The Jesuit Ranger Varsity football squad kicked off its first district game this past Friday night, playing against the Skyline Raiders. Unfortunately, Jesuit lost 42-28 to start district play with an 0-1 record. Let’s take a deeper look at the game.
Although the Rangers lost by two touchdowns, Jesuit hung on with Skyline for the majority of the game, all thanks to a stellar first half.
Other than a 12 yard pass to sophomore running back Adam Holtz, Jesuit’s first series
was uneventful and unsuccessful, ending with a 44 yard punt. However, the Ranger defense forced a quick three-and-out, thwarting Skyline’s first drive. The score was 0-0 with 7:41 left in the first.
The Rangers broke the stalemate with a 69 yard touchdown drive, a drive that featured Schneider spreading the wealth to three different receivers. Senior receivers Orion Salters, Kellen McAlone, and Will Carney all completed passes of over 7 yards on the series. And shortly after Holtz had a 23 yard long run, Schneider was able to complete a 13 yard pass to receiver Garret Amy ’15 for a touchdown.
However, the Raiders responded quickly with a long series in which they grounded and pounded for six points, rushing five out of the seven plays. Quarterback Sederian Copeland completed the drive with a 15 yard rushing touchdown, tying it up 7-7 with less than two minutes to go in the quarter.
Copeland was running all over the field for the majority of the game. Head Coach Brandon Hickman describes how “his speed and quickness made him very difficult to contain.”
But the Rangers continued to succeed as they responded with another long drive of 75
yards that featured a 10 yard touchdown reception by McAlone. McAlone continues to shine this season with five touchdowns receptions. New names to get on the box score included wide receiver Charlie Eikenberg ’15 who had two catches for 30 yards. Both Eikenberg and McAlone helped the Rangers start ahead 14-7 at the beginning of the second quarter.
Jesuit’s defense, however, could not stop the rolling Raiders as they reciprocated with another touchdown drive led by Sederian Copeland. The run defense appeared to be the Rangers Achilles heel as they let up their second rushing touchdown of the game. The score was tied at 14 with 7 minutes left in the half.
The sho0tout continued as Schneider and the Jesuit offense countered by putting up six more points on the board. This was assisted by a quick 15 yard Skyline defensive penalty combined with a 33 yard catch by Amy. The touchdown came from standout athlete Salters as he rushed into the end zone for an 11 yard score. Jesuit again led Skyline, the score 21-14.
Copeland and Daleon Ward of Skyline then responded with three rushes, of 13, 24, and 25 yards, the last of which was a touchdown. The Rangers again couldn’t stop the running game as Skyline scored its 3rd rushing touchdown of the half. And it turns out that the Raiders have a strong passing game, too, as Copeland threw a 64 yard bomb to Carlos Strickland to take the lead.Unable to score for the rest of the half, Jesuit stood behind Skyline 28-21 leading into halftime.
Many expected Jesuit to flake, to not perform, and even to get demolished by the Raiders. But the Rangers showed up with their A game, ready to compete with the top team in the district.
Skyline came out of the locker room and started with a 9 minute touchdown drive. This increased the Raider lead to 14. With hope slipping
away and tensions increasing, the Rangers looked up at the scoreboard, frustrated with the 35-21 score at the end of the third quarter.
The frustration ended up fueling them to start the fourth quarter off with a bang, with Salters scoring a rushing touchdown at the start of the fourth, decreasing the deficit to 7. This score was all thanks to a costly mistake by the Raiders punter, Darion Lewis, who caught the snap low, so low that his knee touched the ground on 4th and 3, making it a turnover on downs.
The Raiders recovered by refuting with a 26 yard touchdown drive to put them up 42-28. This proved to be the final score of the game as both teams couldn’t find the end zone for the rest of the match, the Rangers coming up short yet again.
The offense seemed to be firing on all cylinders in the first half but fell up short in the second. Hickman described its performance: “We had a great game plan and players executed it…no turnovers and only one penalty on offense was outstanding. We scored a touchdown in the 4th to pull within 7…they are very good defensively. They made a few stops in the game, but I was proud we didn’t stop ourselves and moved the ball well all night.”
Schneider had yet another solid game, throwing for 197 yards and three touchdowns to three different receivers (Amy, Salters, and McAlone). He also had no interceptions and threw to six different receivers.
The rushing game was non-existent on Friday as the Ranger ground game ended with 79 yards. Holtz didn’t have his usual stellar performance as he only rushed for 38 yards.
Special teams had a new face in kicker John Wengierski ’16. He successfully kicked four extra points, something that Jesuit has actually struggled with this year. Wengierski also had kick off duties and performed well with his finesse pouch kicks.
Hickman described his performance: “I thought John played very well for his first Varsity start kicking extra points and sky kicking on kickoffs. He also made a touchdown saving tackle late in the game.”
But a solid game does not guarantee a spot as the starter. Hickman explains, “We have a weekly kicking competition so we will see who the starter will be on Friday.”
This loss puts the Rangers’ overall record at a disappointing 1-3. But considering the tough competition they’ve faced, their record probably doesn’t reflect their talent.
Up next for Jesuit is another tough district away game versus Berkner. This game is sure to be a must-see so go out and support your Rangers.
