In a back-and-forth contest, the Crowley Gents desperately needed a big play late in the game during their matchup with North Vermilion in the final game of the Acadia/Vermilion Jamboree Friday night.
And that’s exactly what they got.
Jai’Rece Lewis broke through the line with six seconds left and blocked what would have been a 30-yard, game-winning field goal by Hunter Hulin, allowing the Gents to hold on for a nail-biting 21-19 victory.
“We gave them (North Vermilion) some life there at the end and they have a good kicker,” said CHS coach Jeptha Wall, whose team shanked a punt with 41 seconds remaining and then added a personal foul that put the Patriots at the 13-yard line with time ticking away.
“It was one of those bone-headed penalties that got them in field goal range, but we did a good job of getting through right there and Jai’Rece made a great play.”
Lewis’ play on special teams saved the game, but that was only part of his contribution for the Gents: he also had an outstanding game on offense as well.
In fact, he scored the first touchdown of the game midway through the first half when he took a handoff and raced to the far sideline. With defenders blocking every lane, the speedster reversed the field and ran to the near sideline, outrunning everyone to the end zone for a 9-yard score.
Lewis finished with four carries for 39 yards.
“We get hemmed up on the goal line and Jai’Rece turns the field back around and goes around the other side...that was a big play,” said Wall.
It was, however, one of many big plays turned in by the Gents’ offense, one that put up 288 yards and racked up 11 first downs.
With just nine seconds remaining in the first half and facing a second-and-long situation, quarterback Marquis Garrett connected with Rapheus Joseph on a 16-yard scoring strike to give the Gents a 14-7 advantage at the break following a 2-pt conversion pass to Obadiah Butler.
Garrett, who completed 7-of-10 attempts for 149 yards, also had big passes to Demarcus Dioron, including a 17-yarder on the Gents’ first offensive play.
Dioron had three catches for 79 yards and Joseph hauled in two passes for 28.
“Marquis looked full speed tonight,” said Wall of his quarterback. “Rapheus caught the ball well and Demarcus made some big catches in there. Those guys have big play capability but they are really good at converting first downs. They both catch the ball well in front of them, even with people hanging on them.”
And then there was Butler, a shifty and speedy running back who exploded for 93 yards and a touchdown on eight carries.
Butler’s first carry of the night went for 33 yards and he followed that up with a 44-yard burst. He scored the first touchdown of the second half on a 13-yard scamper that was set up by a 47-yard reception by Dioron.
“Obadiah is hard to prepare for,” said Wall of Butler, who also had one reception on a big third down play that went for 25 yards. “He’s elusive and he’s hard to catch in space. He makes a lot of people miss.”
Jonteyvan Marks also had one reception for 17 yards for the Gents.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Gents struggled at times and gave up 255 yards.
The bulk of those yards were turned in by standout running back Malik Criner, who turned in a pair of big plays for touchdowns. The senior, who rushed for 1,500 yards in 2017, scored on a 66-yard run in the first half and then hit paydirt from 53 yards out with just three minutes remaining in the game.
“We gave up a hit-and-go from getting our eyes in the backfield with the corner back and we overran a G on the first one that broke,” said Wall. “We just have some things to clean up...you know, running down hill and attacking the ball, not running flat.
“But that’s a really good back that they have.”
Although there were some breakdowns on defense, there were also a lot of positives.
The Gents shut the Patriots down of three of their first four offensive series in the first half and then forced the hosts to a three-and-out on the first series of the second half.
“We were able to make a few plays and we out-muscled them some,” said Wall of his defense. “We’re a little bit bigger than we usually are. It’s nice to finally have a little size.”
Although there were a number of positives on the night, Wall says there is still a lot of improvement to be made.
“I’m never comfortable,” said Wall. “There’s a lot of things to clean up still. I think we are a lot further ahead offensively than we were last year but we have a ways to go.
“We have some good things happening but we had some dead spots. We were a little gassed and our special teams were off. Some of those things, we need to clean up and readjust personnel wise.”
The Gents return to action on Friday when they play host to the Iowa Yellow Jackets in the regular season opener at 7 p.m.