Patriots Suffer First Loss to Maryville Rebels, 41-17

Staff Photo by Angie Stanley

Staff Photo by Angie Stanley

Dumplin Valley was buzzing Friday night as thousands from the community converged on Leroy Shannon Field to watch the Jefferson County Patriots take on the Maryville High School Rebels. In a game that the Patriots absolutely expected to be a hard battle, the young Jefferson County team sought to go head to head with a more seasoned Maryville team headed by some familiar names to JCHS history.

In the first drive of the game, the Patriots successfully found a hole in the Rebels’ defense. After getting the ball from Bryson Sexton, Michael Ealy brought the ball right into Maryville’s territory. A successful pass to wide receiver Draven Fine immediately put the Patriots on the board; with a successful extra point from Carlos Gaytan the Patriots were up 7-0 in the first minutes of the game.

That lead would be short lived as the Rebels got the ball. Rebels’ wide receiver Christian Markham made the drive through the Patriot defense to the endzone. The extra point was missed, and the Patriots were still ahead. The Patriots got the ball back and, unfortunately, proceeded to lose it. The Maryville Rebels took full advantage of the gap they found in the Patriots defenses, with long passes to wide receiver Will White. The Patriots were still trying to hold their own, though, with the first quarter ending with a score of 13-7.

Staff Photo by Angie Stanley

Staff Photo by Angie Stanley

The second quarter started with the Rebels scoring on their next 2 possessions. Before they knew it, the Patriots were down 27-7, but were not going down without a fight. Tightening up their defenses late in the half and regaining the ball, they ended up being limited to a field goal. The Patriots went into the half down 27-10.

Coming out from halftime, the Patriot defense tightened up. Tucker Seay, Zack Rogers, and Issac Workman worked together to find the play and execute the tackles. After finally being able to stop the Maryville drive from making it to the endzone, the Patriots took full advantage of getting the ball back. Early in the half, Sexton ran one in to the enzone to put the Patriots back in to the ball game, and close in on the Rebels 27-17.

Unfortunately for the Patriots, the Rebels had something else up their sleeve. With the passing game between Hopkins and White as the star, the Maryville Rebels would score during the third. Scoring yet again sealed the deal on the game. Like letting the air out of a balloon, in the final minutes of the game the Patriots were simply tired and disheartened. The final score of the game was Maryville 41, Jefferson County 17.

The focus now shifts to the next opponent, Morristown West. The 1-2 Trojans will be coming to Jefferson County fresh off a 28-8 win against David Crockett. Kickoff is set for Friday at 7:30.

Source: Angie Stanley, Jefferson County Post Sports