Covington slips past St. Paul’s thanks to blocked extra point, 21-20

COVINGTON, La. – There were a few anxious moments, but the Brown Jug is headed back to Covington High after a 21-20 win over St. Paul’s at Hunter Stadium.

The Lions held a 21-7 first half lead by taking advantage of opportunities on offense and defense, but St. Paul’s had the momentum in the second half, cutting the lead to 21-20 when Grant Grosch caught a 37-yard touchdown pass from Johntae McDowell. The Lions blocked the extra point, proving to be the difference in the District 6-5A showdown.

The Wolves had one more shot when they got the ball back at their 47 as Corey Williamson carried the ball 38 yards on the next four carries, down to the Covington 20. Quarterback Johntae McDowell misfired twice in three attempts, and the team was forced to attempt a 33-yard field that moved just to right. From that point, Covington had the ball with four minutes left in the game, and ran down the clock to secure the victory.

“It’s been a long time coming,” Covington quarterback Josh Alfaro said. “Last year, we were up in the first half and they came back to beat us, but we stayed calm and fought hard to finish strong.”

Covington’s last victory over St. Paul’s had come during the 2013 season.

“I didn’t care how we did it,” Covington coach Greg Salter said. “The most important thing is that we finished the week 6-0, the only thing that we were focused on all week. Our seniors get to go out on top, having won at St. Paul’s.”

Senior Devin Brumfield finished the game with 21 carries for 135 yards while Kejohn Batiste had three catches for 75 yards and a touchdown.

“This feels good to get this win,” Brumfield said. “We just had to keep battling so we could finish up and get the win. I couldn’t be more happy. Now I can sleep good.”

St. Paul’s running back Corey Williamson 21 carries for 138 yards and a touchdown while Nick Stanton had two catches for 75 yards.

Covington (6-0, 3-0) set the tone with their defense, pushing the Wolves back 16 yards on their first series, and then following it up by getting the first of two interceptions of McDowell.

They turned it into a 15-play, 90-yard scoring drive that Alfaro finished off with a one-yard run up the middle. Austin Firmin kicked the extra point for a 7-0 Lion advantage with under 10 minutes to go in the second quarter. On the ensuing possession, Milton Clark intercepted McDowell and ran 46 yards for the touchdown, putting Covington ahead 14-0.

“When I saw him (McDowell) roll out and I knew where he was going the whole time,” Clark said. “When he let go, I just took it to the house.”

Cameron Vidal took the kick off into Covington territory, down to the 42, putting the Wolves in position to work with a short field. The elected to keep the ball on the ground mostly, running 10 times in 12 plays with Corey Williamson finishing with a two-yard run. A Robby Ferrante extra point cut the Covington lead to 14-7 with about one minute remaining in the first half.

Facing long way to go, starting at their 35, Alfaro misfired on his first pass, but connected on his next three, including a 40-yard touchdown to Kejohn Batiste with no time on the clock. All of the momentum belonged to the Lions, who trotted off the field with a 21-7 lead at the half.

The second half was gut check time for St. Paul’s, and they answered with a 66-yard drive, bolstered by a 46-yard pass from McDowell to Nick Stanton, bring the ball down to the Lion one yard line. McDowell took it in on a one-yard run, getting the team within a touchdown.

St. Paul’s (3-3, 2-1) will go back to the drawing board to prepare for the rest of the season.

“We had a lot of self-inflicted things that cost us, like a missed extra point, a missed field goal, a Hail Mary at the end of the half, and a pick-six,” St. Paul’s coach Ken Sears. “Things we can control. Credit Covington for having a good game. Our kids played hard in the second half. We’ve got to go back to work, look at film and see where we made mistakes.”

Covington Offensive Stats

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