WS Chronicle

Football is the most popular sport in America right now.  Fans cannot get enough of football even during the NFL off season.  For your summertime football fix, the Winston-Salem Jaguars are a local semi-pro team. On Saturday, July 8, they faced off against the Carolina Razorbacks out of Lexington.

The game was a defensive battle that went into overtime with the score 0-0.  In the final minutes of the overtime period, the Razorbacks were finally able to sustain a drive and score the winning touchdown when running back I’tik Barnes ran it in from inside the 10 yard line to win the game 6-0.

The Jaguars play in the Carolina’s Elite Football Alliance.  They currently hold a 1-2 record in the league.  Their record does not accurately depict how good the team really is since they recently lost their starting quarterback who signed a contract to play football overseas. 

To start the game, the Jaguars attempted to establish themselves with the running game with no luck.  As the drive looked to stall, quarterback Calvin Peebles flung a deep ball to the sidelines that was hauled in by James Summers.  The drive continued inside the five but on first and goal Peebles fumbled the ball, giving the Razorbacks possession.

The Jaguar drive took up most of the first quarter. The Razorbacks took over with their backs on their own goal line.  They had a nice drive going before they also fumbled the ball giving it back to the Jags.  For the remainder of the half, neither team could muster any offensive stability and the half ended with a 0-0 tie. 

“Coming into the game, I knew that they were really good in their secondary, so I knew passing the ball was going to be tough,” said Razorback head coach Steven Berrier.  “I was trying to overcompensate and force the run, and that’s where I kind of failed my team.”

“The disruption of the d-line up front putting pressure on the quarterback as a unit helped a great deal,” said Jaguars defensive lineman Monty Hughley.  “When you put that pressure on him, he couldn’t really do anything.”

The third quarter was a mirror image of the first half as neither team was able to sustain any momentum.  The defenses stepped up tremendously when either side looked to gain any momentum.

As the fourth quarter began both sides played with a sense of desperation as time was winding down on scoring opportunities.  In the middle of the quarter, the Razorbacks seemed to score on a pass and catch but the play was brought back due to a penalty keeping the game tied.  Unfortunately for the Razorbacks, they were intercepted on the next play.

The Jags could not fair any better on their next possession as they also turned the ball over, throwing yet another interception.  Late in the quarter, the Razorbacks were forced to punt but the punt was muffed, giving the Jags great field position.  Even with the short field, the Jags were not able to punch it in.

Just as time was running out, the Jags had one more chance to win the game before overtime.  Lady luck was not on their side once again as they threw another interception.  This interception was returned for the apparent winning score but an illegal block in the back saved the Jags, sending the game into overtime.

The Jags got the ball first and could do nothing with it going three and out.  The Razorbacks, seeing this as their last chance, put together their best drive of the night.  Sticking to a mixture of short passes and inside runs, they finally cracked the scoreboard late, giving them the victory.

“I went back to what had got us to the point of our two-game winning streak,” said Berrier.  “Our passing attack is what helped get us there, so my guys kept telling me to go back to what got us here, so I just basically took them off the chain and let them do what they do and they made it happen.  I am very proud of them.”

Summers was disappointed with the result and the performance of the team’s offense.  He says he knows they are a better team that what they displayed on the field Saturday afternoon.

“Both teams played well but I think we could have definitely played better,” said Summers.  “We really killed ourselves by not doing our assignments and not running the routes we are supposed to.  It’s the small things, and eventually the small things will get you.”

Berrier was very pleased with the performance of his defense.  He said they really carried them in the victory.  He says having quality veterans on the team really set a nice tone for the younger guys.

For Hughley and Summers, they think once the quarterback situation gets worked out their team will be back on track. Summers says they need to go back to the drawing board and hash things out in time for their next game

For more information on the Jaguars, email James Summers at summersjamesjr1987@gmail.com..