JR High Football Recap: Charleston 22, Ozark 12
OZARK – The strategy for Ozark on Thursday was simple: keep the potent Charleston offense off the field, run down the clock, and eat up time of possession. The Hillbillies executed this plan to perfection early, but the Tigers couldn’t be tamed for four quarters, ultimately coming out on top 22-12 in a tough, gritty Charleston (3-0) victory.
Ozark (2-1) took the opening kickoff and returned it 40 yards to the Charleston 39-yard line, and the Hillbillies quickly got to work with a couple of first-down carries. The short drive was capped off by a 14-yard QB keeper with 4:03 remaining in the first quarter. Ozark failed on its two-point conversion attempt to take an early 6-0 lead.
On the ensuing kickoff, Ozark was able to catch Charleston special teams off guard with a surprise onside kick, which Ozark recovered.
“Ozark took the opening kickoff, marched down the field, and made us like it,” said Charleston Jr. High Head Coach Matt Stewart, referring to his defense, which allowed first-half points for the first time this season. “They stole the possession on the onside recovery and had all the momentum early in the game.”
Despite the recovery and early momentum, the Charleston defense was able to turn the game back around in its favor. Three plays after the kickoff, Ozark was forced into a fumble recovered by Charleston’s Bryant Wilson with 2:35 remaining in the first quarter.
Charleston was then able to drive down the field on offense with a first-and-goal at the Ozark 10-yard line, but the yellow flags started raining. After two short carries on the ground, Charleston was called for a holding penalty and two consecutive false starts, forcing a third-and-goal at the 17. However, Charleston QB Daeton Stewart was unfazed, finding wide receiver Jaxson Todd on a post pattern for a 17-yard touchdown strike. This was Todd’s first receiving touchdown of the season and his second overall (he returned the opening kickoff against Booneville 75 yards for a touchdown).
Charleston then lined up to kick the extra point, but Ozark jumped offsides. Given the extra yardage, Stewart opted to go for the two-point conversion, which was successful on a Grant Little run up the middle. Charleston took an 8-6 advantage with 6:54 left in the second quarter.
After Charleston kicked off to Ozark, the Hillbillies once again went heavy with the run game, draining the clock. Ozark was eventually stopped and forced to punt to Charleston, with the Tigers taking possession at their own 27-yard line with 1:20 left in the first half. Unfortunately, disaster struck on the next play, with Ozark intercepting Stewart’s pass, giving the Hillbillies a short field to work with. Three plays later, Ozark found the end zone on a 6-yard QB keeper and took a 12-8 lead into halftime following a second failed two-point conversion. This would be the final time Ozark saw the end zone.
Charleston would start the second half by giving Ozark a dose of its own medicine, going heavy on the rushing attack and using some clock of its own. On the opening possession of the third quarter, Charleston drove the ball downfield run play after run play, capped off by a Grant Little 6-yard carry to put Charleston up 15-12 with 2:55 left in the third quarter. Little finished with five carries for 47 yards and a touchdown.
On the following possession, Charleston pushed Ozark back on offense and forced the Hillbillies into a fourth-and-15 punting situation. What would have been a three-and-out and good Charleston field position was negated by a roughing-the-punter penalty, giving Ozark a first down. However, the defense still didn’t give an inch, with Charleston stuffing an Ozark fourth-down attempt at the Charleston 23-yard line with 6:26 left in the game.
After the fourth-down stop, it didn’t take long for the Tigers to respond offensively. Running back Cooper Carruth took a carry behind the right side of the line, found an opening on the outside, and took it 75 yards down the sidelines for a touchdown to put the Tigers up 22-12 with 5:58 remaining in the game. Carruth was fantastic on the night once again, carrying eight times for 151 yards and a touchdown.
Following the touchdown, Ozark had one final offensive series, but was unable to gain a yard against the stout Charleston defense. On fourth-and-10, Ozark rolled out for a pass but was sacked by Tigers defensive tackle Erick Araujo with 3:40 remaining on the clock. Charleston followed with two carries by Carruth, one for 6 yards and another for 24 yards, to set up a first-and-goal at the Ozark 10. Charleston then took two consecutive knees to run out the clock, securing a 22-12 victory.
Charleston was led defensively by a stellar performance from linebacker Kurt Lachowsky, who had a team-leading 10 tackles on the night. Fellow linebacker Grant Little added four tackles. Six other Tigers had two tackles each for a dominant second-half defensive performance.
“Our defense stepped in a big way,” said Stewart. “Ozark had a lot of success in the first half, getting extra yardage after the tackle. But our kids weren’t letting that happen again. The Tigers played with passion and physicality, displaying the brand of football we want to be known for defensively.”
The Tigers didn’t show as much in the passing game against Ozark, mostly because they didn’t have to. Daeton Stewart finished 4-of-6 passing for 55 yards, with one touchdown and one interception. Tanner Schilling had two catches for 25 yards, Jaxson Todd had one catch for a 17-yard touchdown, and Carruth added one catch for 13 yards. On the ground, the Tigers were able to amass 199 yards rushing on the night.
When asked why the running game was working so well, Matt Stewart gave praise to his offensive line once again. “We were moving the ball at will because our offensive line was controlling the line of scrimmage,” he said. “Ozark sent a fair amount of pressure that was picked up, still allowing us to throw it when we needed to. But when our ‘dudes’ are rolling up front, we follow where they lead.”
Stewart also added that despite Charleston having shown the ability to be a prolific passing team, the run game will still be a heavy point of emphasis moving forward. “The run game has been a big part of what we have been able to accomplish so far offensively. Make no mistake about it, when you have ‘dudes’ up front, not much else matters because they pave the way.”
The win improves the Tigers’ record to 3-0, and they will host the Golden Arrows of Lavaca next Thursday in Charleston for the conference opener. Ozark falls to 2-1 and will travel to Mena in their conference opener.
All photo credits to Sharon Baumgartner Dewitt.
