Louisville’s Thomas Jefferson Academy improved to 6-0 Wednesday night with a 20-6 win over Augusta Preparatory Day School in a homecoming game that was rescheduled because of potential bad weather due to Hurricane Ian.
Junior Beans Hunt headlined a potent rushing attack for the Jaguars by going for 213 yards and three touchdowns on 16 carries. Hunt scored on runs of 90, 72 and five yards while following the blocking of teammates like Will McNeely and Christopher Biggers.
The Jaguars rushed for a total of 323 yards, almost twice as many as Augusta Prep, which was paced by senior Bryson Cronan, who ran the ball 26 times and picked up 101 yards and the team’s lone touchdown. For almost two quarters, Prep’s defense bent some, but didn’t break. A strong effort up front by Emory Doss (10 tackles), Fripp McDougal (9 tackles) and Ben McKinney (8 tackles) allowed the Cavaliers to keep the three time defending state champion Jaguars out of the end zone for the game’s first 21 minutes.
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After stopping Thomas Jefferson on fourth-and-goal from the 5-yard line on the first offensive series for the Jaguars, the Cavaliers made TJ turn the ball over on downs and then punt on the next two offensive series. Then after Christian Harris broke free for a 61-yard run to Thomas Jefferson’s 10-yard line towards the end of the second quarter, the Cavaliers appeared to be in business. But Prep got no closer to the end zone and turned it over on downs after TJ’s 6-6 cornerback Cole Parrish broke up his second pass of the series on fourth down to give the ball to the Jaguars at their own 10.
Two plays later, Hunt went to work. The junior took a hand-off and probed the left side of the defensive line. When Prep’s defenders over pursued the sweep, Hunt made a sharp cut up field and needed only one more key block from center Will McNeely, who sprang him for a 90-yard dash that put the first points on the board with 3:13 left in the second quarter.
Thomas Jefferson fielded the third quarter kickoff and then managed a 13-play, 64-yard touchdown drive that ate up seven minutes of game clock. Hunt pounded in his second score of the game from five yards out.
After the ensuing kickoff, TJ’s defense forced Prep’s offense to punt after three plays. Then on the second play of the following drive, Hunt got a block from Christopher Biggers that sealed the left edge and allowed Hunt to work his way around the left end before cutting back to the middle and breaking a 78-yard touchdown run.
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Prep answered with a 14-play, 74-yard touchdown drive that featured 10 carries and 39 rushing yards by Cronan, who finished the drive with a 4-yard touchdown run with 9:10 remaining.
In addition to their blocking work, Biggers (six tackles, two for losses) and McNeely (seven tackles, two for losses) led a defense that only gave up one big play (Harris’s 61-yard gain) for the Cavaliers, who fell to 2-4 after the loss.
Both teams have are off until Oct. 14 when Thomas Jefferson (class 1A) will host Bulloch Academy (4A) and Augusta Prep will host Southwest Georgia Academy
Chad Cook is a sports columnist who is known on the field and court as AugBball. Follow him on Instagram @AugBBall
