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Offense explodes as Jackson football repeats in district title rout of Seckman
For the second time in as many years in Class 6, Jackson football is bringing home a district championship plaque after a 49-28 victory at Seckman on Friday night.
After the Jaguars, who entered undefeated and grabbed the top seed in the district, kicked off to Jackson, the Indians showed no sign of retreat as they stormed out to an early 20-point lead and never gave heed.
The win improved Jackson to 9-2, the eighth consecutive victory for an Indians team that sat below the .500 mark going into conference play but has drastically improved in all three phases seemingly each week.
Seckman, now 10-1 once more, sees another undefeated season going into the district title game put to bed, having a much greater effort in Friday’s matchup than last season but still never able to keep Jackson off the scoreboard.
With 2022‘s early exit against Poplar Bluff seemingly marking the end of a long dynastic run for the Indians in the postseason, it’s now two consecutive district titles as they claim their stake in their newly-minted home of Class 6.
“We really wanted to work to get back to this point,” Indians coach Ryan Nesbitt said. “There's been a lot of hours with nobody around in preparation for this.
“Really, really pleased with some guys stepping up tonight and getting some opportunities that have just been consummate teammates.”
Receiving the opening kickoff, quarterback Drew Parsons made his name known right away.
Creating a huge scoring impact in last year’s matchup, it was his time to shine under the Imperial, Missouri lights, and his 70-yard rushing touchdown on the option got the Indians crowd loud and proud as they went up 7-0 just 14 seconds in.
Parsons, a junior, got a big pancake block from sophomore tackle Brayden Harris in the backfield and hit the gas around the edge, grabbing the near sideline for another long rushing touchdown, perhaps his greatest specialty.
Needing to make a full-blown marvel of a performance to replicate last year’s trouncing, Parsons wasted little time and kept the offense humming to build up a big lead once more.
“I don't know if he could play much better,” Nesbitt said. “I think he had one incompletion.”
Parsons passed for over 300 yards, helping send the Indians hurdling over the Jaguars with a combined six touchdowns on the ground and through the air.
After a Jaguars 3-and-out, the Indians forced a punt and sophomore wideout Evan Turley kept the hot start going with a 10-yard touchdown catch to double the edge.
Boyd Langford made an emphatic stop for Jackson as he snagged a pick right up the middle to get the Jags off the field.
A pair of long passing touchdowns to Kamden Brockmire and Kai Crowe had Jackson up 28-7 at the break, with Seckman getting on the board with an 8-yard rush from Ben Lewis but otherwise having little luck.
A muffed punt from Seckman got the Jaguars deep in Jackson territory early in the third quarter, capitalized at the goal line with a yard-and-a-half conversion on fourth down to cut the lead to 14.
Brockmire came up with a long catch, down inside Seckman’s 5-yard line before Jaylon Hampton punched it in from a yard out to make it a 35-14 lead.
Just two plays later, Langford got another turnover with a fumble recovery and a return before Parsons hit sophomore Grant Brown in stride for Touchdown No. 6.
Langford’s two turnovers played a big role in the confidence meter for Jackson, with the defense helping keep Parsons and Co. in high spirits both this year and last.
Forcing a fumble in the semifinals against Lindbergh, it’s a familiar sight for the junior who continues to make the biggest plays in the biggest of moments.
On Seckman’s next drive, just as it started to get upfield, safety Tyson Ford got a huge interception off a third-down deflection to silence the Jaguar crowd, allowing Jackson to commence a potential running-clock drive.
Crowe got a screen ball and turned up into his blocks, running 50 yards for the seventh touchdown to ignite the running clock up 49-14.
Seckman scored another two touchdowns to make the score prettier at 49-28, but the Indians took their foot off the gas to cruise into a big win that saw them jump back on top of Class 6 District 1.
The final horn allowed veteran big man Marcus Cutsinger to take hold of the district championship plaque, the perfect ending to a magnificent night anchoring Jackson’s young defense.
He and Langford have been essential pieces of the Indians’ young low game, and after making a crowd-crushing boom of a hit to start the game, he got Jackson’s defense humming to the tune of 7 points allowed in the first half and a district championship-worthy performance.
“He’s such a rock,” Nesbitt said of Cutsinger. “He's a guy that exudes confidence.
“He’s a guy that's bringing dudes along, so we’re thankful and fortunate to have him with what he means from a leadership standpoint.”
The victory sets up a date with Kirkwood in the state quarterfinals, with the Pioneers coming off an unprecedented victory over Christian Brothers in the Class 6 District 2 final game on Friday night.
Winning 28-26, the Pioneer defense made a miraculous couple of stops at the end of the game to seal off a win that’s sure to shake the Class 6 picture right down to the very core.
The 8-2 Kirkwood side is no slouch, though, with both of its losses coming to magnificent St. Louis-suburban powerhouses in Lafayette and Eureka, who themselves have lost very few games.
It’ll send Jackson up I-55 for a road quarterfinal, its first since a 2020 victory at Chaminade en route to an eventual state title a few short weeks later.
Though Indians fans seem quite pleased to have the Cadets out of the playoff picture, there’s no room to celebrate as the Pioneers will give them every last bit of a battle next Friday with semifinal rights on the line.
“No matter the moment, this is what we're working for,” Nesbitt said. “Excited to be here.”