Jackets Destroy Archrival Greenback 49-0
By Terry Futrell
After back-to-back losses and a close victory over Midway last week, some folks may have wondered what lay ahead for the Coalfield Yellow Jacket football team as they faced their biggest Region 2 rival, the Greenback Cherokees, on Friday night. The Jackets wasted no time in quieting any doubters and naysayers by totally destroying the Cherokees 49-0 in one of the most lopsided victories of the season.
A few summary statistics vividly tell the tale of the Jacket victory. Coalfield amassed 19 first downs in the game, compared to only four for Greenback. The Jacket offense cranked out 246 yards, 146 yards rushing and 100 yards passing. Greenback’s total offensive output was a mere 49 yards, -4 yards rushing and 53 yards passing. The Jacket defense was stellar in holding the Cherokees to negative rushing yardage for the entire game.
Once again, quarterback Cole Hines led the Coalfield offense by completing 8 of 14 passes for 82 yards and by carrying the ball 11 times for 38 yards and a touchdown. Luke Treece also completed 1 of 1 passes for 18 yards.
Canaan Bowling carried the ball 7 times for 38 yards and 3 touchdowns for Coalfield. Landon Lowe added 28 yards rushing and a touchdown on 7 carries. Other Jacket ball carriers included Eli Roberts (2 carries for 17 yards), Brock Jones (3 carries for 10 yards and a touchdown), Luke Treece (1 carry for 7 yards), Eli Justice (1 carry for 6 yards), and Coalton Henry (2 carries for 2 yards)
Eli Roberts had 3 receptions for 58 yards. Levi Mullins pulled in 2 receptions for 21 yards. Other receivers included Landon Lowe (1 reception for 10 yards), Rommel Conlon (1 reception for 9 yards), and Tucker West (2 receptions for 2 yards).
Luke Treece added 5 points for the Jackets, successfully kicking 5 of 6 extra points.
The game was scoreless until Jacket Canaan Bowling carried the ball for a 15-yard touchdown with 9:39 to go in the second quarter. The Jackets struck paydirt less than one minute later when Landon Lowe scored from 4 yards out. Canaan Bowling soon scored his second touchdown on a 5-yard run at 6:18 of the second quarter. The Jackets racked up 21 points in just over three minutes.
Not letting the offense have all the fun, the Jacket defense got into the scoring action when Eli Roberts picked off a Greenback pass at the Cherokee 34-yard line and returned it all the way for a touchdown with 4:35 remaining in the half. The extra point attempt failed and the Jackets led 27-0. Barely a minute and a half later, the Jacket defense scored again with a safety when the Greenback punter was ruled down in the end zone with 2:52 remaining in the half. Coalfield took a 29-0 lead to the locker room at halftime.
Canaan Bowling scored his third touchdown for the Jackets with a 9-yard run at 7:08 in the third quarter. Cole Hines later scored on a 9-yard run with 35 seconds remaining, and the Jackets held a 43-0 lead going into the fourth quarter.
The Jackets final score came with 3:44 remaining in the game when Brock Jones carried the ball into the end zone from 2 yards out. The kick failed and Coalfield closed out with a sweet 49-0 victory over the team that has been their greatest nemesis for several years.
The Jackets, undefeated in Region 2A, have only one remaining regional battle at Oliver Springs next Friday. The win over Greenback clinched the Region 2A Championship for the Jackets and assures that Coalfield will play at home for at least the first two rounds of the playoffs.
