TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Jessie Steps In To Carry Hawks To Another Win

ADVERTISEMENT

By GREGG BECNEL, Tribune correspondent

Published: October 27, 2007

SEFFNER - As it has been seemingly each week, Armwood was without a major contributor - this time starting tailback Eric Smith was out with a foot injury - but the Hawks didn't miss a beat as they continue to eye their first undefeated regular season since 2003.

Sophomore Sherman Jessie stepped in for Smith and finished with 160 total yards and two touchdowns to lead Armwood to a 31-9 Class 4A-District 11 win against Freedom on Friday at Lyle Flagg Field.

'Sherman Jessie brings another dimension with his speed,' Hawks coach Sean Callahan said. 'He allows us to get to the perimeters.'

Jessie, who finished with 75 yards rushing and 85 receiving, opened the scoring when he went untouched on a 26-yard run down the right sideline after taking a pitch from quarterback Mywan Jackson.

Armwood (9-0, 3-0) used trickery on its second touchdown. Facing third-and-26, Jackson threw a backward pass to receiver Rob Jones, who found a streaking Jessie for a 46-yard scoring pass.

'I just went in there and played hard,' Jessie said. 'I wanted to step in and help the team.'

The Hawks made it 21-0 when Jackson connected with Richard Jules for a 29-yard touchdown 5:40 before halftime.

Jackson finished 8-for-15 for 158 yards. He also rushed 14 times for 94 yards and a touchdown.

'Mywan is developing into a good quarterback,' Callahan said. 'He makes real good decisions, and we feel comfortable with him.'

Freedom (1-7, 1-3) made things interesting by scoring nine consecutive points to cut Armwood's lead to 21-9 going into the fourth quarter.

'We played pretty good, but we made a whole lot of mistakes,' Jackson said. 'We got down a little after Freedom scored, but our D stepped up and our offense got going.'

Callahan said Freedom's brief rally will serve his team well when it gets to the playoffs.

'My guys weren't nervous; they get frustrated,' Callahan said. 'They want to try to shut everybody out. But Freedom coach Marquel Blackwell does a heck of a job with his team. This was good for us, because people are going to score against you in the playoffs. I don't want my guys to get down when that happens.'

Freedom freshman quarterback Josh Grady finished 12-for-20 for 149 yards, including a 37-yard touchdown pass to Larry Thompson, who had five receptions for 89 yards.

Armwood, ranked No. 2 in the state and No. 26 in the Rivals Fab 50 national poll, has outscored its opponents 260-43 and hasn't given up more than 10 points in a game.

The Hawks, who won back-to-back state championships in 2003 and 2004, are 47-3 in their past 50 regular-season games. Two of the losses were by one point, and the other was by forfeit (after winning the game on the field) for using an ineligible player. Armwood closes its regular season next week at district foe Middleton.

A-Jessie 46 pass from Jones (Skiffington kick)

A-Jules 29 pass from Jackson (Skiffington kick)

F-Safety, Jackson tackled in end zone

F-Thompson 37 pass from Grady (Cardozo kick)

A-Jackson 7 run (Skiffington kick)

A-FG Skiffington 43

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT