By JASON KING
Leader sportswriter
Jacksonville’s freshmen Red Devils had little trouble keeping hold of the Chili Bowl trophy on Thursday at North Pulaski’s Falcon Stadium. Jacksonville won the annual game 41-0. The win was sweet, but the aftermath wasn’t. Jacksonville needed Sheridan to beat Maumelle in order to play in the River City Conference championship game, but the Hornets beat the Yellowjackets 16-8. That means that two teams Jacksonville beat, White Hall and Maumelle, will play each other for the title.
“We’d like to have the two we lost back, that’s for sure,” Red Devil coach Max Hatfield said. “We did-n’t have everybody out for two-a-days and were still learning early. But I’m proud of the way the kids came together and played so well later in the season.”
The Red Devils, 7-2, came out hot in their final game. They took the opening drive 78 yards in four plays with four different players getting the ball. Lamont Gause went for 11, Jarvis McChrston for 16, Laderrious Perry for 32 and Kerry Knight went the final 19 for the score with 6:50 left in the first quarter.
North Pulaski was putting together a decent drive, going 13 yards in 7 plays. That’s when Perry stepped in front of an NP pass, picked it off and returned it 18 yards to the Falcon 32.
It took three plays for Jacksonville to make it 14-0. Justin Abbott got the first 12 and McChriston got 17 more on his second reception. Quarterback Greg Jones did the rest and Knight got the two point conversion to make it 14-0 with 2:50 left in the first.
The Falcons then got a 10-play drive that went 22 yards before a fumble and a loss of 12 yards thwarted the drive.
Yet another Red Devil got in on the offensive assault on the first play of the ensuing drive. Jeremy Wilson went 31 yards to the NP 12. Knight got the rest and the conversion made it 22-0 with 4:30 left in the second quarter.
With 18 seconds left in the first half, Gause took the handoff around the left side for six yards and another score. The failed PAT left it 28-0 at intermission.
The Falcons fumbled a pitch on the first drive of the second half and Jacksonville defensive lineman Marquis Jones covered it at the Falcon 31.
Three plays later, another wildcat handoff left to Gause went 29 yards for the score to make it 34-0 at the 5:10 mark of the third.
The two teams traded possessions without a first down four times until North Pulaski began to move the ball midway through the fourth. But after their deepest penetration into Jacksonville territory, a pass was picked off by Keilen Richardson near the NP sideline. Richardson reversed field and raced down the visitors’ sideline 70 yards for the final score of the game.
Jacksonville finished with 216 total yards to just 78 for North Pulaski. The Red Devils spread it around well. No player had more than 46 total yards, but five players had over 30. Gause led the way with three carries for 46 yards and two touchdowns. Knight had 39 total yards, 31 rushing and eight receiving. McChriston led the team in receiving with two catches for 33 yards. And Wilson’s one run was good for 31.
Defensively, Jacksonville’s Courtland McDonald had two sacks and a tackle for loss. Makenley Northern-Wilson also had a pair of sacks in the contest.
Jason Schrunk led North Pulaski with 12 carries for 41 yards.
