By By Chandler Myers
Home field advantage was not a factor for the Northview Chiefs as they were defeated on their stomping ground 36-13 by the Walton Braves Friday night.
The Chiefs (1-2) could never fully capitalize against a stingy Walton defense and the defense had a tough time tackling the Braves receivers and backs.
Northview head coach Cody Keene said the loss was disappointing and that his team just made too many mistakes on both sides of the ball.
In the first quarter, the Braves scored quickly driving down the field in just a couple minutes and making it to the end zone on a big pass completion.
On the following drive, the Chiefs looked as if they would answer the touchdown with one of their own and moved the ball 56 yards before giving it up on fourth down.
Senior quarterback Jay Jackson pushed the ball the majority of the 56 yards with rushing gains of eight, 22, five and nine yards. He also completed two passes to junior wide receiver Chris Sheets for 15 yards and a long yardage gain of 21 on fourth down.
Walton’s next possession moved 23 yards, but ended on a fourth and one play after Braves senior running back Issac Jackson fumbled the ball and gave it back to the Chiefs on their own 39-yard line.
The Chiefs ended the first quarter with Jay Jackson being sacked for a seven-yard loss. At the beginning of the second quarter ,Jackson was sacked again for a four-yard loss by the a host of Braves defensive players and forced Northview to punt, which would lead to more points for the Braves. After the snap, several Walton players forced their way into the backfield, blocked their first of two Chief punts and took it back the opposite direction for a touchdown to increase their lead to 14.
Walton head coach Lenny Jankowski said that his team worked hard on special teams and came up with great plays that led to two key touchdowns.
Things would not get any better for Northview on their next drive when two plays in Shakel Holmes fumbled the ball back to the Walton Braves.
The Braves offense started at the Chief 24-yard line and moved the ball 15 yards the first play through the legs of freshman running back Tray Williams followed by I. Jackson moving the ball three more yards. The following play senior quarterback Tarrell Bramlet hit senior wide receiver Deron Hogans with a five-yard completion.
I. Jackson hit the holes with an eight-yard run that brought up a fourth and one situation. On fourth down, the Chiefs defense stepped up and kept the Braves out of the end zone.
The excitement would not last long for the Chiefs who had an incomplete pass thrown by junior Austin Reid. Following the incompletion, Reid was sacked in the end zone for a safety and the Braves went up 16-0.
After getting the two points, the Braves continued their domination of Northview by driving 38 yards to the end zone behind the teamwork of Jackson and Bramlet to bring the score to 23-0.
Jankowski said that the Braves’ offensive and defensive lines both executed well all game and the offensive line’s push led to several opportunities.
The Chiefs showed signs of life after the kickoff with J. Jackson completing a pass to sophomore receiver Austin Arrington for a five-yard pick up. Two plays later, Jackson did a backwards pass to Reid who then hit a wide-open Chris Sheets for a 56-yard completion. The next play J. Jackson stepped into the backfield and pushed his way into the end zone and with the extra point attempt, the Chiefs closed the gap 23-7.
Both offenses fell into a stalemate with each team giving the ball up on fourth down and went into the half with the Braves still up 16 points.
Northview started the third quarter with the ball on their own 34-yard line and Jackson moved the ball three yards with Shakel Holmes following the next play with a one-yard rush. The Chiefs stopped themselves on third down and punted the ball back to the Braves.
On first and 10 from the Chiefs’ 48-yard line, Jackson took a handoff from Bramlet and scooted four-yards to the 44. Jackson took another handoff and pushed his way 11 more yards to the 33, and then Bramlet hit Williams with a 24-yard rocket to move down to the 13. Two plays and 13 yards later Jackson bulldozed his way into the end zone and the Braves extended their lead 30-7.
When it seemed like nothing else could go wrong, Northview was forced into another fourth and long situation. J. Jackson hit Sheets for a four-yard pick up, which was followed by senior running back Kevin Cattrell fumbling the ball for a seven-yard loss.
With nothing to lose and everything to gain, Walton brought every man they could and blocked another Chiefs punt and returned it for their final touchdown to make the score 36-7.
The Chiefs began moving the ball on their next drive with Cattrell carrying the football 0 yards to the Chief 39-yard line. Jackson then ran the ball for two yards and hit senior wide receiver for a completion of 14 yards. Jackson then carried the ball another four yards, but the Chiefs could get no further and turned the ball over on downs.
The defense picked up the slack for the Chiefs and caused a fumble, which was recovered by Northview. Jackson started the series with a five-yard scramble followed by another backwards pass to Reid who hit sheets for another huge gain of 29 yards. Cattrell followed up the big pass play with a six-yard rush to the 30. The positive gains stopped after Jackson was sacked for a 20-yard loss and caused another punt.
The Braves then got the ball back and began to run down the clock and punted the ball back to the Chiefs who went four and out and gave the ball back.
The Chiefs' defense showed some spirit and were not done scoring when freshman cornerback Montaio Mitchell intercepted Braves’ sophomore quarterback Liam Miller’s pass and returned it for a touchdown to make the final score 36-13.
Keene said that Walton has a good football team and added that they came out ready to fight and proved to be the better team tonight.
Northview travels to Bonifay to take on Holmes County High School next Friday.