Jackets fall to Worth

Jeff Davis High’s football team dropped a 49-13 game to Worth County last Friday night in Sylvester.
But the game was not as one-sided as the score indicates as Jacket miscues and a barrage of yellow flags kept the visitors out of the end zone most of the night. The Jackets had runs of 30, 38 and 49 yards negated by penalty flags during the night.
Worth quarterback Lyndon Worthy was 21-of-22 passing for 272 yards and four touchdowns.
Both teams scored on their first two possessions as neither defense could stop the offenses. After Worth scored on its third possession of the game, on the Jackets’ third possession, which reached the Worth 10 yard line, a fumble ended the drive. It also ended the Jackets’ scoring for the night, despite several scoring threats.
Worth took the opening kickoff and went right to work, passing for 13, 15 and 39 yards to get on the scoreboard in a hurry.
The P.A.T. kick was good and the Rams led 7-0 with only 57 seconds run off the clock.
The Yellow Jackets fought right back, marching 65 yards in 10 plays of smash-mouth football. Kyrise Hunt did most of the leg-work behind the JD offensive line that muscled its way against the Ram defense. Hunt capped the drive with a 1-yd. run from the wildcat formation. Fernando Vega booted the extra point and the score was knotted at 7-all.
After the Jacket kickoff went out of bounds, Jeff Davis kicked again but the onside kick was recovered by Worth at the Jacket 49.
This time the Rams didn’t score so quickly as it took them eight plays to go the 49 yards, scoring on a 5-yd. run. The kick made it 14-7 with 2:29 left in the first quarter.
Again, the Yellow Jackets came back. With the offensive line winning the battle in the trenches, the Jackets rolled 58 yards in 10 plays with Hunt again capping the drive from the wildcat formation. He scored from three yards out. The drive was highlighted by a 3rd-and-2 play when, with the Ram defense looking for Hunt to get the ball, quarterback Colby Beach faked the handoff to Hunt going left and Beach kept around the right side for a 20-yd. gallop.
Vega’s kick sailed wide right and the Rams led 14-13 with 9:23 left in the first half.
Worth quickly replied, going 52 yards in five plays, scoring on a 33-yd. TD pass to the left front corner of the end zone. The kick made it 21-13.
After the kickoff, the Jackets started at their own 35 and quickly moved into Ram territory. On 3rd-and-7 from the JD 38, Beach again faked a handoff to Hunt and raced around the right side for 22 yards to the Worth 40. On the next play, Hunt rook a handoff inside, cut to the left sidelines and streaked 29 yards for a 1st-and-goal at the Worth 10.
But on the next play, a Jacket fumble gave Worth the ball at their own 14.
It was a back-breaking fumble that shattered the Jackets’ momentum as it appeared they would score for their third straight possession. Instead, the Rams kept the ball for a 14-play scoring drive. At one point, it looked like the drive would falter on 2nd-and-5 at the Jacket 14 as linebacker Carter Mullis blew through the line to nail the runner for a 3-yd. loss, making it 3rd-and-8 at the 17. But an 8-yd. pass completion gave the Rams a 1st-and-goal at the 9. They scored in two plays to make it 28-13 late in the first half.
The Jackets got the ball back on the ensuing kickoff but there was only enough time on the clock to run two plays.
Neither team punted in the first half as the offenses dominated the playing field. Worth scored on all four of its first half possessions while Jeff Davis was stopped only twice, once on a fumble and the second time by the clock running down.
The Jackets took the second half kickoff and on the first play, Hunt got outside and ran down the right sidelines for 38 yards to the Worth 20. But a penalty flag negated the run and the Jackets faced 2nd-and-20 from their 29.
Hunt got the yardage back immediately, getting to the left sidelines and going 20 yards for a 1st down at the JD 49.
Beach then kept for six to the Worth 45, but that was as far as the Jackets would get. Beach retreated to pass on the next play but was blind-sided from the right for a 10-yd. loss. On 4th-and-14, Konner Munsayac retreated for what was to be the first punt of the game. But the snap hit the ground three yards short of Munsayac and the ball bounded past him and suddenly the Rams had the ball at the Jeff Davis 16.
Worth scored in four plays to make it 35-13.
After the kickoff, Hunt darted through a big hole for 10 yards and a first down just across midfield into Worth territory. The JD offensive line carved out a couple of holes and M.J. Hankerson picked up a first down in two carries, moving the ball to the Worth 39.
But then things went south. An illegal procedure penalty and a high snap from center left the Jackets with a 2nd-and-25 at the Jacket 45. After an incomplete pass, Beach was sacked for a 4-yd. loss and Hankerson could get only for yards and, on 4th-and-26, Munsayac again retreated into punt formation. Another penalty backed up the Jackets five more yards and then Munsayac got off a 45-yd. punt as Worth took over at their own 15.
The Rams scored in a hurry. After a 2-yd. run, passes picked up 14, 39 and 30 yards for another score. The kick made it 42-13.
The Jackets refused to quit. With the offensive line doing the heavy lifting, the JD offense carved out an 11-play drive. The big play in the drive was a halfback pass from Jude Worthington to La’Trell Sellers that picked up 30 yards. But a penalty took away 10 of those yards and the Jackets had the ball back at the Ram 42. Hunt then raced 20 yards for a 1st down at the Worth 22. But the Jackets could get only five yards in three tries and, on 4th-and-5 a Beach pass under heavy pressure fell incomplete and Worth took over at their 17.
The Rams scored their final touchdown in eight plays, capping the drive with a 34-yd. TD pass on 3rd-and-12 from the Jacket 34.
The kick made it 49-13.
On the second play after the kickoff, Hunt went around his left side and with excellent downfield blocking he raced 49 yards to inside the Worth 20. But, once again, a yellow flag nullified an excellent Jacket gain and the ball was back at the Jacket 31 for a net loss of two yards.
On 4th-and-9, the punt snap to Munsayac hit short again, but this time it bounced into his arms and he punted the ball away. Worth was able to run out the clock in four plays.