July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
Cards control JC in 2nd half (10/08/07)
JCHS football
Cards control JC in 2nd half (10/08/07)
By By RAY COONEY-
Even with a late interception that turned into a touchdown, the host Patriots matched the East Chicago Central Cardinals blow-for-blow in the first half.
Both teams had more than 100 yards rushing.
Both had completion percentages above 50.
Both had 20 points on the board.
But what seemed headed to be a down-to-the-wire game instead ended with East Chicago Central scoring 20 unanswered points and dominating the second half for a 34-20 victory over the Patriots.
"We played two quarters and they played four," said JCHS coach Shane Hill, whose team dropped to 5-3. "I really believe that was the telltale sign of the whole, entire game. They came out of the locker room excited, ready to go. I think we looked rather lethargic ...
"The second half they controlled us on both sides of the ball. And they didn't change anything. Their defensive front stayed exactly the same, they just played more aggressive."
The win was the fifth straight for the Cardinals after an 0-3 start. The last two of those victories came on long road trips as ECC traveled 120 miles to play Vincent (Milwaukee) last week before making the 200-mile trip to Jay County Saturday.
"I can't say enough about our kids' character," said second-year coach A.J. Rodriguez. "They came out and played ball. We've been through a lot of adversity this year, but we've stepped it up. I can't say enough. I love them to death."
Jay County led East Chicago Central 20-14 thanks to Billy Wellman's 12-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter, but from there the game turned sharply in the Cardinals' favor.
The next Patriot drive lasted just two plays as Miguel Covarrubias jumped a route, picked off a pass intended for Brandon Reynard and cruised 30 yards down the right sideline for the game-tying touchdown.
Still, the game was tied and Jay County was set up to take the lead early in the second half after a 30-yard punt return by Aaron Daniels set the home team up in the red zone. But a third-down pass was dropped in the end zone, and the Patriots failed to convert on fourth down.
East Chicago Central responded with a 12-play, 82-yard drive that took 7:38 off the clock. Quarterback Willie Lott capped the effort with a 3-yard TD pass to Travis Hunter.
Jay County went three-and-out on its next drive, and Cardinal running back Michael Smith sealed the game with a 44-yard touchdown run.
"I don't feel there's another team in America that's been working since May 7, and that's how long we've been at it," said Rodriguez of the effort his team was able to put together after the intermission. "I feel like we're one of the best conditioned teams in the state, and I will take that to the bank."
Smith's final touchdown jaunt - he busted through the middle and outran JCHS safety's Michael Jobe and Clint Muhlenkamp to the end zone - put him over 200 yards for the game. He finished with 24 carries for 204 yards and a pair of TDs.
Lott was efficient and effective in the passing game. He completed each of his first six attempts in the game and had throws of 42 and 38 yards in the second half to finish 17-of-25 for 194 yards.
Hunter had eight receptions for 105 yards, breaking the century mark for the second straight game.
Jay County, on the other hand, struggled mightily in the second half after picking up more than 200 yards of total offense in the first. They totaled just nine yards and two first downs in the second half, going three-and-out three consecutive times as the Cardinals put the game away.
Hill said one of the things he'd like to see his team work on is realizing it is capable of clawing out of a bad situation.
"Everything is easy when you're winning. It's easy to take criticism from the coach when you're winning ... because you still have that comfort of being ahead in the ball game," he said. "But we've got to begin to understand that we've got to take the bad with the good. ... We're trying to make our team better, and we need to do a better job as a team of being able to handle those situations when things aren't going quite as well.
"And that's not just football, that's a life thing. Not everything's always going to be hunky-dory for you all the time. And it's how you handle those situations that is either going to make or break you sometimes."
Michael Jobe led a 151-yard day on the ground for the Patriots with 106 yards on eight carries. Most of that came on their first offensive play as he burst through the middle, cut to the left sideline and outran the defense 72 yards for a touchdown.
Wellman completed four of his first five passes, including a a 24-yard TD strike to Dexter Shreve, but finished 5-of-17 for 65 yards and two interceptions. Adam Garringer had three catches for 37 yards.
Kyle Cook, who drew high praise from Rodriguez, totaled nine tackles, including a pair of sacks to lead the defense.
"I just really want to continue to cut down the mental mistakes," said Hill, looking ahead to the final regular-season game Friday at Greenfield-Central. "We only had three penalties tonight, which is a season-low for us. ... We're still looking for that very first game with no turnovers. ... And obviously the No. 1 thing is we've got to play four quarters. ... If we play four quarters of football, that means we're still focused on doing things the right way. ... If we do that I'll be very pleased and happy with where we're at heading into the sectional."
There was one scary moment in the game as after Shreve's touchdown catch Derryon Smith of the Cardinals stayed down on the field for several minutes. He complained of numbness in his neck was placed on a backboard and taken by ambulance to Jay County Hospital.
However, Smith was able to move both his arms and his legs while laying on the field, and by the time the game was over Rodriguez said his junior defensive back had been released and was heading home with his family.
"There are great people out here in Jay County," Rodriguez added. "It was our first time out here and they treated us great. ... It was a pleasure to come out here, and it's even better to go home with a win."
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Both teams had more than 100 yards rushing.
Both had completion percentages above 50.
Both had 20 points on the board.
But what seemed headed to be a down-to-the-wire game instead ended with East Chicago Central scoring 20 unanswered points and dominating the second half for a 34-20 victory over the Patriots.
"We played two quarters and they played four," said JCHS coach Shane Hill, whose team dropped to 5-3. "I really believe that was the telltale sign of the whole, entire game. They came out of the locker room excited, ready to go. I think we looked rather lethargic ...
"The second half they controlled us on both sides of the ball. And they didn't change anything. Their defensive front stayed exactly the same, they just played more aggressive."
The win was the fifth straight for the Cardinals after an 0-3 start. The last two of those victories came on long road trips as ECC traveled 120 miles to play Vincent (Milwaukee) last week before making the 200-mile trip to Jay County Saturday.
"I can't say enough about our kids' character," said second-year coach A.J. Rodriguez. "They came out and played ball. We've been through a lot of adversity this year, but we've stepped it up. I can't say enough. I love them to death."
Jay County led East Chicago Central 20-14 thanks to Billy Wellman's 12-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter, but from there the game turned sharply in the Cardinals' favor.
The next Patriot drive lasted just two plays as Miguel Covarrubias jumped a route, picked off a pass intended for Brandon Reynard and cruised 30 yards down the right sideline for the game-tying touchdown.
Still, the game was tied and Jay County was set up to take the lead early in the second half after a 30-yard punt return by Aaron Daniels set the home team up in the red zone. But a third-down pass was dropped in the end zone, and the Patriots failed to convert on fourth down.
East Chicago Central responded with a 12-play, 82-yard drive that took 7:38 off the clock. Quarterback Willie Lott capped the effort with a 3-yard TD pass to Travis Hunter.
Jay County went three-and-out on its next drive, and Cardinal running back Michael Smith sealed the game with a 44-yard touchdown run.
"I don't feel there's another team in America that's been working since May 7, and that's how long we've been at it," said Rodriguez of the effort his team was able to put together after the intermission. "I feel like we're one of the best conditioned teams in the state, and I will take that to the bank."
Smith's final touchdown jaunt - he busted through the middle and outran JCHS safety's Michael Jobe and Clint Muhlenkamp to the end zone - put him over 200 yards for the game. He finished with 24 carries for 204 yards and a pair of TDs.
Lott was efficient and effective in the passing game. He completed each of his first six attempts in the game and had throws of 42 and 38 yards in the second half to finish 17-of-25 for 194 yards.
Hunter had eight receptions for 105 yards, breaking the century mark for the second straight game.
Jay County, on the other hand, struggled mightily in the second half after picking up more than 200 yards of total offense in the first. They totaled just nine yards and two first downs in the second half, going three-and-out three consecutive times as the Cardinals put the game away.
Hill said one of the things he'd like to see his team work on is realizing it is capable of clawing out of a bad situation.
"Everything is easy when you're winning. It's easy to take criticism from the coach when you're winning ... because you still have that comfort of being ahead in the ball game," he said. "But we've got to begin to understand that we've got to take the bad with the good. ... We're trying to make our team better, and we need to do a better job as a team of being able to handle those situations when things aren't going quite as well.
"And that's not just football, that's a life thing. Not everything's always going to be hunky-dory for you all the time. And it's how you handle those situations that is either going to make or break you sometimes."
Michael Jobe led a 151-yard day on the ground for the Patriots with 106 yards on eight carries. Most of that came on their first offensive play as he burst through the middle, cut to the left sideline and outran the defense 72 yards for a touchdown.
Wellman completed four of his first five passes, including a a 24-yard TD strike to Dexter Shreve, but finished 5-of-17 for 65 yards and two interceptions. Adam Garringer had three catches for 37 yards.
Kyle Cook, who drew high praise from Rodriguez, totaled nine tackles, including a pair of sacks to lead the defense.
"I just really want to continue to cut down the mental mistakes," said Hill, looking ahead to the final regular-season game Friday at Greenfield-Central. "We only had three penalties tonight, which is a season-low for us. ... We're still looking for that very first game with no turnovers. ... And obviously the No. 1 thing is we've got to play four quarters. ... If we play four quarters of football, that means we're still focused on doing things the right way. ... If we do that I'll be very pleased and happy with where we're at heading into the sectional."
There was one scary moment in the game as after Shreve's touchdown catch Derryon Smith of the Cardinals stayed down on the field for several minutes. He complained of numbness in his neck was placed on a backboard and taken by ambulance to Jay County Hospital.
However, Smith was able to move both his arms and his legs while laying on the field, and by the time the game was over Rodriguez said his junior defensive back had been released and was heading home with his family.
"There are great people out here in Jay County," Rodriguez added. "It was our first time out here and they treated us great. ... It was a pleasure to come out here, and it's even better to go home with a win."
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