FINAL
SPALDING JAGUARS 28
GRIFFIN BEARS 6
It was a historic night for the Spalding Jaguars who for the first time in school history earned a victory over the Griffin Bears, beating their crosstown rivals 28-6 Friday night at Memorial Stadium. The win upped Spalding’s record to 6-0 on the season (2-0 inside subregion play) while the Bears fell to 2-4 (0-2).
The two teams played staunch defense through the first two quarters with neither offense able to capitalize on the oppositions penalties and turnovers. Griffin finally managed to break the scoreless tie late in the first period. After a Jaguar punt gave the Bears the ball at the Spalding 32, an 18 yard pass from Tylan Morton to Roddy Willis set up a Isaiah Spruill 16 yard scoring run. The Bears tried a trick play on the subsequent two point attempt but the Jags were not fooled which left the score 6-0 with :50 left in the first period.
Both defenses continued to dominate the remainder of the first half which left the score unchanged going into thr intermission.
The Jaguars massive offensive line took over in the second half which sparked Spalding’s comeback. A 56 yard pass between Naricuss Driver and Chardarius Fambro midway through the third quarter set up the Jags deep in Bear territory; Kel Johnson cashed in from 4 yards out to even the score while Trey Gregory’s extra point gave the Jags the lead for good. Spalding went on to rip off 21 unanswered points, largely on the strength of Driver who posted touchdown runs of 6, 94 and 63 yards to account for the 28-6 final.
Driver, Spalding’s junior quarterback, rushed for 211 yards on the night, 204 of which came in the final two quarters while he added another 95 yards through the air.
Up next for Nick Davis and the Jaguars is a showdown Friday night at home against the Jonesboro Cardinals. Both teams are 2-0 in subregion play so the outcome will go a long way towards determining the eventual subregion championship. Kickoff is set for 7;30.
As for Griffin, the Bears next action comes on Thursday night, also at Memorial Stadium, when the opposition will be provided by Mt. Zion-Jonesboro. Start time Thursday is 7:00.
Both games will be simulcast on WKEU AM 1450 and WKEU FM 88.9 The Rock.