There was no real worry on the Stephenson sidelines when they were pinned at the 1 yard line. The Jaguars just ran the ball … and ran it … and ran it … much like they did the entire game. It resulted in a 99-yard touchdown drive that led to an 18-13 win over Westminster at Hallford Stadium.
“I was thinking I want to score,” said Stephenson running back Devin Ingram. “I just want to say thank you to my big guys up front.”
Ingram and teammate Cheik Keita took care of business on the ground. Ingram, the more physical runner, rushed 33 times for 191 yards and one touchdown. Keita, a more elusive runner, carried 13 times for 90 yards and scored two touchdowns, including the go-ahead score with 7:27 remaining.
“We just leaned on those big guys up front,” said Stephenson coach Marcus Jelks. “It’s a young line, but they’ve been doing a great job.”
Stephenson starts only one senior up front, with one junior and three sophomores.
The Jags scored on the first play of the second quarter when Ingram powered in from the 7, but a bad snap wiped out the extra point and left Stephenson with a 6-0 lead.
Westminster answered with a touchdown drive and quarterback John Collier pushed it in from the 1. Josh Brockman’s extra point put the Wildcats ahead 7-6 at the half.
Stephenson regained the lead on a 4-yard run by Keita, but failed on the two-point run and had a 12-7 lead. Westminster then answered when Collier connected with Vincent Bontempo for a 47-yard touchdown. The Wildcats opted for a two-point conversion, but the pass failed and they led 13-12.
The Jaguars put it away with the 99-yard drive, forced Westminster to punt, and then ran out the clock with some hefty runs by Ingram.
Stephenson (4-2, 2-0 Region 6-4A) ran for 295 yards and passed for an additional 26 yard on the night the school celebrated Homecoming.
“We just put in extra work, overtime, especially with the line and then we just go,” Ingram said. “We like to run the ball a log. Damon’s pretty quick. We try to split the carries. We’re like a one-two combination. We play different, so you can’t really game plan both of us.”
Westminster (4-3, 1-1) ran for 60 yards and passed for 114, but the Wildcats ran only 31 offensive plays because Stephenson’s offense was difficult to get off the field. Collier completed 6 of 10 passes.
“This was a good win, but we’ve still got to take it one week at a time,” Jelks said. “The region championship is our goal. That’s what we’re fighting for.”
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