Jeffery Watkins (26) pounds out the yardage at Irmo. (Photo/Kristy Kimball Massey)
IRMO (Sept. 19, 2016) – Blythewood started hot in its Region V-5A opener with Irmo Friday night at W.C. Hawkins Stadium.
After taking a 13-0 lead on the Yellow Jackets, the Bengals had to fight to hold on to a 20-12 victory.
Blythewood had opened up strong, but the hard-hitting Irmo defense took its toll.
“(Running back) Jalon Boyd’s already out, but we lost Chris Woodall early in the game with a bruised back, and it changed our whole game plan,” Blythewood head coach Dan Morgan said. “We wanted to be wide open, go empty (in the backfield) and spread out the field. When we were able to execute that game plan, it worked pretty well.”
Blythewood (4-1) put two scores on the board before the Irmo offense could touch the ball.
Jordyn Adams took the opening kickoff and returned it to the Irmo 48-yard line. He then carried the ball seven times for 26 yards on the short drive that followed. Christ Woodall rushed in from 1 yard out at the 9:40 mark.
Antonio Goins then pounced on a loose ball on the kickoff that followed, which set the Bengals up at the 34-yard line. Two plays later Adams hit Kameron Riley in the end zone with a 31-yard TD pass with 8:49 left in the first.
The Yellow Jackets (1-4) finally got their ground attack moving with 96 yards on 24 attempts before the half. Irmo was in scoring position twice, but failed on fourth-and-4 at the Blythewood 15-yard line, and James Dooely missed a 42-yard field goal attempt.
“We got in the red zone twice and came up empty,” said Irmo head coach Reggie Kennedy, former Blythewood coach now in his third year with the Yellow Jackets. “We’ve got to make some plays. Against a team like Blythewood you’ve got to come up with some kind of points. The team that makes plays is the team that wins.”
The Yellow Jackets did make some plays in the final quarters, but came up short.
After an Irmo safety, Mason Lassiter capped a short drive with a 3-yard touchdown run to cut Blythewood’s lead to 13-9.
Blythewood, which hadn’t scored since the first quarter, responded with an 8-play, 58-yard scoring drive. Adams scored on a 20-yard TD run with 11 seconds left in the third to make it 20-9 Blythewood.
“That was a pretty drive,” Morgan said. “Our offensive line stepped up. We had two guys with ankle sprains, but they did a great job blocking and opening up those holes. That drive is pretty much what put the game to where we were comfortable enough to where we could hold on with our injured guys.”
Dooley made good on a 45-yard field goal early in the fourth to cut the Bengals’ lead to 20-12, but Sekwan Jenkins intercepted a Lassiter pass on a late Irmo drive to seal the win.
Jeffrey Watkins filled in at running back with 102 yards on 13 carries. The Bengals, however, will need some time to recover from Friday night before playing host to River Bluff Friday.
“We’re pretty beat up from this game,” Morgan said. “That football team (Irmo) is not a 1-4 football team. They’re a quality football team that’s gonna make a run. I guarantee they’re gonna make a run.”
BHS: 13-0-7-0 – 20
IHS: 0-0-9-3 – 12
SCORING
First Quarter
B – Chris Woodall 1 run (kick failed). 9:40.
B – Kameron Riley 31 pass from Jordyn Adams (Ben Kline kick). 8:49.
Third Quarter
I – Safety. 7:28.
I – Mason Lassiter 3 run (James Dooley kick). 4:06.
B – Adams 20 run (Kline kick). 00:11.
Fourth Quarter
I – Dooley 45 FG. 10:21.
TEAM STATS
BHS IHS
First Downs 15 16
Rushes-Yards 40-162 42-168
Passing Yards 75 75
C-A-I 7-16-0 9-19-1
Fumbles-Lost 2-0 2-1
Penalties-Yards 11-87 3-35
Punts-Avg. 5-35.2 3-24.3
INDIVIDUAL STATS
RUSHING: BHS – Jeffrey Watkins 13-102, Jordyn Adams 18-74, Chris Woodall 3-19, Kenny Benton 1-3. HIS – Mason Lassiter 11-44, Shakem Bradley 12-51, Jeffery Tharp 17-81.
PASSING: BHS – Jordyn Adams 16-7, 75 yards, TD. HIS – Mason Lassiter 19-9, 75 yards, INT.
RECEIVING: BHS – Kameron Riley 1-31, Chris Woodall 1-5, Jeffery 1-9, Roger Carter 1-5. Kenny Benton 3-25. HIS – Raekwan Heath 3-24, Kendrell Flowers 3-41, Jeffery Tharp 2-10, Shakem Bradley 1-0.
