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GAME OF THE WEEKJAMES MONROE 20, COURTLAND 8 jackets' defense aces final exam High school football: James Monroe at Courtland
BY ADAM HIMMELSBACH For the James Monroe defense, the tests came frequently and with little warning. Every few minutes in the fourth quarter, the Yellow Jackets were busy stopping Courtland on a crucial fourth down. Each hit seemed to be the final, dizzying one. But then a few minutes later, the James Monroe defense would find itself back on the field, back staring through wet face-masks, back to do it all over again. And each time, the Yellow Jackets were ready. In the fourth quarter last night, James Monroe stopped Courtland on a pair of crucial fourth downs. And then they stopped the Cougars on the game's final play, as an interception turned into a wild and wacky touchdown, giving the Yellow Jackets a 20-8 victory. "Holy moly," James Monroe coach Richard Serbay said. "Six points? I never in my wildest dreams thought we'd hold [Courtland's offense] to six points." With the win, JM snapped Courtland's 23-game Battlefield District winning streak and earned a share of the district crown, along with Courtland and Caroline. All three of these teams have qualified for the Region I tournament, which begins next Friday. James Monroe will play host to Poquoson. Courtland will visit Powhatan. But as time ran out last night, neither team was too concerned about next week. Several Courtland players ripped off their helmets and dropped to the turf. The James Monroe players swarmed each other and bobbed up and down, yelling and smiling. "There's about to be a whole lot of momentum," JM quarterback DeVontae Atkins said. And that momentum found its legs in the final quarter. Courtland trailed, 14-6, when it faced a fourth-and-4 from its 37-yard line. Cougars quarterback Luke Sellers sent a pass to Jon Longtin, but the ball popped out when Longtin was popped by a Yellow Jacket. JM marched to the Courtland 7, but on first-and-goal with 4 minutes, 38 seconds left, Jamel Brooks fumbled the ball and the Cougars recovered. Courtland moved 71 yards in three minutes, and ultimately faced a fourth-and-2 from the 20. This time, Sellers dropped back for a screen pass. James Monroe's Josh Tasker read the play well, and swatted the ball to the ground. "It looked like it was gonna be a screen," Tasker said, "so I just jumped at it."
The game against Courtland was totaly one sided. The score should have been JM 50 to Courtland 0. JM beat them off the ball and beat them up and down the field. The only issue JM had was they turned over the ball several times in which they were in scoring range. Coach of the year should go to Serby. He out coached Hall in everyway during this game. Good luck JM in winning the upcoming game.
Way to go Jayem!! Let's keep that momentum going! TCB! TCB!
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