Jackets Defeat Midway 41-6 and Advance to State Quarterfinals
The Coalfield Yellow Jackets shut down half of Midway’s balanced offense and defeated the Greenwave 41-6 Friday evening, advancing to the TSSAA State Class 1A Quarterfinals.
Midway had previously beaten Unaka in round one of the playoffs with a combination of passing and rushing that overwhelmed Unaka late in the game. Coalfield’s defense took away the Greenwave running game, limiting Midway to 17 yards net rushing for the game.
The aggressive Jacket defense constantly pressured Midway quarterback Emmett Hegland, limiting him to 13 of 28 pass completions and -6 net yards rushing. Midway gained 205 net yards passing, with Seth Gordon leading Greenwave receivers with eight receptions for 150 yards and one touchdown. Three Greenwave drives were halted by Coalfield interceptions, including one by Landon Galyon that was returned 68 yards for a Jacket touchdown. Eli Roberts returned an interception for 24 yards, and Coalton Henry also intercepted a Hegland pass.
The Jackets ran a balanced offense to near perfection, racking up 121 net yards rushing and 211 net yards passing. Though playing injured at less than 100%, Coalfield quarterback Cole Hines found speedy Jacket receivers behind Midway defenders and completed 9 of 13 pass attempts (69%) for 211 yards and three touchdowns.
Hines targeted six different receivers, with 5 of his 9 completions being greater than 20 yards. Hines’ longest completion was for 62 yards to Eli Roberts for a touchdown. In addition to Roberts, Coalfield’s top receivers were Galyon with two catches for 35 yards and a touchdown, Canaan Bowling with two catches for 27 yards, and Landon Lowe with two catches for 18 yards and a touchdown.
Hines also ran the ball three times for 33 yards. Coalfield used eight different ball carriers, with Lowe, Hines, Bowling, Coalton Henry, and Galyon each averaging five or more yards per carry.
While the entire Jacket team delivered a performance that would make any coach feel proud, the play of the defense was especially noteworthy. The D-line and linebackers almost completely shut down Midway’s running attack. At the same time, the defensive secondary made life even more difficult for Midway quarterback Hegland, who is an excellent passer. Matching Midway receivers stride-for stride, Coalfield’s defensive backs stuck like glue, deflecting several passes and intercepting three. The tremendous improvement of Coalfield’s defensive secondary since the Gordonsville game on September 24 was obvious.
With the dominating victory over Midway, Coalfield advances to the TSSAA quarterfinals and faces Cloudland at Roan Mountain next Friday. Cloudland, which defeated Oakdale Friday evening 60-16, is primarily a running team and will definitely test Coalfield’s defensive line. As a point of comparison, Cloudland defeated North Greene on October 29 by a score of 38-8. The following week, Coalfield defeated North Greene 58-0.