Escambia rallies past Rummel, 21-8

METAIRIE – When one side has bigger and faster players, it is going to be tough on the opposing team to overcome those deficits.

That was the plight for Archbishop Rummel, which ran into a big, talented Escambia squad Saturday night at Joe Yenni Stadium in Metairie,

The visitors from Florida scored 21 unanswered points in the second half to overcome the Raiders 21-8 in a game heard live on WGSO 990 AM.

Things started well for Rummel.

Playing without star receiver and USC commit Koy Moore (hamstring) and running back Logan Diggs (high ankle sprain), the Rummel offense sputtered outside of its opening drive and one big play in the second half.

After getting a stop on the first offensive series by Escambia, Rummel drove 58 yards in eight plays on its first possession, scoring on an 18-yard run by Chandler Fields to give the Raiders a 6-0 lead aftera missed extra point.

The lead grew in the second quarter when a bad snap on a punt sailed over the head of punter Tim Dortch, who took a safety to give Rummel an 8-0 lead at the half.

The second half belonged to the Gators, who did their damage in the air. While rushing for just 15 yards in the half, Escambia hurt Rummel in the passing game, particularly in the flats and with bubble screens as Av Smith passed for 185 yards and two scores in the half.

Escambia finally got on the board with 6:55 to play in the third quarter, driving 66 yards in seven plays with Smith connecting with Deterius Gideon on an eight-yard touchdown pass to make it 8-6. The pass for two pointes failed.

The Gators took the lead early in the fourth quarter as Smith hit Jaylen Blackmon on a 52-yard touchdown pass and Smith ran in the two-point conversion to make it 14-8 with 10:22 to play in the game.

It appeared Rummel would answer immediately. Fields connected on a perfectly thrown deep ball to Zach Mirambell to the Escambia 12-yard line but Fields was then sacked, the Raiders had a false start penalty and a pair of Field passes fell incomplete as Rummel turned the ball over on downs.

Escambia finished off Rummel when Smith scored from two yards out with 3:14 to play to complete the scoring. The Gators wore down the Raiders on a muggy night with 68 offensive snaps to just 53 for the Raiders.

Smith finished with 10 carries for 64 yards and a touchdown and he completed 21-of-33 passes for 235 yards and two touchdowns.

Fields , a UL-Lafayette commit, struggled without his main weapons, completing just 7-of-18 passes for 94 yards. He was sacked four times. Rummel hurt itself all night, losing two fumbles and incurring 10 penalties for 102 yards. Playing mostly man-to-man coverage, the Gators blanketed Raider receivers all evening, giving Fields little or no room to make throws.

“We did not play well,” Rummel head coach Jay Roth said. “Our offense was ineffective all night long. We made way too many mistakes to beat a good football team. It was a very disappointing effort. You cannot give the ball away and you cannot hurt yourself with so many critical penalties. We have a lot of work to do and a long way to go.”

The Raiders were also without star defensive back Corey Smooth, who is expected to miss three more games, along with kicker/punter Will Vanderbrook.

Both teams return to action next Friday night with Rummel traveling to LaPlace to take on Riverside Academy while Escambia (3-0) will host West Park, FL next Friday night.

Final
Escambia 0 0 6 15 21
Rummel 6 2 0 0 8

1st Qtr.
RUM—Chandler Fields, 18 yd. run (kick failed) 6-0 @ 7:52-1st 8 plays, 58 yds., 3:11

2nd Qtr.
RUM—Safety on snap over head Tim Dortch 8-0 @10:21-2nd

3rd Qtr.
ESC—Deterius Gideon, 8 yd. pass from Av Smith (pass failed) 8-6 @ 6:55-3rd 7 plays, 66 yds., 2:21

4th Qtr.
ESC—Jaylen Blackmon, 52 yd. pass from Av Smith (Smith run) 14-8 ESC @ 10:22-4th 6 plays, 92 yds., 1:12

ESC—Av Smith, 2 yd. run (Ronnie Perez kick) 21-8 @ 3:14-4th 7 plays, 27 yds., 2:52

First Downs
ESC 18, RUM 13

Rushing
ESC 129, RUM 109

Passing
ESC 235, RUM 94

Total Yards
ESC 354, RUM 203

Sacks
ESC 4, RUM 1

Turnovers
ESC 1, RUM 2

Penalties
ESC 9 for 80 yds., RUM 10 for 102 yds.

Individual Statistics
ESC Rushing
Av Smith, 10 carries for 64 yds., 1 TD
Frank Peasent 16 carries for 57 yds.
Jayden Blackmon 2 carries for 21 yds.
Kyaire Hall 3 carries for -13 yds.

ESC Passing
Av Smith 21-of-33 for 235 yds., 2 TD’s

ESC Receiving
Jayden Blackmon 6 catches for 40 yds.
Deterius Gordon 5 catches for 43 yds., 1 TD
Jaylen Blackmon 5 catches for 683 yds., 1 TD
Chris Hale 4 catches for 53 yds.
Frank Peasant 1 catch for 2 yds.
Toney Broadnax 1 catch for 14 yds.

RUM Rushing
Jaelen Sturgis 16 carries for 75 yds.
Chandler Fields 10 carries for 11 yds., 1 TD
Kyle Walker 4 carries for 23 yds.

RUM Passing
Chandler Fields 7-of-18 for 94 yds.

Rum Receiving
Jacob Renton 3 catches for 8 yds.
Zach Mirambell 1 catch for 54 yds.
Amour Rachal 1 catch for 19 yds.
Jaelen Sturgis 1 catch for 15 yds.
Trey Walker 1 catch for -2 yds.