Westside and Long County traded momentum all night, but explosive plays and a dominant connection between Westside quarterback Jaylen Stone and receiver Elliot Jackson carried the Patriots to a 42–35 win in Friday’s Class AAA playoff matchup.
Fireworks in the first half
Long County set the tone early returning the opening kickoff to the Westside 42-yard line. The Blue Tide scored three plays later on a 9-yard run by Long County running back Tyrell Grayson to take a 7–0 lead.
Westside would come back and answer immediately. On the Patriots’ first snap, Stone hit Jackson deep for a 72-yard touchdown, tying the game 7–7. Only two minutes into the first quarter, and 14 points had already been scored.
After Westside recovered a Long County fumble on the next drive, Stone hit passes of 20 and 30 yards before connecting with Joshua Crawford on a 16-yard score to take a 14–7 lead.
Long County’s next drive would stall in Westside territory, and a good punt pinned Westside deep on their own four-yard line. This would be detrimental to the Patriots. A couple of plays later, they fumbled the ball in the end zone with the Blue Tide recovering for a touchdown to tie the game at 14-14.
Long County would halt Westside’s offense again. On their next offensive drive they would go on to regain the lead 21–14 on an 18-yard touchdown run by Long County running back Cortney Charles with 2:58 left in the half.
A miraculous first-half ending
However, Westside countered quickly. Westside running back Tamari Curry returned the kickoff well into Long County territory. Then like clockwork, Stone found Jackson again for a 38-yard touchdown to tie the game at 21–21.
After both teams traded interceptions in the final minute of the half, Westside found themselves on the 40-yard line with one second left. On a miraculous play, Stone launched the ball on a Hail Mary to Elliot Jackson, who came down with it in the endzone ending the half with Westside on top 28-21.
Jackson adds another Touchdown as Westside keeps control
Westside received the second-half kickoff and wasted no time building on its momentum. After a couple of first downs to open the third quarter, Stone connected with Jackson yet again for a 35-yard touchdown. This would extend Westside’s lead to 35–21 with eight minutes left to go in the third.
Long County’s opening second half drive was efficient initially, but would stall when they reached the Westside 44 having to punt again. However, Long County’s defense would not give up. With their backs against the wall, the Blue Tide intercepted Stone’s pass again and returned it to the Westside 19-yard line as the third quarter came to an end.
Blue Tide rally falls short
Long County capitalized on the Stone interception and would open the fourth quarter with a 9-yard touchdown pass to Ethan Miller. The opening fourth quarter touchdown brought the Blue Tide within one possession making the score 42-35.
Westside would not be phased, as they would respond again. After some first downs, Stone hit Ja’Cori Cooper for a 39-yard strike down to the Long County 8-yard line, and Curry punched in the touchdown to push the lead to 42–28 with 8:36 to go.
Long County, in desperation mode, responded by putting together a long drive to keep themselves in the game. The Blue Tide converted a 4th and 5 on a 30-yard completion before scoring on a quarterback sneak a few plays later to make the score 42–35 with 2:56 remaining.
With one last chance, Long County kicked an onside kick, but Westside recovered with ease. All Westside had to do was get a first down, as Long County was short on timeouts. Tamari Curry would do just that as he ran for 18 yards for a first down, which would lead to Westside taking a knee to end the game.
Westside improves to 10-1 and will take on the 10-1 Stephenson Jaguars next Friday, Nov. 21.
