JEFFERSON - While the Jefferson Dragons completed a feat never before accomplished in its long football history, East Jackson showed Friday night in the biggest game in its brief history that it has plenty of firsts ahead in its bright future.
With an undefeated season and a Region 8-AA title at stake, Jefferson jumped out to a 28-7 by the fourth quarter but had to hold off a furious rally by the Eagles down the stretch before pulling out a 35-21 win in front of a raucous sellout crowd at Memorial Stadium.
The win gave Jefferson (10-0) its second straight region title and second straight perfect regular season. Even with the loss, East Jackson (9-1) finished with its best-ever record in its short history.
It's the first time in Jefferson's history that it has won back-to-back region championships.
But the game was not in complete control until Jefferson's J.J. Damons took a pitch 54 yards for the final touchdown of the game with less than three minutes to play.
Damons wound up scoring the first and last touchdowns of the game. In between was plenty of quarterback play, and all-around athleticism, from Darius Minor and Lucas Redd.
The game started with three straight scoreless possessions between the two teams. East Jackson's first drive stalled when the Eagles were stuffed on fourth down, turning the ball over on downs.
But after a short Jefferson drive got the ball inside East Jackson's 10, the Dragons fumbled it right back. The turnover was followed by an Eagles punt before the first score of the game.
The Dragons started their second drive on East Jackson's 30 yard line. On the very first play of the second quarter, Damons took the pitch, broke a pair of tackles and found the end zone for a 7-0 lead.
Jefferson's lead would stay that way for about 15 seconds.
East Jackson's C.J. Allen followed a wave of blockers and then outpaced the Jefferson defense for a 95-yard kickoff return to tie the game at 7-7.
Jefferson retook the lead on its next possession, however. Minor scrambled for 22 yards on the drive, before unleashing a 47-yard pass from near midfield to Tyler Porter at the goal line, giving Jefferson a 14-7 lead.
Instead of answering with a touchdown, the Eagles turned the ball over. Linebacker Kyle Mosely stepped in front of a pass from Eagles quarterback Evan Williamson for the interception, giving Jefferson the ball back again.
The next drive was dominated by the Dragons' two standout quarterbacks.
Minor and Redd took turns under center moving the ball down the field. And then it was Minor dropping back and finding Redd at the goal line for a 30-yard touchdown strike, giving the Dragons a 21-7 lead going into halftime.
The score remained the same until midway through the third period, when Jefferson expanded it.
Again it was Minor in the middle of another touchdown. This time he capped off an 80-yard drive by scrambling to his left and scoring from seven yards out for a 28-7 lead.
Minor finished the game with six carries for 29 yards and a touchdown on the ground. He also had a great passing performance, going 8-11 throwing for 177 yards and two more touchdowns.
But the Eagles wouldn't be handed their first loss of the season without a fight.
East Jackson went on an impressive 18-play drive that spanned 65 yards. Running back Deon Sewell had 57 rushing yards on the drive, including the three-yard touchdown carry to pull his team to within 28-14. The one problem with the drive was that it took more than 10 minutes off the clock.
After a timeout before the kickoff, East Jackson head coach Frank Caputo opted for the onside kick. Nick Alvarado's kick deflected off a Jefferson player, and was recovered by the Eagles.
It took them seven plays to march down the field again. And again it was Sewell finishing the drive with a three-yard touchdown run to cut the lead to 28-21.
Sewell led all rushers in the game with 26 carries and 136 yards, to go along with his two touchdowns.
But this time, the Eagles kicked it deep, with over 4:30 left on the clock and having two timeouts. By the time they got the ball back, they were down two touchdowns again with less than three minutes to go.
Damons's 54-yard touchdown run was the fourth play of the final scoring drive, putting the game out of reach.
Damons also eclipsed the century mark, rushing for 105 yards and his two touchdowns.
Friday
May 9th, 2025
10:55PM
