Patriots Fall to Morristown West Trojans, 21-10

Staff Photo by Angie Stanley

The Jefferson County Patriots hosted the Morristown West Trojans in the final matchup of a three game home stretch Friday night.  Looking to break an eight year loosing streak against the Trojans, the Patriots came in knowing they were the underdogs.

The Trojans were the first to receive the ball, winning the coin toss and electing to do so, but it wouldn’t take long for the Patriots defense to force them to punt.  Unfortunately for Jefferson County, the Patriot offense just couldn’t connect for a majority of the evening.  The Trojan defense had the Patriots so rattled that first year quarterback Bryson Sexton couldn’t connect with his receivers for most of the evening.  Late in the first quarter, the Trojans introduced themselves to the endzone via Daymion Blevens. A good extra point put the Trojans up 7-0.

Staff Photo by Angie Stanley

The battle of the defenses continued throughout the second quarter. Late in the second quarter, the Patriot offense appeared to finally start connecting.  After a drive that took the Patriots into Trojan territory, with Michael Ealy Driving the ball and a Sexton to Draven Fine pass, the Patriots looked poised to score.  The Trojan defense, though, got into the pocket, and a botched pass from Sexton made it into the arms of Blevens, who ran it back straight through Patriot territory and scored for a second time.  A good extra point put Morristown West ahead 14-0.

Late in the half, the Patriot offense drove the ball once again to Trojan territory, putting a new fire into the game, but unfortunately ended with a forced attempt at a field goal.  Kicker Carlos Gaytan was the first to put the Jefferson County Patriots on the board, and they went into the locker room at the half with a score of Trojans 14, Patriots 3.

The second half opened with what seemed to be a more enthusiastic Patriot offensive line.  After a drive that would take around 7 minutes to complete, Kris Hawkins took a wide angle and strolled from the 1 yard line around the Trojan defense.  A good extra point by Gaytan would be the last time the Patriots would score for the rest of the evening.

The rest of the game involved a Patriot defense that looked much tighter than what fans saw last week against Maryville.  They were not going down without a fight. With the Patriots coming within 4 Points of the Trojans, it looked like they may just have a chance to take over.  Unfortunately, Blevins squirmed his way out of the arms of a host of Patriots and ran up the sideline with just 8 minutes left in the game.  The good extra point put the Trojans ahead of the Patriots 21-10.

The Patriot offense was not able to recover, and with just less than a minute left in the game, Morristown’s Blevins snatched the ball from another Sexton pass to seal the deal.  The Morristown West Trojans would walk away with the victory for the ninth time in a row against the Patriots. The highlight, though, was the Patriot defense, who seem to be getting stronger week by week.  The d-line held the Trojan offense to less than 250 yards total for the game.  The duo of Issac Workman and Tucker Seay is proving to be a force to be reckoned with.  The two would account for at least 16 tackles for the evening.

Draven Fine proved to be the most effective target for Sexton Friday, accounting for over 55 yards for the evening.

The Jefferson County Patriots will be hitting the road next week, traveling to Bradley Central High School in Cleveland.  Known for putting 30-40 points on the board consistently, the Bears are going to prove to be a tough matchup for the Patriots.

Staff Photo by Angie Stanley