I just cut it right up the middle and took it to the house.”
In the 2nd half, the Tigers gave the ball to Jones, eating up clock with a 12-point lead. Jones seemed to get stronger as the game went on.
“I just knew I had to stay up so everyone else would stay up,” Jones says. “We had to keep high energy if we wanted to score again.”
“He’s a tireless athlete,” coach Wes Beachler says of Jones. “He works hard in the weight room. I put him through some pretty rough stuff once in a while and he just keeps pushing through it. A lot of our kids do, but he’s just one of those kids that has a motor that keeps those legs churning until you’re going to make him stop.”
A late field goal by Mitchell Heinzler accounted for the final score of 22-7.
Yocum Automotive Drive of the Game
The Tigers’ opening drive set the stage for the game. They went 54 yards in only three plays, capped off by Jerney Jones’ 47-yard touchdown run, to take a 6-0 lead. It was a sign of things to come, as they scored two other long touchdowns on the way to their victory.
Beachler says the ability of his team to score from anywhere on the field was evident in their opener.
“I think our big play ability is something that’s going to help us all year,” he says. “We’ve got three or four kids who can take it to the house on any play, and that’s got to be scary for D coordinators down the road. We’ve just got to get better at executing.”
As the season goes on, Beachler says his offense will have to do a better job of putting the ball in the end zone after moving down the field.
“We didn’t sustain a lot of drives we probably could have finished,” he says.
Defensively, Beachler says he was “very happy,” especially because the injury-related absence of Zach Dickens forced several players to pull double duty on offense and defense.
“We had to have some tired kids. I thought this one was great for a bunch of kids who had to be out there a lot of plays,” he says. “That’s where discipline comes through, when you’re tired and your mind is kind of getting weak, that’s when you’ve got to rise up, so I thought we were good in that area.”
Republic improves to 1-0. The Tigers go on the road to Marshfield next Friday night.
