Jesuit repeats convincing win over Shaw

Though it was three weeks later, the second verse of Jesuit vs. Archbishop Shaw looked a lot like the first verse.

Grant Jordan tossed a pair of touchdown passes while Rader Jackson and Jalen Williams each ran for a score and a stout defensive effort, featuring five interceptions, made it stand up as the sixth-seeded Blue Jays dismissed the 11th-seeded Eagles 33-0 in the opening round of the Division I state playoffs at Tad Gormley Stadium Thursday night.

Jesuit defeated Shaw 34-3 in District 9-5A play on Oct. 25.

The Blue Jays started slowly and had to overcome 13 penalties for 167 yards but they were able to do so.

“I think we stuttered a lot on offense,” Jesuit coach Mark Songy said. “Defensively, we played really well. Offensively, once we got going, we were fine. They got better and were familiar with us so it kind of drives me crazy. They did a fine job of coaching their guys. We had some hiccups but we were able to pull out a convincing win.”

Jesuit had a chance to take the lead early when Ethan Branch intercepted a Tyler Nichol pass at the Shaw 5-yard line but the Blue Jays did not do anything with, going for it on fourth-and-goal from the 3-yard and a pass into the end zone fell incomplete.

On their next possession, Jesuit reached the Shaw 1-yard line and got turned away again as Rader Jackson was hit for a 1-yard loss on fourth-and-goal.

Joseph Flores then intercepted a Nichol pass to set Jesuit up at the Eagle 14-yard line. Once again, Shaw held but Aiden Corbello kicked a 28-yard field goal to make it 3-0 Jesuit with 10:33 to play in the half.

Austin Robert then came up with the third interception of the game for the Blue Jays to put Jesuit in business again. This time, the Blue Jays took full advantage as Grant Jordan connected with Luke Laforge on a 31-yard touchdown pass to make it 10-0 with 7:57 to play in the half.

Jesuit held the Shaw offense to one first down (by penalty) and no total yards in the first half. The Eagles found themselves pinned back deep in their own territory the entire half.

The Blue Jays added to the lead on their first possession of the second half, needing just four plays to go 73 yards with Jalen Williams scoring on a 3-yard run to make it 17-0 with 10:40 to play in the third quarter.

Jesuit added to the lead early in the fourth quarter on a 23-yard field goal by Corbello to make it 20-0 with 9:12 to play.

After an interception by Jack Stuke, the Blue Jays drove 62 yards in six plays with Jordan connecting with Luke Besh on a 21-yard touchdown pass to make it 27-0 with 5:34 to play in the game.

Jesuit completed the scoring when Jackson scored on a 2-yard run to account for the final margin.

Jordan finished 11-of-24 for 149 yards with two touchdowns.

“We didn’t play as good as we should have in the first half but we picked it up in the second half and did our job,” Jordan said. “The defense has been playing well all season. I love hanging with them. They put us in good positions to go and score touchdowns.”

Jackson rushed 15 times for 83 yards and a score while Williams had 12 carries for 65 yards and a touchdown. Laforge finished with six catches for 99 yards and a touchdown while Besh had two catches for 30 yards and a score.

“Our O-line picked it up great for us,” Jackson said. “We had some great holes. We had a great game plan and just kept it rolling. We’re a pretty seasoned team. We’ve just got to keep it rolling for next week.

The Blue Jay defense featured a pair of interceptions of Tyler Nichol by Robert. Jesuit held Shaw to just 26 total yards in the contest.

Nichol struggled against a physical defense, completing just 8-of-26 passes for 22 yards with the five interceptions for the Eagles (3-8). Isaiah Barnes rushed eight times for 15 yards, completed a pair of passes in as many attempts for minus six yards and caught three passes for minus six yards.

With the win, Jesuit (7-4) advances to the quarterfinals to face defending Division I state champion and third seed John Curtis Christian. The Patriots defeated the Blue Jays 35-14 on Oct. 18.

Jordan is ready for the challenge.

“After the last time we lost to them, we kind of thought that we weren’t really prepared as much as we should have been and this week, it will definitely be a tough week of practice because they are a great team. I think if we do our job and go out and give it all we’ve got, we’ll have a shot.”

Songy accepts the diluted playoff system with so many rematches because he has no choice.

“We’re kind of seeing each other for round two,” Songy said. “It is what it is. We’ll line up and get ready to go and get after it. They are great defensively to where they close on the ball so fast when you get down to the compressed end of the field and cause you problems. We are very familiar with them, our guys give great effort, we’ll put a nice plan together, we’re excited about playing them.”

FINAL
JESUIT 0 10 7 16 33
SHAW 0 0 0 0 0

First Downs: JESUIT 16, SHAW 6
Penalties: JESUIT 13 for 167 yards, SHAW 8 for 87 yards
Sacks: JESUIT 1, SHAW 1
Turnovers: JESUIT 1, SHAW 5
Rushing Yards: JESUIT 240, SHAW 10
Passing Yards: JESUIT 185, SHAW 16
Total Yards: JESUIT 425, SHAW 26