J.Z. George moved to 2-2 on the season with a 20-8 come-from-behind win over Holly Springs High School last Friday night in North Carrollton at Farris Jenkins Field.
Holly Springs led 8-0 early in the contest before the Jaguars righted the ship and shut down the Hawks the rest of the way.
“They (Holly Springs) opened the game by driving down the field and scoring to lead 8-0,” said J.Z. George head coach Rusty Smith. “I think it caught us off guard. I called the entire team together after that, and I let them know how I felt about that. We weren’t focused to start the game. It was homecoming and there had been plenty of distractions all week.
“I’m proud of the way they responded after that opening drive. Our offensive and defensive lines did a lot better job. We ran for close to 200 yards as a team, and we held Holly Springs out of the end zone the rest of the game.”
Smith said he was glad to see senior Kendarius Head run the ball so well. He finished with 90 yards and 11 carries. He also had one reception for 20 yards.
“We ran the ball well as a team, and I was glad to see how hard Ken ran the ball,” Smith added.
Senior D’Anthony McGlothan tacked on 80 yards on 11 carries and scored a touchdown. He also caught a TD pass from Head. He had two catches for 50 yards on the night. Senior quarterback Jordun Normal was only 2-of-9 for 40 yards.
“Jordun was a little banged up from the previous game, and we tried to keep it so he didn’t have to run with the ball as much,” added Smith. “He’s going to be ready to go full strength Friday.”
The defense also did its part. Keiyhaun Wilks had eight total tackles with four of the stops being quarterback sacks. Da’Ravion Seals had eight tackles, and Alex Criss and Jordun Normal had an interception apiece. Criss returned his pick 100 yards.
“He probably ran 150 yards by the time he zig-zagged all over the field,” Smith said.
Friday’s Opponent
The Jaguars hit the road as they travel to Greenwood to take on the Amanda Elzy Panthers.
“We’re going to have to play to beat Elzy. I watched their film from last week. They like to mix it up, so our defense has got to play a good game. Our goal is to do some of the same things we did last week against Holly Springs,” Smith said.
“This is a good matchup for both teams. We’re less than 30 minutes apart, so it only makes sense to play them. From what I understand, they’ve had some good games in the past.”
J.Z. George holds a 7-5 lead in the all-time series which dates back to 1981. Elzy won the last meeting in 2018, 24-6, while the Jaguars prevailed 26-6 in 2017. J.Z. George won the first two games in the series in 1981 and 1982 by scores of 22-13 and 40-6, respectively.
