The Jesuit Ranger football team had a dominating 56-29 win over Irving in week seven of their season on October 10th. Thanks to an outstanding performance by the Rangers on the offensive side of the ball, offensive coordinator Coach Jonathan Short received a nomination for assistant coach of the week four days later on the 14th.
Head Coach Brandon Hickman said, “The nomination is a nice gesture to Coach Short, the football program, and all of the staff who work extremely hard.” Coach Hickman knew from the beginning that Coach Short would be a great addition to the program because “[Coach Short] was the first person I called wanting to sell Jesuit to him after getting the head job.” Coach Short’s responsibilities off the field impress Coach Hickman too, as “he teaches five biology classes in addition to coaching and excels greatly in the classroom.”
It was a good showing offensively, and senior quarterback Bo Schneider said, “It was a solid B+ performance for us and we did our job, but there’s a lot we can do to improve.” Schneider completed eighty percent of his passes and the Jesuit offense finished with 603 total yards en route to the victory.
Senior receiver Charlie Eikenberg said of Coach Short’s recognition, “Coach Short definitely deserves the nomination. He puts our high-powered offense in good situations that we capitalize on.” Short responded, “It’s always a great honor to receive a nomination,” also adding that “the great relationship and leadership between the coaches and players” was a big reason for his nomination. He attributes the great game against Irving to Bo’s lights-out throwing, the receiving crew’s 431 yard game, and an amazing 143 yard rushing performance by senior Matt Slovak.
After a fumble on the Rangers’ first possession and a big defensive stop, the Ranger offense started clicking. Later in the quarter, Schneider connected with fellow senior wide receiver Matt Miller for a 97 yard touchdown. Schneider credited this play as what “switched the momentum back in [Jesuit’s] favor.” This momentum helped Jesuit put up points in each quarter. On a crucial third down with 18 yards to the first down marker, Schneider completed a pass to receiver Charlie Eikenberg for a 25 yard touchdown. Matt Slovak, running back for the Rangers, had back to back runs adding up to 45 yards resulting in a touchdown towards the end of the third quarter. Finally, a 26 yard run from Slovak set up a 30 yard strike from Schneider to senior receiver Garrett Amy which resulted in a touchdown, and what amounted to Jesuit’s final points of the game.
When asked about what made this game different from others, Coach Short said, “there was nothing too different, but the overall success is what we’re looking for in every game.” The nomination, in Short’s words, “[was] a great honor for me,” and he’s looking forward to the rest of the 2014 season.
