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James Monroe's Greg Edwards (left) tries to get past Orange's Shane Atkins.
James Monroe quarterback DeVonte Atkins carries the ball on a keeper as Shane Oehmke dives for a tackle attempt.
Orange's Dominic Walker with ball, gets caught by James Monroe defenders Ross Browning (right) and P.J. Hayden. |
BY JIM McCONNELL
Last night's game between former Battlefield District rivals James Monroe and Orange was billed as a showdown of gifted junior quarterbacks DeVontae Atkins and Quintin Hunter.
Ultimately, the Yellow Jackets' defense and offensive line had the final say.
James Monroe (5-0) controlled the ball by rushing for 234 yards and limited Orange's explosive offense to just six points through three quarters en route to a 27-18 victory.
It was the 500th win in the history of James Monroe's football program, which dates back to 1909.
"I told our staff four touchdowns would win it," JM coach Rich Serbay said. "I thought our defense could hold them to two or three touchdowns and we did."
Atkins rushed for 111 yards and Jamel Brooks ran for three touchdowns to lead the Yellow Jackets.
One week after he shredded Monticello for 528 total yards in a 61-42 loss, Orange's Hunter completed 19-of-27 passes for 207 yards and rushed for 87 yards on 18 carries.
But James Monroe's defense turned up the pressure in the second half, holding Hunter to minus-6 yards on his final eight rushing attempts.
"We knew he was the heart of their team," JM linebacker Stephen Meadows said. "If you take the heart out, the body will fall."
Orange (2-3) made it look easy on its opening possession, marching 72 yards in just six plays for a touchdown. Hunter did the honors with a 16-yard strike to Carnell Perkins as the Hornets took a 6-0 lead with 10:17 left in the first quarter.
Orange had a chance to extend its advantage after recovering Brooks' fumble at its 39. But after a personal foul gave the Hornets a first down at the James Monroe 22, they lost 19 yards on a botched reverse and the drive ended on downs three plays later at the 17.
Orange didn't reach the end zone again until the fourth quarter.
"If we go up two scores, it's tougher for them, but they stopped us and they deserved it," Orange coach John Kayajanian said.
The visiting Yellow Jackets ended the first half by scoring on two of their final three possessions. They went ahead 7-6 on Brooks' 4-yard run, then added to the lead when Atkins hit P.J. Hayden for an 8-yard touchdown strike with 27 seconds left.
Atkins finished the half with 155 yards of total offense. He rushed for 111 yards on nine carries, including a 48-yarder on the second scoring drive, and completed 4-of-6 passes for 44 more.
Hunter's stats were even better. He carried the ball 10 times for 93 yards and was 9-of-11 passing for 86 more.
"He's phenomenal, one of the best athletes I've ever seen," Serbay said. "He was hot as a frying pan. To beat him, we had to keep him off the field by running the ball."
James Monroe did just that in the third quarter. Through the first 11 minutes of the period, the Yellow Jackets ran 19 offensive plays to Orange's six.
While the Hornets went three plays and out on both of their possessions, JM got two short touchdown runs from Brooks and built a 27-6 lead with 1:21 left in the third quarter.
That's when Hunter and Orange's offense finally sprung back to life.
The left-hander hit on 5-of-7 passes for 79 yards, including a 3-yard scoring strike to Perkins.
After the Hornets' Mike Nixon recovered an onside kick at the JM 40, Hunter completed two quick passes and Bobby Bigler ran 20 yards for Orange's second touchdown in a span of 52 seconds.
"I knew Coach Serbay was coming after Quintin. That's the way you handle a kid like that, but he still made some plays," Kayajanian said.
Trailing by nine, Orange had two more possessions in the final 11 minutes. Both ended on downs.
On Orange's final three plays, JM sacked Hunter twice and forced a fumble that the Hornets recovered for a 10-yard loss.
"He's a real good football player, but we wanted to prove to everybody that we're for real," Meadows said. "This was a statement. We're hungry and we're going to go at you."
James Monroe | 7 | 7 | 13 | 0 | -- | 27 |
Orange | 6 | 0 | 0 | 12 | -- | 18 |
First Quarter
Or--C. Perkins 16-yard pass from Q. Hunter (kick failed).
JM--J. Brooks 4-yard run (R. Davis kick).
Second Quarter
JM--P. Hayden 8-yard pass from D. Atkins (R. Davis kick).
Third Quarter
JM--J. Brooks 4-yard run (kick failed).
JM--J. Brooks 1-yard run (R. Davis kick).
Fourth Quarter
Or--C. Perkins 3-yard pass from Q. Hunter (pass failed).
Or--B. Bigler 20-yard run (pass failed).
TEAMSTATISTICS
JM | Or |
First downs17 | 21 |
Rushing yardage16-131 | 31-141 |
Passing yardage59 | 207 |
Passes5-12-0 | 19-27-0 |
Punts-Avg.2-29 | 2-21.5 |
Fumbles-lost4-1 | 3-1 |
Penalties-yards 2-25 | 10-80 |
INDIVIDUALSTATISTICS
Rushing: James Monroe--DeVontae Atkins 9-111; Jamel Brooks 6-18, 3TDs; Stephen Meadows 1-2. Orange--Quintin Hunter 18-87; Dominic Walker 9-41; Bobby Bigler 4-13, TD.Passing: James Monroe--DeVontae Atkins 5-12-0 59, TD. Orange--Quintin Hunter 19-27-0 207, 2TDs.
Receiving: James Monroe--Delonte Fleming 3-36; Greg Edwards 1-15; P.J. Hayden 1-8, TD. Orange--Carnell Perkins 9-122, 2TDs; Chris Rollins 6-67; Bobby Bigler 2-13; Dominic Walker 2-5.
Jim McConnell: 540/374-5444| JAMES MONROE 27 ORANGE 18 |
