COLUMBUS – With the threat of remnants from Hurricane Francine looming over the Golden Triangle, Victory Christian’s home contest versus Jacksonville (Ala.) Christian was moved from Thursday to Friday.
While that system brought only wind and rain to the area, Friday saw a thunderstorm roll through VCA’s home field, where the Eagles (2-1) fell, 38-6, to the JCA Thunder in Alabama Christian 8-man action.
Behind a potent passing attack and bruising running game, JCA jumped to an early lead and never looked back, with Thunder quarterback Noah Lee tossing five touchdown passes, three of which went to senior wideout Jesse Gannaway. Lee, a junior who is receiving significant Division I interest, had his way with the Eagles’ undermanned secondary, consistently finding soft spots in coverage for big gains on the outside.
Victory head coach Andrew Pace knew his team was in for a challenge against JCA, who is typically one of the toughest – and deepest – opponents on the Eagles’ schedule.
“For us, with the little numbers we have on the bench, it’s ironman football,” Pace told The Dispatch. (Our players) are not leaving the field, and when they do, (we’re) putting a young, inexperienced person in.. So that makes it tough.”
The game got off to a sloppy start that mirrored the field conditions. JCA’s opening kick – a pooch kick that landed 20 yards downfield – was mishandled and recovered by the Thunder. On the next play, a botched snap was recovered by Victory’s Mason Hudson, giving the Eagles the ball with good field position.
Three runs went nowhere, however, and VCA was forced to punt. From there, the rout was on.
Lee found Gannaway down the right sideline, who, after a slick cutback to the left, took the ball 40 yards down to the Eagles’ 11 yard line. Two plays later, Lee again found Gannaway on a fade route in the end zone. The PAT was good, and the Thunder led 7-0.
After a solid kickoff return from eighth grader Malik Petty, VCA took over on its own 45-yard line. Three consecutive runs found the Eagles facing a 4th-and-six, but quarterback Evan Edwards’ pass fell incomplete and the ball went over on downs.
Sophomore Alex Taylor broke through for a sack on JCA’s ensuing possession, but on third-and-long, Thunder running back Caleb Stallings found room on the left side for a 25-yard gain on a draw play, setting JCA up in plus territory. On the next play, Lee again found Gannaway down the right sideline, this time for a 37-yard touchdown pass. The point-after was good, bringing the score to 14-0 halfway through the first quarter.
Victory found some success on the ground toward the end of the quarter behind the running of Hudson, a senior, but two false start penalties and a sack forced another Eagles punt. The ensuing punt was partially blocked, giving JCA excellent field position at its own 44 yard line.
Lee went to work again, eventually finding Gannaway down the right sideline for a 34-yard touchdown – the duo’s third of the game – just a minute into the second quarter.
After another mishandled kickoff gave JCA possession at the Eagles’ 39, Lee found Skyler Crowder for a 16-yard touchdown pass on a great catch over the middle. The PAT split the uprights, and the Thunder were rolling, 28-0, at the midpoint of the second quarter.
JCA would add another touchdown on an unbelievable catch by Bryson Dowdy, who went up high to snag a pass from Lee and tumbled into the end zone. The point-after was good, making the score 35-0 with just over three minutes remaining in the half.
Victory would mount a drive to end the half behind the powerful running of Hudson, who broke several tackles on a fourth-down conversion in Thunder territory. But that’s as close as the Eagles would get as time ran out on the first half.
The second half was played with a running clock, and JCA added a 29-yard field goal midway through the third quarter after Victory Christian came up just short on a fake punt, handing the Thunder the ball in plus territory.
On the ensuing possession, senior Jackson Wallace found running room in the middle of the field, breaking off a 28-yard gain that set VCA up with first down at the 38 yard line.
The Eagles finally got on the board on the next play as senior Evan Edwards took off around the left end and scampered down the sideline for a 38-yard touchdown. The 2-point attempt failed, making the score 38-6. And that’s where it would stay as time expired.
Despite the loss, Pace said his team has an opportunity to grow with a bye week looming.
“We’re going to come back on Monday and start practice and work on some of the mistakes we made today and some of the coverages we missed,” Pace said. “It’s a matter of, what can we do to learn from the mistakes we made today and grow from them?”
Victory is off next week but returns to action on Sept. 27 when they travel to Rainsville, Ala., to face Cornerstone Christian Academy.
Philip Poe is sports editor.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 36 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 36 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
